Football in Berlin

Football in Berlin, the capital of Germany, has a long history. The city contributed 24 of the 86 founders of the DFB, the German Football Association. The DFB Cup Final has been held every year at the Olympiastadion since 1985.

Berlin's Olympiastadion hosted the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final. The DFB Cup Final is held every year at the venue since 1985.
Supporters choreography at a match of 1. FC Union Berlin.

The two main football clubs in Berlin are Hertha BSC and 1. FC Union Berlin. Hertha BSC, a founder of the DFB, played in the West German system during the Cold War. 1. FC Union Berlin played in the East German system.

The Olympic Stadium hosted the later stages of football at the 1936 Summer Olympics, with the other matches played at smaller grounds in the city. The ground was also a venue in the 1974 FIFA World Cup group containing both West and East Germany. The 2006 FIFA World Cup Final was held at Olympiastadion and saw Italy defeat France on penalties. In 2015 the UEFA Champions League Final was held in Berlin.

Football culture
Fan Fest 2006.

Open Air gatherings of several hundred thousands spectators have become popular during international football competitions, like the World Cup or the UEFA European Championship. Many fans and viewers come together to watch the matches on huge video screens. The event is known as the Fan Mile and takes place at the Brandenburg Gate every two years.[1]

Clubs

Hertha BSC
Main article: Hertha BSC
Fans of Hertha BSC in the Olympic Stadium.

Hertha BSC were founded on 25 July 1892 and were a founding member of the German Football Association (DFB) in 1900. Hertha won its only two German championships in 1930 and 1931, the latter being the last DFB league title won by a Berlin club.[2] Hertha was the most successful club in the Brandenburg football championship (1892–1933), winning on 12 occasions, including seven consecutive titles between 1925 and 1931 and the last-ever season in 1932-33 before the league's abolition by the Nazi regime.[3]

The club was a founder of the German Bundesliga in 1963, but has never won its title. They currently play in the Bundesliga following promotion after finishing champions of the 2. Bundesliga in the 2012–13 season. Hertha are a tenant of the Olympic Stadium.

In 1999–2000, Hertha were Berlin's first-ever representative in the UEFA Champions League, defeating Anorthosis Famagusta of Cyprus to qualify for the First Group Stage, where they advanced at the expense of Italy's AC Milan. In the Second Group Stage they were eliminated after finishing bottom.[4]

1. FC Union Berlin
Main article: 1. FC Union Berlin
Union Berlin have played at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei since 1920.

FC Olympia 06 Oberschöneweide was established in 1906, from a merger of three smaller local clubs in Oberschöneweide (despite a team of a similar name winning the German title the previous year, Union 92 Berlin).[5] The team were runner-up in the 1923 German football championship, where they lost 0-3 in the final to Hamburger SV.

After World War II the club was temporarily banned, and then re-established as SG Oberschöneweide. Located in the eastern part of Berlin, the club suffered badly from the division of the city. Due to Soviet authorities imposing a travel ban on the club, most players and coaches left for West Berlin in 1950 to form SC Union 06 Berlin. The remaining part carried on as SG Union Oberschöneweide, which was the name of the club since 1948. Following a series of name changes and mergers, the club was re-founded as football club 1. FC Union Berlin in 1966. Despite some early mild success in post-split Germany, Union were relatively unsuccessful in East Germany, frequently changing between 1st and 2nd division. They won the east German cup in 1968.

In the 1990s the club was present mostly in regional leagues (third division) and were promoted to 2. Bundesliga in 2001. After three years they were relegated twice to fourth division but won, after being promoted to third division again, 3. Liga in 2009 to reach 2. Bundesliga. Union reached the final of the 2000–01 DFB-Pokal before losing 2–0 in the final in Berlin to Schalke 04.[6] Union were promoted to the Bundesliga for the first time in their history in 2019, following a 2–2 aggregate draw in the Promotion-Relegation Playoff with VfB Stuttgart, which Union won on away goals.[7]

The club plays at Stadion An der Alten Försterei, which the club and its predecessors has occupied since 1920. The stadium has a capacity of 22,012 spectators, for the most part on standing terraces. The venue became also known for events like the annual "Weihnachtssingen" (Christmas Carols Event) and the "WM-Wohnzimmer" (World Cup Living Room) in 2014.

Today, Union Berlin is well known for its enthusiastic and creative fan base and for its chant "Eisern Union" (Iron Union).[8] The club is widely recognized as one of Germany's cult clubs, based on many unique initiatives over the last two decades.[9]

BFC Dynamo
BFC Dynamo in 1979 after winning their first of ten consecutive East German league titles.
Main article: Berliner FC Dynamo

Dynamo Berlin was founded in 1953 in East Berlin as a club for the Stasi secret police force, and was refounded in 1966 following a lull of three years without competing. Due to their connections, the club had a reputation for corruption, and won a record 10 East German titles (in succession between 1979 and 1988)[10] and 3 Cups.

Dynamo are the only Berlin club to reach the semi-finals of a major European tournament. Representing East Germany, the club reached the last four of the 1971–72 European Cup Winners' Cup before losing to Dynamo Moscow of the Soviet Union in a penalty shoot-out.[11]

After a successful 2013–14 season, the club qualified for the Regionalliga Nordost[12] and moved permanently back to the stadium of its heyday, the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark.[13]

FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin
The football team of BFC Viktoria around 1910-1913.
Main articles: BFC Viktoria 1889 and FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin

BFC Viktoria 1889 was established in 1889 and was a founder of the DFB in 1900. The club emerged as the strongest football club in Berlin at the turn of the century, until World War I, and won two German championships (1907–08 and 1910–11). It was weakened by the division of Berlin during the Cold War, as only one club from West Berlin was permitted entry to the new Bundesliga in 1963, an honour given to Hertha. The club won the 1893–94 German Championship on 28 July 2007, in a two-legged final 113 years after their opponents FC Hanau 93 decided not to travel 400 km to Berlin on the original occasion.[14]

The club announced its plans to merger with Lichterfelder FC in March 2013. The new club competes under the name FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin, and the full the name of the new association is Fußballclub Viktoria 1889 Berlin Lichterfelde-Tempelhof e. V. The aim of the merger is to become the third club in the ongoing evolution of Berlin football, behind Hertha BSC and 1. FC Union Berlin.[15] After a successful 2012-13 season, the club finished first in the Oberliga Nordost and thus qualified for the Regionalliga Nordost.

Tennis Borussia Berlin
Main article: Tennis Borussia Berlin

Tennis Borussia Berlin was founded in 1902 as Berliner Tennis- und Ping-Pong-Gesellschaft Borussia taking its name from its origins as a tennis and ping-pong club. Borussia is a Latinised version of Prussia and was a widely used name for sports clubs in the former state of Prussia. In 1903 the club took up football and quickly developed a rivalry with Berlin's leading side Hertha BSC.

After World War II and into the early 1950s, TeBe emerged as Berlin's top side but were unable to keep up their form and earn selection to the Germany's new professional league, the Bundesliga, formed in 1963. The team played in tier II leagues throughout the 60s and 70s with the exception of two short-lived forays into the Bundesliga in 1974–75 and 1976–77. Most of the 1980s were spent playing in the third tier Oberliga Berlin.

Through most of its history TeBe has been afflicted by financial problems but has always managed to hang on while many other of Berlin's clubs folded or disappeared in mergers.

Finally, in 2000, the club had adopted its current name "Tennis Borussia Berlin", as the club had always been known under this moniker and to avoid being mistaken as a tennis club.

Ethnic clubs

Berlin's oldest Jewish football club, Bar Kochba Berlin, founded in 1898, merged with another, Hakoah Berlin in 1930 to form Bar Kochba-Hakoah. Under the Nazi regime, Jewish clubs were segregated in 1933 and dissolved in 1938. Jewish clubs competed in other sports from the end of the war, but it was not until 1970 that Bar Kochba-Hakoah were revived as a football club, as a member of the Maccabi World Union which encourages Jewish sport. Now competing as TuS Makkabi Berlin in the sixth-tier Berlin-Liga, the club made headlines in Germany and the Jewish State of Israel[16] in October 2006. Despite the club's low profile and the increase in tolerance in German society, the club were subjected to anti-Semitic, Neo-Nazi chants from fans and players of VSG Altglienicke.[17]

Türkiyemspor Berlin is another sixth-tier Berlin-Liga club, founded in 1978 and composed of Germans of Turkish descent. In 2010-11, it was relegated from the fourth-tier Regionalliga Nord. The name Turkiyemspor is used by other Turkish-centred clubs in Germany and abroad. Former Turkish international Ümit Karan began his career at the club. SV Yeşilyurt, another club founded by immigrants from Izmir and Istanbul, was founded in 1973 and wound up in 2007 when it merged with Berliner AK 07. AK, despite being founded in 1907, have merged with various Turkish-centred clubs in its history and since 2006 has been in partnership with the Turkish club Ankaraspor, taking on their name and colours for the 2006-07 season.

FC Polonia Berlin is a football club founded by Poles living in Berlin and Germans of Polish descent. The club was founded in 2012, but it refers to the heritage of the Polski Klub Sportowy Berlin (PSK Berlin) founded in 1911 and merged with BSG Handelsorganisation Berlin (BSG HO Berlin) in 1951. BSG HO Berlin was attached to SV Empor in 1954 and renamed BSG Empor Nord Berlin. The club was known as BSG Empor HO Berlin from 1974. The club reached the third tier of the East German football league system. Polonia Berlin plays in Kreisliga C (eleventh-tier). The name Polonia is used by other Polish-centred clubs in Germany (for example Polonia Hamburg) and abroad.

SD Croatia Berlin, of the eighth-tier Berlin Bezirksliga Division 1, was founded in 1972 for the city's Croatian community. Its futsal club won the DFB Futsal Cup in 2010 and 2011.[18]

List of current clubs

Men's football

As of the end of the 2018–19 season.

ClubClub foundedLeagueLevelHome GroundCapacity
Hertha BSC1892Bundesliga1Olympiastadion74,475
1. FC Union Berlin1966 [lower-alpha 1]Bundesliga1Stadion An der Alten Försterei22,012
BFC Dynamo1966 [lower-alpha 2]Regionalliga Nordost4Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark19,708
FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin1889Regionalliga Nordost4Stadion Lichterfelde4,300
Berliner AK 071907Regionalliga Nordost4Poststadion10,000
VSG Altglienicke1946 [lower-alpha 3]Regionalliga Nordost4Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark19,708
SV Lichtenberg 471947Regionalliga Nordost4Hans-Zoschke-Stadion10,000
Tennis Borussia Berlin1902NOFV-Oberliga Nord5Mommsenstadion15,005
SpVg Blau-Weiß 90 Berlin1992 [lower-alpha 4]NOFV-Oberliga Nord5Sportplatz an der Rathausstraße (Union-Platz)3,000
FC Hertha 03 Zehlendorf1903NOFV-Oberliga Nord5Ernst-Reuter-Sportanlage4,000
CFC Hertha 061903NOFV-Oberliga Nord5Sportplatz Sömmeringstraße3,000
SC Staaken1919NOFV-Oberliga Nord5Sportpark Staaken1,500
SV Tasmania Berlin1973 [lower-alpha 5]Berlin-Liga6Sportpark Neukölln3,500
BFC Preussen1894Berlin-Liga6Preussen-Stadion Malteserstraße3,000
Berliner Sport-Club1892Berlin-Liga6Hubertussportplatz3,000
SC Charlottenburg1898Berlin-Liga6Mommsenstadion15,005
SFC Stern 19001900Berlin-Liga6Sportplatz Schildhornstraße1,000
TuS Makkabi Berlin1970 [lower-alpha 6]Berlin-Liga6Julius-Hirsch-Sportanlage1,000
SV Empor Berlin1949Berlin-Liga6Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark19,708
Türkiyemspor Berlin1978Berlin-Liga6Willy-Kressmann-Stadion5,000
SD Croatia Berlin1972Berlin-Liga6Friedrich-Ebert-Stadion4,500
BSV Al-Dersimspor1993Berlin-Liga6Laskersportplatz2,000
FC Brandenburg 031903Landesliga, Staffel 17Sportplatz Sömmeringstraße3,000
SV Blau-Weiß Hohen Neuendorf1920Landesliga, Staffel 27Sportplatz Niederheide2,000
FC Spandau 062003 [lower-alpha 7]Landesliga, Staffel 27Stadion am Ziegelhof (Sportplatz Ziegelhof)3,000
Spandauer SC Teutonia 991899Landesliga, Staffel 27Stadion Hakenfelde1,500
Berliner SV 18921892Bezirksliga, Staffel 18Stadion-Wilmersdorf2,500
BSC Kickers 19001900Bezirksliga, Staffel 18Sportplatz Monumentenstraße2,000
1. FC Lübars 19621962Bezirksliga, Staffel 18Sportplatz Schluchseestraße500
SC Union 06 Berlin1950 [lower-alpha 8]Bezirksliga, Staffel 28Poststadion10,000
BFC Meteor 061906Bezirksliga, Staffel 38Hanne-Sobek-Sportanlage3,000
FV Wannsee1896Kreisliga A, Staffel 29Stadion Wannsee5,000
BSC Marzahn1985Kreisliga A, Staffel 39Sportanlage Schönagelstraße1,000
Friedrichshagener SV 19121912Kreisliga A, Staffel 49Sportanlage Friedrichshagen (Sportplatz am Wasserwerk)2,500
SV Nord Wedding 18931893Kreisliga A, Staffel 49Sportanlage Kühnemannstraße (Werner-Kluge-Sportplatz)2,000
SC Minerva 93 Berlin1893Kreisliga A, Staffel 49Chausseestraße5,000
Berliner FC Alemannia 18901890Kreisliga B, Staffel 410Sportanlage Kienhorstpark7,000
BFC Germania 18881888Kreisliga B, Staffel 510Sportplatz an der Götzstraße1,000
FC Polonia Berlin2012 [lower-alpha 9]Kreisliga B, Staffel 510Borsigplatz1,000
  1. The history of 1. FC Union Berlin begins with football club FC Olympia 06 Oberschöneweide, founded in 1906.
  2. BFC Dynamo originally began as a football department of SC Dynamo Berlin, founded in 1954.
  3. The history of VSG Altglienicke can be traced to sports association MTV Spieß, founded in 1883.
  4. SpVg Blau-Weiß 90 Berlin is the successor club of Blau-Weiß 1890 Berlin, founded in 1890.
  5. SV Tasmania Berlin is the successor club of SC Tasmania 1900 Berlin, founded in 1900.
  6. TuS Makkabi Berlin was founded in continuation of the tradition of jewish sports association Bar Kochba Berlin, founded in 1898.
  7. FC Spandau 06 was formed from a merger of several local clubs, among them, Spandauer BC 06, which was the continuation of SC Britannia 06 Spandau, founded in 1906.
  8. SC Union 06 Berlin share a common origin with 1. FC Union Berlin, in fotball club FC Olympia 06 Oberschöneweide, founded in 1906.
  9. FC Polonia Berlin claims the heritage of polish sports association PKS Berlin, founded in 1911.

Women's football

As of the end of the 2018–19 season.

ClubWomen's team formedLeagueLevelHome GroundCapacity
1. FC Union Berlin1990Frauen-Regionalliga Nordost3Fritz-Lesch-Sportanlage3,000
FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin1975 [lower-alpha 1]Frauen-Regionalliga Nordost3Stadion Lichterfelde4,300
BSC Marzahn2001Frauen-Regionalliga Nordost3Sportpanlage Franz-Stenzer-Straße1,200
SV Blau-Weiß Hohen Neuendorf2001Frauen-Regionalliga Nordost3Sportplatz Niederheide2,000
SFC Stern 19002003Frauen-Regionalliga Nordost3Sportplatz Schildhornstraße300
SC Staaken2003Frauen Berlin-Liga4Sportpark Staaken1,500
SV Lichtenberg 471971Frauen Berlin-Liga4Sportplatz Storkower Straße-
SpVg Blau-Weiß 90 Berlin2008Frauen Berlin-Liga4Sportplatz an der Rathausstraße (Union-Platz)3,000
Türkiyemspor Berlin2009Frauen Berlin-Liga4Willi-Kressmann-Stadion5,000
FC Hertha 03 Zehlendorf2001Frauen Berlin-Liga4Ernst-Reuter-Sportfeld4,500
BSC Kickers 190019797er Frauen Landesliga5Sportplatz Monumentenstraße2,000
  1. The team was originally formed by FV Brandenburg-Lichterfelde, later Lichterfelder FC 1892 Berlin.

Major Competitions

1936 Summer Olympic Games

Football at the 1936 Summer Olympics in Berlin saw group games and quarter-finals held at three venues in the capital: the Poststadion, the Mommsenstadion and the Stadion am Gesundbrunnen (home to Hertha between 1924 and 1974). All games after the quarter-finals were held at the Olympic Stadium, and Italy beat Austria 2-1 in the final on 15 August.[19]

1974 FIFA World Cup Group A
Zinedine Zidane at the 2006 FIFA World Cup Final in Berlin.

Group A at the 1974 FIFA World Cup featured three matches at Berlin's Olympic Stadium, all involving Chile, against West Germany, East Germany and Australia. West Germany won 1-0, although the other matches were draws. The infamous match between the two German teams, however, was played in Hamburg.

2006 FIFA World Cup Final

The 2006 FIFA World Cup Final was held on 9 July 2006 at Berlin's Olympiastadion to determine the winner of the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Italy beat France in a shootout after the match finished 1–1 after extra time. France's Zinedine Zidane was sent off in his last-ever match, for headbutting Italy's Marco Materazzi's chest in retaliation to verbal insults.

According to FIFA, 715.1 million individuals globally watched the final match of this tournament.[20] IPG's independent media agency Initiative Worldwide estimated a 260 million people viewership.[21] The independent firm Initiative Futures Sport + Entertainment estimates it at 322 million viewers.[22]

2015 UEFA Champions League Finals

In May 2013, the Olympiastadion was chosen as the venue for the 2015 UEFA Champions League Final.[23] In July 2014, it was announced that Berlin would also be the host for the 2015 UEFA Women's Champions League Final. The women's final was played at the Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark.[24]

The 2015 UEFA Champions League Final was the final match of the 2014–15 UEFA Champions League, the 60th season of Europe's premier club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 23rd season since it was renamed from the European Champion Clubs' Cup to the UEFA Champions League. It was played on 6 June 2015,[25] between Italian side Juventus and Spanish side Barcelona. Barcelona were the winners, beating Juventus 3–1 to gain their fifth trophy in the competition.[26][27]

The 2015 UEFA Women's Champions League Final was played on 14 May 2015.[28] Unlike recent years in which the Women's Champions League final was held in the same week as the men's Champions League final, the two finals were separated by almost a month.[29] German side 1. FFC Frankfurt defeated French side Paris 2–1 in the final to win a record fourth title.[30]

Berlin derbies
Further information: Berlin derby

Main Berlin derby is between Hertha BSC and 1. FC Union Berlin.

In 2019–20 Bundesliga, Hertha BSC and 1. FC Union Berlin disputed the first Bundesliga meeting between the two teams, occurred on 3 November 2019.[37][38]

gollark: Wasn't it the other way round or am I mixed up?
gollark: DNS is a strange beast, if it even is that.
gollark: I have no idea, honestly.
gollark: If my theory about what's going on is right, it ought to be available again within a day or so.
gollark: No, just slightly broken.

See also

References
  1. "500,000 spectators to watch the game together". Blogs.bettor.com. Archived from the original on 22 March 2012. Retrieved 6 September 2012.
  2. "(West) Germany - List of Champions". rsssf.com.
  3. "Germany - Championships 1902-1945". www.rsssf.com.
  4. "Das ist Hertha - HerthaBSC.de". www.herthabsc.de.
  5. "Germany - Championships 1902-1945". rsssf.com.
  6. "Germany Cup (DFB Pokal) 2000/01". rsssf.com.
  7. "Union Berlin promoted to Bundesliga for the first time after beating Stuttgart". BBC Sport.
  8. "Union Berlin".
  9. "Union Berlin fans celebrate club's 50th birthday in style". ESPNFC.com.
  10. "East Germany - List of Champions". rsssf.com.
  11. "European Competitions 1971-72". www.rsssf.com.
  12. "BFC Dynamo steigt in Regionalliga auf". www.bz-berlin.de.
  13. "BFC Dynamo zieht in Jahn-Sportpark um". FuPa (in German). Retrieved 30 December 2018.
  14. Reuters (28 July 2007). "Viktoria Berlin win 1894 final, 113 years late". ESPN.
  15. "Ein neuer Großverein für Berlin". www.tagesspiegel.de.
  16. שוב אנטישמיות בגרמניה: קריאות "גז ליהודים" לשחקני מכבי ברלין. Ynet (in Hebrew). 7 October 2006.
  17. Ahrens, Peter (12 December 2006). "Antisemitismus im Fußball: Milde Strafe für Judenhass". Der Spiegel (in German). Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  18. "Germany: National Futsal Cup". Futsal Planet.
  19. "Football Tournament 1936 Olympiad". www.rsssf.com.
  20. "TV Data". FIFA.com – About FIFA – Organisation – Marketing – Facts and Figures. FIFA. Archived from the original on 24 November 2009. Retrieved 24 November 2009. The final Italy – France [had] a global cumulative audience of 715.1 million viewers.
  21. "Bloomberg.com: International". web.archive.org. 9 February 2009.
  22. "World Cup final 'will vie for record of second most-watched event in human history' - Sporting Intelligence".
  23. "Berlin to Host 2015 Final in Olympic Stadium". Der Spiegel. 23 May 2013. Retrieved 26 February 2014.
  24. UEFA.com. "Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark to stage final". UEFA.com.
  25. "2014/15 calendar and access list". UEFA.com. Union of European Football Associations. Retrieved 14 February 2015.
  26. McNulty, Phil. "Juventus 1–3 Barcelona". BBC Sport. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  27. Murray, Scott. "Champions League: 9.56pm". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
  28. "Friedrich-Ludwig-Jahn-Sportpark to stage final". UEFA.com. 16 July 2014.
  29. "Executive Committee decides hosts for 2015 finals". UEFA. 23 May 2013. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  30. "Islacker strikes to give Frankfurt the crown". UEFA.com. 14 May 2015.
  31. "Hertha and Union Berlin: a rare rivalry - World Soccer". World Soccer. 2011-09-25. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  32. "The Oddities of East Berlin: A Football Culture Like No Other -". 2011-07-01. Retrieved 2018-09-24.
  33. https://www.turus.net/sport/6176-bfc-dynamo-gegen-bak-emotionale-entladung-beim-berliner-pokalkrimi.html
  34. http://www.berlinerfussball.com/spendenaktion-beim-derby-zwischen-dem-bak-und-bfc-dynamo/
  35. https://fussball-woche.de/artikel/regionalliga-bfc-dynamo-berliner-ak-07/
  36. https://www.faszination-fankurve.de/index.php?head=Treffpunkt-der-VfB-Oldenburg-Ultras-vorm-Stadtderby&folder=sites&site=news_detail&news_id=18893
  37. Union vs. Hertha: why is the Berlin derby such a special fixture?
  38. Berlin Derby: Union and Hertha set for first Bundesliga meeting nearly 30 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall

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