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109-406: While no senior Southern German championship exists nowadays, the under 15 juniors still play an annual competition for the title, often involving the junior teams of clubs who had once been involved in the senior edition. German football was, from its beginnings, divided into regional associations which carried out their own championship, which often pre-dated the national German championship . With

218-473: A 1–1 draw in extra-time, with Rafael Santos Borré scoring Eintracht's goal and the winning penalty. Goalkeeper Kevin Trapp was named man of the match in the final after making a crucial late save from Ryan Kent and saving Aaron Ramsey 's penalty in the shootout. Eintracht won the competition unbeaten; their success also qualified them for the 2022–23 UEFA Champions League , Eintracht's first appearance in

327-591: A Bundesliga return on the final day of the 2002–03 season with a 6–3 win over Reutlingen , dramatically scoring 3 in the last 10 minutes of the game. They were then relegated straight back to the 2. Bundesliga, but were promoted again the season after, managed by Friedhelm Funkel . Funkel led the team to safety in 2005–06 and also took Eintracht to the DFB-Pokal final for the first time since 1988, where they lost to Bayern Munich. As Bayern had already qualified for Europe, this also meant that Eintracht qualified for

436-460: A century of German football competition, champions were not declared in several seasons for various reasons. No champion was declared in 1904 due to the DFB's inability to resolve a protest filed by Karlsruher FV over their 1–6 semi-final loss to Britannia Berlin to determine which of these sides would face defending champion Leipzig in that year's final. Karlsruhe's protest was over the failure to play

545-568: A clear penalty, they would go on to lose 2–1. Referee Alfons Berg later apologised for his decision, but VfB Stuttgart became champions. Eintracht also came close in 1993–94 , under Klaus Toppmöller , leading the table at the halway point; however, they fell to 5th place and Toppmöller was sacked. In the summer of 1994, Jupp Heynckes was appointed coach. Things quickly began to turn sour, as Heynckes fell out with key players Tony Yeboah, Maurizio Gaudino and Jay-Jay Okocha . The club suspended all three players; Yeboah and Gaudino soon left. With

654-416: A hero among the club's fans. Only two days after the final, Détári was sold to Olympiacos for a large fee, helping to pay the club's debts. In 1988–89 Eintracht found themselves in the relegation fight again. Jörg Berger was appointed coach and led the side to safety with a 4–1 aggregate win over 1. FC Saarbrücken in the relegation playoff. A year later, Berger had taken the club to 3rd place, and

763-523: A knock-out round first, the remaining five then played a home-and-away tournament for the championship. After the 1923 season, the German league system was reorganised and streamlined. In the region of the SFV, new Bezirksligas were established as the highest level of play: For the 1924 championship, this meant, the five league champions and the 1923 champion were qualified to compete in a home-and-away round for

872-481: A late goal from Jan Åge Fjørtoft giving them a 5–1 win over Kaiserslautern. The following year, in another struggle to avoid relegation, the club was docked two points for violating the conditions of their license. Eintracht secured survival on the last day of the season with a win over SSV Ulm , who were relegated instead. Eintracht would go down the season afterwards with Friedel Rausch in charge, and did not come close to promotion in 2001–02 . Eintracht secured

981-400: A living mascot, a golden eagle named Attila from the nearby Hanau Zoo, who has currently been present at over 200 different games. The official club colours of red, black, and white have their origins in the colours of the founding clubs Frankfurter FC Viktoria and Frankfurter FC Kickers , which sported red and white and black and white respectively. Red and white are the colours of

1090-440: A nation of gymnasts and fencers . The earliest attempt at organizing some form of national championship came in 1894, when city champions Viktoria 89 Berlin invited FC Hanau 93 to play a challenge match. The Hanauers were unable to afford the cost of the trip and so were unable to take up the invitation. In 2007, the 1894 final was replayed and Viktoria were crowned the official 1894 champions. After its formation in 1900,

1199-497: A place as one of the original 16 teams selected to play in the Bundesliga , Germany's new professional football league, formed in 1963 . Eintracht played Bundesliga football for 33 consecutive seasons, finishing in the top half of the table for the majority of them. In the inaugural season, Eintracht finished 3rd behind 1. FC Köln and Meidericher SV – the club has still never managed a better Bundesliga finish – and also reached

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1308-622: A relatively low ninth place in the Bundesliga. The club then had a difficult start to the 1976–77 season, but under new coach Gyula Lóránt , appointed in November, Eintracht went unbeaten in the second half of the season. Lóránt, notable for introducing zonal marking to the Bundesliga, took Frankfurt into fourth place by the end of the season, finishing only two points behind champions Borussia Mönchengladbach . Soon, however, Lóránt would leave for Bayern Munich , with Dettmar Cramer coming

1417-408: A round-robin format in which each team plays every other club once at home and once away. There is no playoff, with the club having the best record at the end of the season claiming the German championship. 1. FC Köln captured the first-ever Bundesliga title in the league's inaugural 1963–64 season. Since then the competition has been dominated by Bayern Munich which has taken the championship in 32 of

1526-402: A row in 2017–18 , this time winning 3–1 against heavy favourites Bayern Munich – who Kovač had already agreed to join from next season. He was replaced by Adi Hütter . In 2018–19 , Eintracht's attacking trio of Luka Jović , Ante Rebić and Sébastien Haller won lots of praise for their outstanding performances, scoring 41 league goals and 16 Europa League goals between them and earning

1635-638: A scandal, when the game between Eintracht Frankfurt and the FC Bayern Munich had to be stopped at a 2–0 lead for Eintracht, seven minutes before the end. Bayern supporters had stormed the field and Eintracht Frankfurt was declared the winner. Incidentally, the German final became a rematch which the FC Bayern won 2–0. With the Nazis rise to power in 1933, the Southern German championship

1744-417: A third tier regional division within the existing German league structure under the DFB. FC Hansa Rostock captured the title in the transitional 1990–91 season, and alongside runners-up SG Dynamo Dresden, advanced to play in the Bundesliga, thereby fully integrating former Eastern clubs into a unified German championship. The performance of various clubs is shown in the following table: The formation of

1853-457: A tumultuous debut campaign in the 2. Bundesliga , Eintracht won the title in 1997–98 and returned to the Bundesliga. Promotion coach Horst Ehrmantraut left in December, and Jörg Berger returned to try to save Eintracht once more. On the final day of the 1998–99 season, Eintracht were expected to be relegated, but dramatically climbed out of the relegation zone on goal difference thanks to

1962-666: A vital factor in the rise of the Southern German clubs to dominance in Germany in the 1920s. After the end of the First World War , the region of Alsace-Lorraine once more became part of France and its clubs did not compete in the SFV-championship any more. From the 1919–20 season, Southern Germany was sub-divided into ten regional leagues, those being: The ten league champions then played in two groups of three and one group of four to determine four clubs to enter

2071-424: Is SGE , taken from the club's old official name S port g emeinde E intracht (Frankfurt), which roughly translates into English as "Sports Community Harmony." The nickname Launische Diva ("Moody Diva") was heard most often in the early 1990s, when the club would comfortably defeat top teams only to surprisingly lose to lesser clubs. The nickname Schlappekicker ("Slipper Kickers") has been around since

2180-483: Is Bavaria with 45 championships. Bavaria is also home to the two individually most successful clubs, Bayern Munich and 1. FC Nürnberg. North Rhine-Westphalia follows with 26 championships. The state is home to the third and fourth most successful clubs, Borussia Dortmund and Schalke 04. No club from the Saarland, Thuringia, Saxony-Anhalt, Brandenburg, and Mecklenburg-Vorpommern has yet won the championship. In most cases

2289-531: Is organised in the region, consisting of the best under 15 sides in Southern Germany. German football champions The German football champions are the annual winners of the highest association football competition in Germany . The history of the German football championship is complex and reflects the turbulent history of the country through the course of the 20th century. Brought to

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2398-708: Is recognized as the first postwar German national champion for its 2–1 victory over 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the Westzonen final staged on 8 August 1948 in Mannheim . In the Ostzone, SG Planitz beat SG Freiimfelde Halle 1–0 on 4 July 1948 in Leipzig to qualify for the scheduled national final, but were denied a permit to travel to play the match by Soviet authorities. In the aftermath of World War I, several lesser national football competitions emerged as outgrowths of

2507-705: Is the SpVgg Fürth with five titles. After the Second World War , the Southern German Cup was revitalised in 1952 and functioned as a qualifying tournament for the German Cup . The cup competition was last played in 1974. Source: "Germany – Championships 1902–1945" . RSSSF . Retrieved 2008-07-26 . From 1946, an under 19 championship for Southern Germany existed, having been played annually. A German Under 19 championship

2616-650: The 1964 DFB-Pokal Final . Eintracht finished in the top half of the Bundesliga every season until 1970–71 . Although they didn't make it back to the European Cup, Eintracht did play in other non-UEFA European competitions, beating FK Inter Bratislava to win the 1967 Intertoto Cup in the last season of its original format. That year, they also reached the semi-final of the Inter-Cities Fairs Cup , losing to Dinamo Zagreb . From 1973 to 1981, Eintracht had arguably their most successful period of

2725-576: The 2021–22 Europa League , Eintracht topped their group and stunned Barcelona in the quarter finals, taking a 3–0 lead at the Camp Nou and eventually winning 3–2 with approximately 30,000 travelling Frankfurt fans in attendance. Eintracht went on to beat West Ham home and away in the semi-finals to set up their first European final since 1980. In the final in Seville's Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán Stadium , Frankfurt beat Rangers 5–4 on penalties after

2834-438: The Bundesliga in 1963 marked a significant change to the German football championship. The historical regional league and national playoff format was abandoned in favour of a single unified national league. Sixteen teams from the five Oberligen in place at the time were invited to be part of the new circuit – which also for the first time formally acknowledged the sport as professional rather than amateur. The new league adopted

2943-607: The Bundesliga , the top tier of the German football league system . Eintracht have won the German championship once, the DFB-Pokal five times, the UEFA Europa League twice and finished as runner-up in the European Cup once. The team was one of the founding members of the Bundesliga at its inception and has spent a total of 55 seasons in the top division, thus making them the seventh longest participating club in

3052-517: The Gauligen and took part in the regional qualifying rounds of the national championship, but without the same success as Austrian sides. Two trophies have been used for the official German and, during the era of the divided Germany, West German champions. The pre- Second World War trophy, the Viktoria , was awarded from 1903 to 1944, making Saxonian clubs VfB Leipzig the first and Dresdner SC

3161-541: The German Football Association (DFB) was formed. It originally was named Verband Süddeutscher Fußball-Vereine (English: Association of Southern German football clubs). One of the leading figures and driving force in the Southern German football was Walther Bensemann , founder of the kicker sportmagazin , a position he retained until the Nazis rise to power. The other driving force behind football in

3270-521: The Verdiente Meistervereine system which permits the display of a star or stars on a club's jersey. This system allows for the recognition of both German and East German titles , although only German titles are listed in the table below. Clubs in bold currently play in the top division. Titles won by club (%) Notes : As of 2024, German football champions have come from 11 of the 16 German states. The most successful state

3379-522: The annexation of Austria , which was incorporated into Nazi Germany in 1938, Austrian clubs became part of German competition; Admira Wien made a losing appearance in the German national final in 1939, Rapid Wien captured the championship in 1941, and First Vienna also lost in 1942. In each case their opposition was Schalke 04 . Throughout the course of World War II, clubs in German-occupied territories were made part of German competition in

Southern German football championship - Misplaced Pages Continue

3488-511: The reunification of the country in 1990, the two separate football competitions were merged and a single national championship was restored. Bayern Munich hold the record for the most championships with 33, yet all but one of these (1932) come in Bundesliga competition. BFC Dynamo claimed 10 titles in the former East Germany, winning these championships in consecutive seasons (1979–88). The new British game of football quickly caught on in late 19th-century Germany, which had previously been

3597-456: The rugby version of football. The formation of the DFB helped establish for the first time a clear divide between association football and its close cousin. To qualify for the German championship finals, a club had to win one of the regional championships, which, in some cases, predate the national one. Those were: One other regional championships briefly existed: From 1925 onwards, the runners-up of those competitions were also qualified for

3706-481: The 1920s, when J. & C. A. Schneider , a local manufacturer of shoes and especially slippers (called Schlappe in the regional Hessian dialect ) was a major financial backer of the club and helped propel it to national relevance. Since July 2022, the executive board consists of Axel Hellmann (CEO), Markus Krösche (head of sports) and Oliver Frankenbach (head of finances) and Philipp Reschke (head of fan relations, merchandising and HR). Green denotes

3815-569: The 1930 season, most DT teams became part of the mainstream DFB. German championships have included clubs from countries other than Germany. DFC Prag , vice-champions in the first national final and a founding member of the DFB, was an ethnically-German club from Bohemia in the Austro-Hungarian Empire (today part of the Czech Republic ) which did not at the time have its own national football federation. Following

3924-451: The 60 Bundesliga seasons played to 2023. Key Over the history of the German football championship, 30 different clubs have won the title. The most successful club is FC Bayern Munich, with 33 titles to its credit, 32 of those coming in Bundesliga competition. The most successful pre-Bundesliga club is 1. FC Nürnberg, who won eight titles in the era of knockout play amongst regional champions. Former German champions are recognized through

4033-718: The Baltic championship, as the territories they were held in were not part of Germany any more. With the South West German football championship , a new regional competition also appeared in 1945. Ultimately, with the formation of the Bundesliga , all this regional championships ceased altogether. The Süddeutsche Fußball-Verband (SFV), the Southern German Football Association was formed in Karlsruhe on 17 October 1897, three years before

4142-526: The Bundesliga era, winning three DFB-Pokals and the UEFA Cup . Many of the most iconic players from the club's history played during this era, such as Bernd Nickel , Charly Körbel , Bernd Hölzenbein , Jürgen Grabowski and Cha Bum-kun . The first title success came under Dietrich Weise in the 1973–74 DFB-Pokal , winning 3–1 in the final over Hamburger SV – due to the 1974 FIFA World Cup , which Hölzenbein and Grabowski had won with West Germany ,

4251-564: The DFB began to establish its authority over the myriad city and regional leagues springing up throughout the country and organized the first officially recognized national championship in 1903. The prize of German football was the Viktoria, a trophy statue of a seated Roman goddess of victory , donated by the committee that organized German participation in the 1900 Olympic Games in Paris – and originally intended to be shared with teams playing

4360-677: The Eagles played an unbeaten campaign, mostly sporting an all-white kit that gained them the nickname la bestia blanca (literally the white beast in Spanish), a wordplay on the Spanish term la bestia negra (literally the black beast , also meaning bogey team in Spanish). This nickname was received after Eintracht knocked FC Barcelona out of the competition at Camp Nou . The club is nicknamed " Die Adler " ("The Eagles"), which derives from their logo. A nickname still popular among supporters

4469-492: The German championship finals, which had been expanded to sixteen clubs. The two strongest regions, South and West were also allowed to send their third-placed team. This system of regional championships was abolished in 1933 and superseded by the Gauliga system. With the beginning of the 1933–34 season, top-flight German football was reorganized into 16 regional Gauligen with each of these leagues sending their champion to

Southern German football championship - Misplaced Pages Continue

4578-522: The Meisterschale – was introduced in the west in 1949. The first post-war champions were 1. FC Nürnberg (2–1 over 1. FC Kaiserslautern in Köln) who were also, coincidentally, the first champions following World War I. Over time, the notion of professionalism – long anathema to German sports – made inroads in the country. A consequence of this was that by 1956, a distinct national amateur championship

4687-416: The Southern German championship functioned as a qualifying tournament for it. Nevertheless, it still enjoyed a high value of status. The competition went through a number of changes throughout its live time. From this season onwards, the competition also grew in size. Previously, only a few selected clubs from cities like Frankfurt , Mannheim and Karlsruhe had taken part, now clubs from Bavaria also entered

4796-533: The Southern championship, with both teams still being qualified for the German finals. The two division runners-up played for the third and last spot at the German finals from the south. The 1932 and 1933 season only differed as far as the regional make up being changed in 1933, away from the system were Württemberg-Baden-Bayern played in one group and Main-Hessen-Rhein-Saar in the other, as it traditionally had been. The 1932 Southern German final ended in something of

4905-490: The UEFA Cup. After years of stability under Funkel, Michael Skibbe replaced him in 2009. The 2010–11 season ended with the club's fourth Bundesliga relegation. After setting a new record for most points in the first half of the season, the club struggled after the winter break, going seven games without scoring a goal. Coach Skibbe was replaced with Christoph Daum , but Eintracht went down again after winning just once in

5014-417: The city coat of arms, and black and white the colours of Prussia . When the clubs merged, officials decided to adopt the colours of both sides. Since local rival Kickers Offenbach sport the colours red and white, Eintracht avoids playing in such a kit, preferring to play in black and red, or in black and white. In the 2023–2024 season, the home kit is black and red. In the 2021–22 UEFA Europa League ,

5123-488: The club for third stint with Eintracht in 1958. In the 1958–59 season the club won their Oberliga again, qualifying for the 1959 German championship . Winning all six of the games in the group phase, Eintracht made it to the final with a perfect record; there, they would meet rivals Kickers Offenbach , the club that Oßwald joined from, and the runners up behind Eintracht in the Oberliga Süd. Frankfurt went on to win

5232-526: The club in 13th, Heynckes decided to leave. For his role in breaking up the successful side of the early 90s, Heynckes is still reviled by many fans in Frankfurt. Relegation would come in 1995–96 , with neither club legend Charly Körbel or the previously successful Dragoslav Stepanovic able to rescue Eintracht. After 33 consecutive years in the Bundesliga, Frankfurt went down alongside 1. FC Kaiserslautern , who had also been ever-present until 1996. After

5341-553: The club's history – and Frankfurter Fußball-Club Kickers von 1899 . Both clubs were founding members of the new Nordkreis-Liga in 1909. These two teams merged in May 1911 to become Frankfurter Fußball Verein (Kickers-Victoria) , an instant success, taking three league titles from 1912 to 1914 in the Nordkreis-Liga and qualifying for the Southern German championship in each of those seasons. In turn, Frankfurter FV joined

5450-405: The coat of arms of the city of Frankfurt , which itself is a reference to the one-headed Imperial Eagle of the 13th century. The crest has evolved showing little significant change until 1980, when a stylized eagle in black and white was chosen to represent the team. In Eintracht's centenary year of 1999, the club decided to re-adopt a more traditional eagle crest. Since 2005, Eintracht has had

5559-540: The competition since 1960. Eintracht finished second in their Champions League group, qualifying for the knockout stages, but lost in the round of 16 against S.S.C. Napoli . The team was more successful in the 2022–23 DFB-Pokal , reaching the final on 3 June 2023, where they lost 2–0 against RB Leipzig . A 7th-place finish at the end of 2022–23 season secured qualification for the UEFA Europa Conference League . The club crest derives from

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5668-402: The competition. In its early years, competition was very localised and patchy, with a handful of clubs dominating play. From 1907, football became more organised with Southern Germany being split in four local districts (German: Kreis), from 1910 each had their own top-league: This step, away from localised competition and towards a more centralised system of leagues with strong competition was

5777-483: The country by English immigrants, the sport took root in the cities of Berlin , Hamburg , Stuttgart , and Leipzig in the 1890s, leading to the growth of city, regional, and academic leagues, each with their own championships. Following the establishment of the German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball Bund) in 1900, the first recognized national championship match was hosted by Hamburg club Altona 93 in 1903 in which VfB Leipzig defeated DFC Prag 7–2, and

5886-446: The country. Play was tentatively resumed in various parts of the now-occupied country in early 1946 and the postwar Oberliga structure began to take shape in the 1946–47 season; no national champion was declared from 1945 to 1947. In 1947–48, qualification play took place to determine Westzonen (Western occupation zones) and Ostzone (Eastern occupation zone) representatives to meet in a national final that never took place. 1. FC Nürnberg

5995-477: The days of a Southern German league. In 1994, the Regionalliga Süd was re-established, now as a tier-three league, covering the three states of Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and Hesse. From 2000 to 2008, the south western clubs also formed part of this league once more. From 2008, with the establishment of the 3. Liga , the three southern states are once more the only once covered by this league, now on

6104-402: The decision. The DFB awarded the win to Hamburg under the condition that they renounce the title in the name of "good sportsmanship" – which they grudgingly did. Ultimately, the championship trophy was not officially presented that year. Competition for the national title was maintained through most of World War II and was supported by the regime for morale. Play became increasingly difficult as

6213-424: The earlier rounds of the UEFA Cup , Eintracht reached the semi-finals, at which point only West German teams remained. Drawn against Bayern Munich, they won 5–1 in extra time to earn a place in the final. Eintracht lost 3–2 in the first leg of the final to Borussia Mönchengladbach, the reigning champions. The two away goals, scored by Harald Karger and Hölzenbein, would prove crucial. Two weeks later, they hosted

6322-513: The eastern and western halves of the country quickly fell by the wayside in the context of the Cold War . An Ostzone champion was declared in each of the 1946–48 seasons and in 1949 the first division DDR-Oberliga was established under the DFV ( Deutscher Fußball-Verband der DDR ) as a distinct national sport governing body. From 1950 through to 1990 an East German football champion was declared, until

6431-564: The eastern competition was reintegrated into the German national competition under the DFB. In the first recognized East German national championship staged in 1949, ZSG Union Halle defeated SG Fortuna Erfurt 4–1. In 1990, the last East German champion was SG Dynamo Dresden . The following season the DDR-Oberliga (I) was redesignated the Nord-Ostdeutscher Fußball Verband Oberliga and became

6540-450: The end of 1992–93 . Under Stepanović, Eintracht played what was considered some of the best football in Bundesliga history, making 'Stepi' a fan favourite to this day. In 1991–92 , the club came closer than ever before to winning the Bundesliga. Going into the last game of the season, Eintracht were top of the table and only needed a win against already-relegated Hansa Rostock . With the scores level at 1–1 Eintracht were denied what seemed

6649-664: The final 5–3 after extra time, becoming German champions for the first and so far only time in front of 75,000 fans in Berlin's Olympiastadion . As champions, Frankfurt would represent Germany in the 1959–60 European Cup , where they would come to international prominence. Having beaten BSC Young Boys and Wiener Sport-Club to make it to the semi-finals, they were drawn against Scottish champions Rangers , who were considered favourites, at least in Scotland – Rangers manager Scot Symon allegedly asked, "Eintracht, who are they?" before

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6758-472: The final was not played until August 1974. Eintracht would win the cup again in 1975, beating MSV Duisburg 1–0. That season, they played in the European Cup Winners' Cup for the first time, and in the 1975–76 campaign, they would go far, reaching the semi-finals. Despite beating West Ham 2–1 at home, Eintracht were beaten 3–1 in the second leg and were knocked out, while also finishing

6867-518: The first placed team automatically winning the championship. In the 1916, 1918, 1920, 1921, 1932 and 1933 season, a final was played again. From 1918 to 1927, the SFV also carried out a cup competition, the Süddeutscher Pokal (English: Southern German Cup), long before a national competition was introduced in Germany in 1935. At times, this cup winner also gained entry to the Southern German championship. The record winner of this competition

6976-472: The fourth tier of the German league system. Nowadays the Southern German Football Association is made up of the following five federations: The winners and runners–up of the Oberliga Süd : The Southern German championship was not always decided by a one-off final. Before 1908, the championship was carried out with a final. From 1908, the championship was determined through a home-and-away round with

7085-507: The game. Eintracht won the first leg 6–1 at home, in a performance described as the greatest in the club's history. They would score six more in the second leg at Ibrox , winning 12–4 on aggregate. After the game, the Rangers players gave their opponents a guard of honour as they left the pitch. Eintracht would return to Glasgow for the final at Hampden Park , although they lost 7–3 to Real Madrid despite taking an early lead. The final

7194-459: The gymnastics club Frankfurter Turngemeinde von 1861 to form TuS Eintracht Frankfurt von 1861 in 1920. The German word Eintracht means 'harmony' or 'concord', and so Eintracht is the equivalent of United in English in the names of sports teams. At the time, sports in Germany was dominated by nationalistic gymnastics organizations, and under pressure from that sport's governing authority,

7303-537: The gymnasts and footballers went their separate ways again in 1927, as Turngemeinde Eintracht Frankfurt von 1861 and Sportgemeinde Eintracht Frankfurt (FFV) von 1899 . Through the late 1920s and into the 1930s, Eintracht won a handful of local and regional championships, first in the Kreisliga Nordmain , then in the Bezirksliga Main and Bezirksliga Main-Hessen . After being eliminated from

7412-514: The highest tier of the league. Since 1925 their stadium has been the Waldstadion , which is currently named Deutsche Bank Park for sponsorship reasons. Eintracht Frankfurt have either won or drawn more than three-quarters of their games as well as having finished the majority of their seasons placed in the top half of the table, but also having the highest number of losses in the league (657). With an average attendance of 47,942 since 2013

7521-599: The ideologies they represented, they were considered politically unpalatable by the regime and disappeared in the 1933 reorganization of German football under Nazi Germany that consolidated competition in state-sanctioned leagues. These clubs were forced into mergers with other mainstream sides or saw their assets seized by the state. Antisemitism in Germany led to the creation of Jewish sports associations as Jews were forced out of mainstream clubs. These associations, including Sportbund Schild and Makkabi, staged their own national championships from 1933–38. Key Following

7630-466: The inception of the latter in 1903, the former became qualifying tournaments for it but these regional championships still held a high value for the local clubs. These regional championships were: All this regional championships were suspended with the rise of the Nazis to power in 1933. At the end of the Second World War, some resumed, now in league format. Others completely disappeared, like

7739-471: The last club to receive it. The trophy disappeared during the final stages of the war and would not resurface until after the German reunification . A new trophy, the Meisterschale , was commissioned after the war but was not ready for the first post-war champions in 1948. Instead it was first awarded to VfR Mannheim in 1949. While the original trophy has only the champions from 1903 to 1944 engraved

7848-585: The match at neutral venue. The national championship was suspended in October 1915 due to World War I. Limited play continued on a regional basis in many parts of the country, while competition was abandoned in other areas. Several regional leagues continued to declare champions or cup winners. The national championship was reinstated with the 1919–20 season that was concluded with a 2–0 victory by 1. FC Nürnberg over SpVgg Fürth in Frankfurt . The 1922 final

7957-538: The modus again remained unchanged. However, an additional tournament for the five Bezirksliga runners-up was introduced. The winner of this competition then took up the third Southern German spot in the German Finals, alongside the winner and runners-up of the championship tournament. After this season, the Bezirksligas were partly reorganised and reduced to four in numbers. However, each Bezirksliga in turn

8066-534: The national level playoffs after quarterfinal losses in 1930 and 1931, they won their way to the final in 1932 where they were beaten 2–0 by Bayern Munich , who claimed their first ever German championship. In 1933, German football was re-organized into sixteen Gauligen under the Third Reich , and the club played first division football in the Gauliga Südwest , consistently finishing in the upper half of

8175-507: The national playoffs. New Gauligen were created as the Reich expanded its border through the Anschluss with Austria. This expanded the national championship competition with the addition of regional champions from the new circuits. It also introduced previously foreign clubs into German domestic competition where Viennese Austrian sides made a notable impression. Competition during the war

8284-400: The new one lists all the German champions since 1903 and has had to be enlarged on occasion. Eintracht Frankfurt Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. ( German pronunciation: [ˈaɪntʁaxt ˈfʁaŋkfʊʁt] ) is a German professional sports club based in Frankfurt , Hesse. It is best known for its football club , which was founded on 8 March 1899. The club currently plays in

8393-479: The nickname "the Buffalo Herd". Making only their second appearance in the modern Europa League, Eintracht won all six group games against Lazio , Apollon Limassol and Marseille , and beat highly rated opponents Shakhtar Donetsk , Inter Milan and Benfica . In the semi-finals against Chelsea , Eintracht drew both legs 1–1 but ended up losing on penalties at Stamford Bridge . Chelsea would go on to win

8502-659: The other way to coach Frankfurt. Cramer left at the end of the disappointing 1977–78 season, replaced by Otto Knefler , who soon had to leave on health grounds. In January 1979, Friedel Rausch joined the club as head coach. This was one of two important arrivals in 1979, as Cha Bum-kun would sign for Eintracht in July, becoming the first Korean to play in Europe. He would quickly become an icon in Frankfurt, scoring 12 league goals in his debut season. Eliminating Aberdeen , Dinamo București , Feyenoord and FC Zbrojovka Brno in

8611-679: The regional associations of the DFB align with state borders in Germany. However, the DFB has two regional associations in Rhineland-Palatinate, and three each in North Rhine-Westphalia and Baden-Württemberg. For the champions of these states the regional associations are mentioned as well. From 1938 to 1945 Austria was part of Germany, and Austrian clubs were thus allowed to compete in the German football championship. Rapid Wien won one championship in that period. In over

8720-425: The relegation playoff after finishing 16th; in 1986 and 1987 , they would finish 15th. After years as a bottom-half club in the Bundesliga, Eintracht had a successful 1987–88 season, finishing in the top half of the league for the first time since 1982. More importantly, they won the 1987–88 DFB-Pokal , with a 1–0 win over VfL Bochum in the 1988 final . The goalscorer was Hungarian Lajos Détári , who became

8829-492: The return leg. With the score still at 0–0, Friedel Rausch sent on teenager Fred Schaub with 13 minutes to play. Almost immediately, Schaub scored what proved to be only goal of the game, winning Eintracht the title on away goals. As Lothar Buchmann succeeded Rausch, Eintracht won their third DFB-Pokal in 1981 . This effectively marked the end of Eintracht's golden period, as they began their battle with relegation. In 1984 , they defeated MSV Duisburg 6–1 on aggregate in

8938-485: The second half of the season. One year later, Eintracht defeated Alemannia Aachen 3–0 on the 32nd matchday of the 2011–12 season , securing promotion to the Bundesliga. This was followed up by a 6th-place finish in the Bundesliga in 2012–13 , qualifying Frankfurt for the Europa League . Having finished in the top half in 2014–15 , a season in which Eintracht's Alexander Meier was the league's top scorer,

9047-418: The semi-finals, the group winners and the second placed team in the group of four qualifying for it. The semi-final winners then entered the Southern German final. The number of leagues remained the same for the 1922 edition but now league winner and runners-up both qualified for a knock-out round to determine the champion. In 1923, the league winners again were the only once qualified and the ten teams played

9156-490: The south of Germany was Friedrich Wilhelm Nohe , chairman of the Karlsruher FV. The association was formed by eight clubs, those being: The SFV originally covered a much larger area. Upon its formation in 1897, the following German states and regions were part of it: From 1898, the SFV started to organise an annual Southern German football championship. With the inception of the German football championship in 1903,

9265-491: The southern half of the state of Baden also became part of the Oberliga Süd region. The area west of the river Rhine however remained separate from the SFV and formed the Oberliga Südwest . Up until 1963, the winner of the Oberliga Süd was still referred to as Southern German champions. After 1963, a competition which would have determined a true Southern German champion was not played anymore. The Oberliga system

9374-439: The table and winning their division in 1938. Eintracht picked up where they left off after World War II, joining the new first division Oberliga Süd . In 1946, Eintracht won the first Hessenpokal , and finished third in the Oberliga Süd a year later. In 1953, they would win the Oberliga Süd title, qualifying Eintracht for the German championship , though they did not make it to the final. Former coach Paul Oßwald returned to

9483-440: The team also has one of the highest attendance ratings in the world and the eighth highest out of the 36 Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga teams. The player with the highest number of appearances (602) in the Bundesliga, Charly Körbel , spent his entire senior career as a defender for Eintracht Frankfurt. The club's primary rival is local club Kickers Offenbach , although, due to spending most of their history in different divisions,

9592-499: The team struggled again in 2015–16 and Niko Kovač was appointed coach in March 2016. Frankfurt survived only through the relegation playoff; ending the season in 16th place, they beat 1. FC Nürnberg 2–1 on aggregate in the playoff. In Kovač's first full year, his team survived comfortably and also reached the final of the 2017 DFB-Pokal , where they were beaten by Borussia Dortmund. Eintracht reached their second DFB-Pokal final in

9701-430: The third southern team to go to the German finals. This modus was in place for the 1928, 1929, 1930 and 1931 season. For its last two seasons, 1932 and 1933, the modus was changed once more for the Southern German championship. The league winners and runners-up now qualified both for the finals tournament, which was played in two groups of eight teams, again regionally sub-divided. The two division winners then played out

9810-406: The title. Only the champion would then move on to the German championship. In the following season, only the five league winners would compete for the southern title but the best three teams from this competition would then qualify for the German title tournament. For the 1926 edition, the modus remained unchanged apart from the Southern German cup winner also entering the finals tournament. In 1927,

9919-484: The tournament. Eintracht also missed out on Champions League qualification in the Bundesliga, dropping from 4th to 7th after losing their last two games. With Jović, Rebić and Haller all leaving in the summer of 2019, Eintracht regressed in 2019–20 and failed to qualify for Europe, but returned to the Europa League with a 5th-place finish in 2020–21 , after which Adi Hütter left for Borussia Mönchengladbach. In

10028-628: The tumultuous German political situation. These included the left-leaning workers' ATSB (Arbeiter-Turn- und Sport-Bund), the Catholic-sponsored DJK (Deutschen Jugendkraft), the Protestant-backed DT (Deutsche Turnerschaft), and the Communist KG (Kampfgemeinschaft für Rote Sporteinheit). Through the 1920s and 1930s, each of these leagues staged their own national championships or fielded national sides. Because of

10137-405: The two have only played two league matches within the last 40 years. With almost 14,000 active athletes in over 50 sports in 2024, Eintracht Frankfurt is the largest multi-sports club in the world with a professional football team. The origins of the club go back to a pair of football clubs founded in 1899: Frankfurter Fußball-Club Victoria von 1899  – regarded as the original team in

10246-404: The war drew to its conclusion due to manpower shortages, bombed-out stadiums, and the hardship and expense of travel. In the era's final championship match Dresdner SC beat the military club LSV Hamburg 4–0 on 18 June 1944 in Berlin's Olympiastadion . The 1944–45 season kicked off ahead of schedule in November; however, by March 1945 play had collapsed throughout Germany as Allied armies overran

10355-539: Was occupied by the victorious Allies and two German football competitions emerged when the country was divided as a result. The historical tradition of the DFB was continued in what was known as West Germany , while a second national championship was contested in Soviet-controlled East Germany under the auspices of the DFV (Deutscher Fußball-Verband or German Football Federation). Following

10464-554: Was also characterized by the formation of military-based clubs including the Luftwaffe side LSV Hamburg which appeared in the era's last national championship match at the end of the 1943–44 season. Unlike the United Kingdom, where play was suspended early on, national football competition continued on in Germany in some form through the course of the war. Play finally collapsed as the war drew to its conclusion and no champion

10573-582: Was awarded the Viktoria , the championship trophy from 1903 to 1944. Before the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963, the championship format was based on a knockout competition, contested between the winners of each of the country's top regional leagues. Since 1963, the first-place finisher in the Bundesliga has been recognized as the national champion. Championship play was suspended twice; from 1915 to 1919 due to World War I and again from 1945 to 1947 due to World War II . Following World War II, Germany

10682-446: Was contested by 1. FC Nürnberg and Hamburger SV , but never reached a conclusion on the pitch. The match was called on account of darkness after three hours and ten minutes of play, drawn at 2–2. The re-match also went into extra time, and in an era that did not allow for substitutions, the game was called at 1–1 when Nürnberg was reduced to just seven players and the referee ruled they could not continue. Considerable wrangling ensued over

10791-547: Was declared in 1944–45. It was also during this period that a national cup competition was introduced; the Tschammerpokal was named for Reichssportführer (Sports Chief of the Reich) Hans von Tschammer und Osten and is predecessor to the modern-day DFB-Pokal (German Cup). The first cup competition was staged in 1935 and won by 1. FC Nürnberg. Key In the immediate aftermath of World War II, German football

10900-430: Was disbanded in 1963 in favor of the Bundesliga and the Regionalliga Süd , a tier-two league became the highest regional league. With its disbanding in 1974 in favor of the 2. Bundesliga Süd , the region which was once covered by the Southern German football championship briefly had a united league again, even so it was only on the second tier. This league in turn was disbanded in 1981 for the 2. Bundesliga , which ended

11009-537: Was disbanded. The new Nazi Germany did not wish for regional identities to be preserved. Instead of the Bezirksligas, the Gauligas were established: A Southern championship was not played anymore. Shortly after the end of the Second World War , the Oberliga Süd was established and the South of Germany had a united highest football league for the first time. The region it covered in 1945 originally was: From 1950,

11118-458: Was established, open to teams playing below the Oberliga level in second- and third tier leagues. The post-war occupation of Germany by the victorious Allies eventually led to the de facto partition of the country and the emergence of two separate German states, each with its own government and institutions. Early plans to maintain a national championship to be contested by representatives from

11227-565: Was in French-occupied Saarland where attempts by France to annex the state were manifested in the formation of a separate, but short-lived, football competition that staged its own championship. Saarland briefly had its own representation under FIFA , forming Olympic and World Cup sides, before re-joining German competition in 1956. In the Soviet-occupied East zone, a more enduring separation took place that

11336-572: Was in complete disarray. Occupying Allied authorities ordered the dissolution of most organizations in the country. However, many football clubs were soon re-established and new sides formed; play was tentatively resumed. By 1948, a new first division league structure, the Oberligen, was in place in most of the Western zone of occupation. The restored competition maintained the German game's historical practice of play in regional leagues. An exception

11445-573: Was not mended until the reunification of Germany in 1990. As a result, Eastern-based clubs did not take part in the German national championship under the DFB, vying instead for a different prize. The country's capital city of Berlin was similarly divided and clubs based in West Berlin took part in western-based competition. The Viktoria disappeared at war's end, although it would eventually reappear and be held in East Germany. A new trophy –

11554-478: Was only established in 1969 and shortly after this, in 1973, the Southern German edition was disbanded. In 1979, a Southern German under 15 championship was established, being played annually between the five regional champions. It is now the only level of men's football that still plays out a true Southern championship. The end-of-season tournament is held at a neutral location. Since 2010 the Under 15 Regionalliga Süd

11663-418: Was recognised as the best coach in the league. Berger left in 1991 after a 4th-place finish, but the squad now included players considered among the Bundesliga's best, such as Uwe Bein , Uli Stein , Jørn Andersen , Manfred Binz , Tony Yeboah and Andreas Möller . Dragoslav Stepanović took over as coach when Berger left, and Eintracht would finish 3rd in both seasons he coached, although he left before

11772-435: Was sub-divided into two regional groups: From the 1928 season, the best team from each of the eight divisions qualified for southern tournament, still played in a home-and-away modus. Additionally, the second and third placed team from each league went to a consolidation tournament. These sixteen clubs were split into two divisions of eight, regionally subdivided. The two division winners then played an on-off final to determine

11881-429: Was widely regarded as one of the best football matches ever played, remembered for a hat-trick by Alfredo Di Stéfano and four goals by Ferenc Puskás . After their championship-winning year, Eintracht did not win the Oberliga again, though they were runners-up in 1961 and 1962 . Both times they would finish second in the group phase of the German championship, missing out on the final. The side earned themselves

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