FC Augsburg

Logo of BC Augsburg 1921–69

A merger of Augsburg's two most successful clubs, TSV Schwaben and BC Augsburg, was discussed as early as the late 1940s, but distrust between the two sides and a fear that the other club would dominate the merger caused each side to hesitate, despite the financial trouble both clubs were in. A first serious meeting between the two sides was held in 1964, both clubs having dropped out of tier-one football by then. The leadership of the multi-sports club Schwaben was completely behind a merger but the club's football department was not and once more the process of forming FCA was stalled.[2] Traditionally, BCA saw itself as a working-class club, based in the north of Augsburg, while Schwaben was the club of the more affluent and based south of the city, with the river Wertach forming something of a boundary between the two clubs territories.[3]

In 1968, with BCA struggling in the third division after relegation from professional football the year before and Schwaben soon to follow, another effort was made. In April 1969, a high-level meeting between the two club bosses brought the decision to merge the clubs and name the new side FC Augsburg. FCA was to be a football club only with no other sports department. The then-mayor of Augsburg, Hans Breuer, was one of the driving forces behind the move.[2]

The merger came at a time of on-the-field decline for both sides, Schwaben had just been relegated from the tier-two Regionalliga Süd and decided that an attempt to regain their status was financially impossible, while BCA narrowly missed out on promotion to the league that season. In June, 256 of 265 of BCA's members present voted for the merger while,[2] shortly after, 75 percent of Schwaben's members also approved the motion.[4]

Schwaben, however, opted for the "small solution"—the club was to remain independent with only its football department merging into the new club.[4] But even this move was not universally popular within the club, with some former members forming a new football club, Eintracht Augsburg, and restarting from the lowest level of the pyramid. For this reason, FCA is generally not considered to carry on the traditions of TSV Schwaben, only those of BC Augsburg. A year later, the footballers of Eintracht rejoined Schwaben but, since then, have always remained an amateur club. It took the new football department until 1981 to regain its third-division status, where they were to meet FCA for the first time in league football and renewed the Augsburg derby.[5]

The new FCA played its first game on 30 July 1969, when it met 1. FC Nürnberg in Augsburg in front of 13,000, losing 0–3 in extra time.[4]

After the formation of the club in 1969, the side was to spend most of its time in tier-two and three leagues, the Bayernliga, Regionalliga Süd and the 2. Bundesliga. The new side, despite now concentrating Augsburg's football forces, was no instant success. A fourth-place finish in the league and dwindling supporter numbers proved that the new merger side had not yet been accepted in the city. The following season, FCA finished one place better in the league but, with an average support of 300 spectators per game, the club found it difficult to retain its top players. The 1971–72 season saw further decline, an eighth-place finish, but from there the team improved, winning the league the following year and returning professional football to the town.[4] By then, the club had found acceptance in the town and, in the final game of the season, 15,000 spectators had turned up to celebrate the Bayernliga championship.[6]

The 1973–74 season saw the return of one of Augsburg's greatest football talents to the city, and the FCA—former German international Helmut Haller had returned to the club after 11 years in Italy playing for Bologna and Juventus. FCA paid DM 44,000 for the transfer of Haller.[7]

FCA became an instant success in the Regionalliga, drawing an average crowd of over 22,000 for its home matches. When the club traveled to Munich to meet 1860 Munich in the then-new Olympic Stadium, 80,000 flocked to the game, starting what remains today as a fierce rivalry between the two clubs. FCA dominated the season, eventually winning the league title as a freshly promoted team. The mood in Augsburg was one of excitement and the newspapers spoke of the atmosphere in the stadium as of "Augsburg, the Napoli of Germany."[8]

Augsburg qualified for the promotion round for the Bundesliga through its league title, where it met four other teams to determine the one available spot in the first division. FCA gave away easy points at home, drawing three times in four games. Away, the team lost only once, against Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, but nevertheless came only second, one point behind Tennis Borussia Berlin, who earned promotion. Nevertheless, FCA had qualified for the southern division of the new 2. Bundesliga through its league title.[6][9]

The success of 1973–74 was quickly replaced with relegation trouble in the new 2. Bundesliga. The next five seasons saw lower table finishes, the temporary departure of Helmut Haller and frequent replacements of managers. By 1978–79, the club was unable to avoid relegation, despite Haller, at the age of 40, once more taking to the field for FCA for a last time. The club, after six seasons in the second division, returned to the Bayernliga.[10]

FCA was able to break the fall and win the Bavarian league title to gain promotion back to the 2. Bundesliga straight away in 1979–80. On top of this, the team qualified for the German amateur football championship, where it went all the way to the final before losing to VfB Stuttgart's reserve side. But the club's promotion back to the second level faced a major obstacle. The 2. Bundesliga, after 1981, was to operate in a single division and with half as many clubs as before, meaning the club had to fulfill the qualifying norm, not an easy task for a freshly promoted side. FCA finished 18th in 1980–81, not enough to hold the league in a normal season and definitely not enough in 1981.[10]

The club once more won the Bavarian league on first attempt, defeating Schwaben in the first two Augsburg league derbies since 1968, but now had to enter a promotion round to determine the two teams that would go up out of the four Southern German league champions.[11] FCA came second behind FSV Frankfurt and returned to the 2. Bundesliga once more, despite some of the gate receipts already being processed during the game against FC 08 Homburg by the tax department due to outstanding debts.[12] However, the side was again not strong enough for this level and was relegated on a slightly worse goal average then 16th-placed Union Solingen, lacking three goals to salvation. It was to be Augsburg's last season in the second tier for almost a quarter of a century.[13]

FCA was to spend the next 11 seasons once more in Bavaria's highest league, the Bayernliga, at the time still the third tier of league football in the state. With the gradual reduction of the number of second divisions from five in 1974 to one in 1981, a number of Bavarian clubs that had once played at higher level had now dropped down to this level, and competition in the league was much stronger than in the past: 1860 Munich, SpVgg Bayreuth, SpVgg Fürth, Jahn Regensburg, MTV Ingolstadt, FC Schweinfurt 05 and Bayern Hof had all played with Augsburg in the 2. Bundesliga in recent years.[14]

While the club was one of the top sides in the league, another title did not seem to materialise; a second-place finish in 1985 being the best result, one point behind champions SpVgg Bayreuth.[15] Again, the club changed managers frequently but had settled into the Bayernliga for good, it seemed. It was only when Armin Veh took over the team in 1991 that fortunes for the team seemed to improve,[13] not harmed by the fact 1860 Munich made its "escape" from the league and returned to professional football that year.[16]

In 1993, the club won its one and only national championship to date, when 1. FC Kaiserslautern was defeated in the German Under-19 championship final.[17]

In 1994, the club had another try at promotion in the last year of promotion play-offs to the 2. Bundesliga. However, this time the Bavarian champion was not grouped with the other Southern German clubs as in previous years, and thus had to face stronger clubs in the northern group that included Eintracht Braunschweig and Fortuna Düsseldorf. Despite being overmatched and unable to advance, they still received strong support in the region with crowds of over 20,000 turning up at the games. While the performance was not enough to gain entry to the 2. Bundesliga, FCA did qualify for the new Regionalliga Süd, which was slotted between the second division and the Bayernliga as the new third tier.[13]

Augsburg spent the first four years in the new league as a mid-table side, never getting anywhere near the promotion ranks. The fifth season then saw a decline, with the team only finishing 14th and only two points clear of a relegation spot.

The following year was once more a qualifying season, with the number of Regionalligas being reduced in numbers from four to two. FCA fulfilled the on-the-field requirement, finishing eighth, its best Regionalliga result to that date. Financially, however, the club was in dire straits, with a real possibility of the club folding. While the latter threat was averted, FCA was refused a Regionalliga licence when a potential investor backed out and the German Football Association (DFB) relegated it to the Bayernliga, now the fourth tier. Main sponsor Infomatec, which had promised to provide a DM 3 million security for the club with the DFB, was unable to do so and, faced with debts of DM 1.8 million, the club was not in the financial position to obtain a Regionalliga licence.[13][18]

Financial rescue came in the form of Walther Seinsch, a local entrepreneur, who took over as chairman and introduced sound financial management to the club. The club was able to field a competitive team in the Bayernliga once more and achieved promotion back to the Regionalliga in its second season, in 2002.[18]

The club returned as a force in the third division, earning top-four finishes in all of the next four seasons there. FCA came achingly close to advancing to 2. Bundesliga in 2005, but missed their opportunity after giving up two goals to Jahn Regensburg in the last four minutes of their final game of the season. The club dominated the Regionalliga Süd the next year, winning the league and clinching a berth in the 2. Bundesliga for the 2006–07 season.[18]

This marked their first appearance in the 2. Bundesliga in 23 years. They finished the campaign in seventh place on 52 points, only eight points away from promotion to the top-flight. Once again, the game at 1860 Munich was the highlight, with a 3–0 victory for Augsburg in front of 69,000 in the Allianz Arena. Ralf Loose replaced Rainer Hörgl as head coach in October 2007 when the club found itself in the relegation zone. Loose's contract was terminated on 16 April 2008 after a string of bad results.[19] He was replaced with Holger Fach two days later. The club avoided relegation on goal average, being on equal points with relegated side Kickers Offenbach at the end of the season.

The longtime home ground of the FCA, Rosenaustadion, built from World War II rubble, finally came to its well-deserved rest in 2009 when a new stadium was completed. The new Augsburg Arena also hosted games of the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup.

Under Dutch manager Jos Luhukay, Augsburg enjoyed a successful season in 2009–10, when the club reached the semi-finals of the DFB-Pokal as well as finishing third in the 2. Bundesliga, which allowed it to play 1. FC Nürnberg for Bundesliga promotion. In two games there, the Franconians kept the upper hand and FCA was condemned to wait another year. However, at the end of the 2010–11 season, FC Augsburg finished second in the league and was promoted to the Bundesliga for the first time in its history.

FC Augsburg against Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga in November 2012

On 15 October 2011, FCA won its first-ever game in the first division, defeating Mainz 05 1–0. On 28 April 2012, FCA retained their status as a Bundesliga club for a second year with a game to spare. Only a week later, Luhukay resigned from the FCA job, citing doubts with regards to the club's prospects as the reason. On 17 May 2012, the club appointed Markus Weinzierl as its new manager.

In its second Bundesliga season, FCA struggled even more than in its first year, accumulating only nine points in the first half of the season. However, FCA secured its top-flight survival in the last match of the season against Greuther Fürth with a 3–1 victory.[20]

In 2013–14, FCA finished eighth in the league and competed, unsuccessfully, for an UEFA Europa League place rather than struggling against relegation.

FCA began the 2014–15 season with a first round DFB-Pokal defeat against amateur fourth division side 1. FC Magdeburg.

FCA qualified for the 2015–16 Europa League after finishing fifth in the 2014–15 Bundesliga, their best ever finish. After a last-gasp 3–1 away win in the last group match at Partizan, FCA advanced to the knockout stage of the competition for the very first time,[21] being drawn against Liverpool in the round of 32. After a goalless first leg at the WWK ARENA, Augsburg fell to a narrow 1–0 defeat to the eventual Europa League runners-up at Anfield.

On 2 June 2016, Markus Weinzierl left FC Augsburg to become manager at Schalke 04, followed by the immediate signing of Dirk Schuster (then-outgoing manager at Darmstadt 98) as his successor. He was subsequently followed by Manuel Baum on 14 December 2016.[22] In 2017–18, he managed to lead FCA to the most successful start in the Bundesliga history of Augsburg. In 2021, American investor David Blitzer purchased a 45% stake in the club from Klaus Hofmann.[23] Hofmann stepped down and was replaced as president by Markus Krapf in September 2022.[24][25]

As of 31 August 2023[26]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  GER Finn Dahmen 2 DF  POL Robert Gumny 3 DF  DEN Mads Valentin 4 DF  ENG Reece Oxford 5 DF  GHA Patric Pfeiffer 6 DF  NED Jeffrey Gouweleeuw 7 FW  CRO Dion Drena Beljo 9 FW  BIH Ermedin Demirović (captain) 10 MF  GER Arne Maier 13 MF  KOS Elvis Rexhbeçaj 14 MF  JPN Masaya Okugawa 16 MF  SUI Ruben Vargas 18 MF  GER Tim Breithaupt 19 DF  GER Felix Uduokhai 20 FW  GER Sven Michel 21 FW  GER Phillip Tietz

No. Pos. Nation Player 22 DF  BRA Iago 23 DF  GER Maximilian Bauer 24 MF  FIN Fredrik Jensen 26 DF  DEN Frederik Winther 27 MF  BEL Arne Engels 30 MF  GER Niklas Dorsch 32 DF  GER Raphael Framberger 33 GK  POL Marcel Łubik 34 FW  FRA Nathanaël Mbuku 36 MF  GER Mert Kömür 38 DF  CRO David Čolina 39 DF  ENG Japhet Tanganga (on loan from Tottenham Hotspur) 40 GK  CZE Tomáš Koubek 42 DF  GER Aaron Zehnter 43 DF  SUI Kevin Mbabu (on loan from Fulham) 48 FW  FRA Irvin Cardona

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — GK  GER Daniel Klein (at SV Sandhausen until 30 June 2024) — MF  GER Henri Koudossou (at ADO Den Haag until 30 June 2024)

No. Pos. Nation Player — FW  GER Lasse Günther (at SV Wehen Wiesbaden until 30 June 2024) — FW  BUL Lukas Petkov (at Greuther Fürth until 30 June 2024)

The historically indifferent performance of the senior side was offset by the success of the club's youth team, which captured a national championship in the Under 18's in 1993, being the last non-Bundesliga club to do so. They also took four Cup titles in the early 1990s, all under the guidance of coach Heiner Schuhmann.[37] With Schuhmann's departure for Bayern Munich, the golden age of FCA youth football ended and the club could not quite achieve so highly again. With the formation of the Under 19 Bundesliga (2004) and Under 17 Bundesliga (2007), the club's youth teams slipped to second division status but recovered and, in 2013–14, the youth teams played in the Under 19 Bundesliga and Under 17 Bundesliga, the first tier of youth football in Germany at their respective age levels.

The club's reserve side had its greatest success before the merger, playing, as BC Augsburg Amateure, for a season in the southern division of the Amateurliga Bayern in 1962–63.[38] A sixth place there allowed the side to qualify for the unified Bavarian league the following year but, along with the decline of the senior team, the reserve side got relegated too, finishing 17th.[39]

The team disappeared into the lower amateur leagues after that but returned to the Landesliga Bayern-Süd in 1976, finishing runners-up in the league in its first season, now as FC Augsburg Amateure. By 1978 however, the side was relegated again, not to return to this level for a quarter of a decade. It did however take out the Schwaben Cup in 1977 and qualified for the first round of the 1977–78 DFB-Pokal. After away victories over second division side Arminia Hannover and fellow amateur side 1. FC Normannia Gmünd in the first two rounds, the team reached the third round, where it lost 0–4 to Hertha BSC.[40]

After becoming a founding member of the Bezirksoberliga Schwaben in 1988, the team was withdrawn at the end of the season, disbanded altogether and not reformed for more than a decade.

Since 2004, the side once more played in the Landesliga Bayern-Süd, generally achieving good results and eventually being promoted to Regionalliga Bayern at the end of the 2011–12 season.