Stuttgarter Kickers


Stuttgarter Kickers is a German association football club that plays in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, founded on 21 September 1899 as FC Stuttgarter Cickers. The club currently plays in the Regionalliga Südwest, the fourth tier of German football.

History

In its early years the club had a decent local squad that played in the Südkreis-Liga, Kreisliga Württemberg and then in the Bezirksliga Württemberg. With the reorganization of German football during the Third Reich in 1933, the team – now known as SV Stuttgarter Kickers – found itself in the Gauliga Württemberg, one of sixteen top tier regional leagues established in the country during that time. It continued to have good results locally, but was unable to impress beyond its own area. In the final year of World War II the Kickers fielded a combined wartime squad with Sportfreunde Stuttgart.
After the war the club resumed play in the Oberliga Süd and performed as a mid-table team early on. By 1950 it had slipped to the lower half of the table with a seemingly solid grip in 14th place, constantly struggling to avoid relegation throughout the decade. Kickers spent the early 60s in tier II football, but after the formation of the Bundesliga, Germany's new professional league, in 1963, the club was moved to the Regionalliga Süd. In 1974, that league went professional and became the 2. Bundesliga. Between 1963 and the late 1980s the team had varying results, but finally stabilized in the upper half of the standings toward the end of that period. It has one losing appearance to its credit in the DFB-Pokal in 1987 and in 1988–89 it made it to the Bundesliga for the first time. It ended a run of 28 years as a second division outfit. The team was immediately relegated after a 17th-place finish, but continued to deliver some of its best performances. Die Blauen advanced to the semi-finals of the 2000 DFB-Pokal and then had a second turn in the Bundesliga in 1991–92, but with the same result as its earlier time up. Over the next decade the club played largely in the second division, before slipping to the Regionalliga Süd in 2001, where they remained until 2008, when a tenth-place finish narrowly qualified them for the new 3. Liga. They finished last in the 3. Liga in 2008–09 and were relegated to the Regionalliga Süd. After three seasons at Regionalliga level, the Kickers returned to the 3. Liga in 2012 where they played for four seasons until relegation at the end of 2015–16, now dropping down to the Regionalliga Südwest. In 2018 they were relegated once more to the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg.

Other departments

The Stuttgarter Kickers also have handball, athletics, table tennis, cheerleading, and lacrosse departments. The association is also recognized for its training of football referees and other game officials. They had a field hockey department too, which in 1957 became independent under the name of HTC Stuttgarter Kickers.

Players

Current squad

Reserve team

The Stuttgarter Kickers II, historically also known as Stuttgarter Kickers Amateure, have been playing in the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg since 2000. Previously, the team fluctuated between the Landesliga and Verbandsliga Württemberg.

Honours

The club's honours:

League

  • German football championship
  • * Runners-up: 1908
  • Southern German championship
  • * Champions: 1908, 1913, 1917
  • Südkreis-Liga
  • * Champions: 1913, 1914, 1917
  • Kreisliga Württemberg
  • * Champions: 1921, 1923
  • Bezirksliga Württemberg-Baden
  • * Champions: 1924, 1925
  • Bezirksliga Württemberg
  • * Champions: 1928, 1933
  • * Runners-up: 1929
  • Gauliga Württemberg
  • * Champions: 1936, 1939, 1940, 1941, 1942
  • 2nd Oberliga Süd
  • * Champions: 1951, 1959
  • 2nd Bundesliga
  • * Champions: 1988
  • Regionalliga Süd
  • * Champions: 1996, 2012
  • * Runners-up: 1995, 2011

    Cup

  • DFB-Pokal
  • * Runners-up: 1987
  • Württemberg Cup
  • * Winners: 2005, 2006, 2022
  • * Runners-up: 2003, 2014, 2017, 2023

    Youth

The club's youth teams have enjoyed quite a bit of success on the national scene.
  • German Under 19 championship
  • * Champions: 1979
  • German Junior Cup
  • * Winners: 1990
  • ‡ Reserve team.

    Recent seasons

The recent season-by-season performance of the club:

Stuttgarter Kickers

Stuttgarter Kickers II

  • With the introduction of the Regionalligas in 1994 and the 3. Liga in 2008 as the new third tier, below the 2. Bundesliga, all leagues below dropped one tier.

    Key

Presidential history

The club's presidents:
  • 1900–1900 Hans Schröder
  • 1900–1900 Hans Spandau
  • 1900–1901 Gustav Dreher
  • 1901–1902 Richard Dürr
  • 1902–1904 Viktor Mäulen
  • 1904–1905 Gustav Dreher
  • 1905–1908 Alfred Hezel
  • 1908–1911 Hans Trapp
  • 1911–1912 Anton Salg
  • 1912–1919 Hans Trapp
  • 1919–1921 Albert Mann
  • 1921–1926 Friedrich Häussermann
  • 1927–1929 Max Maurer
  • 1929–1934 Gotthilf Waizenegger
  • 1934–1937 Karl Umgelter
  • 1937–1945 Hermann Kurz
  • 1945–1948 Eugen Grau
  • 1948–1950 Richard "Molly" Schauffele
  • 1950–1951 Max Maurer
  • 1951–1952 Wilhelm Reuter
  • 1952–1955 Dr. Erich Häussermann
  • 1955–1957 Erich Scriba
  • 1957–1957 Philipp Metzler
  • 1957–1958 Hermann Ulrich
  • 1958–1960 Albrecht Brunst
  • 1960–1960 Willi Knörzer
  • 1960–1962 Albrecht Brunst
  • 1962–1963 Gottfried Sälzer
  • 1963–1967 Helmuth Bauer
  • 1967–1979 Walter Queissner
  • 1979–2003 Axel Dünnwald-Metzler
  • 07/2003 – 03/2007 Hans Kullen
  • 03/2007 – 07/2009 Dirk Eichelbaum
  • 07/2009 – 11/2010 Edgar Kurz
  • since 12 January 2010 Prof. Dr. Rainer Lorz

    Coaching history

The club's coaches: