Sportfreunde Siegen

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Sportfreunde Siegen

Full name

Sportfreunde Siegen

Nickname(s)

Founded

1899

Ground

Leimbachstadion, Siegen

Capacity

18,500

League

Regionalliga

2005-06

2. Bundesliga, 18th (relegated)





Home colours





Away colours

Sportfreunde Siegen is a German football club based in Siegen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club was founded in 1899 as the football department of the gymnastics club Turn Verein Jahn von 1879 Siegen. They merged with Sportverein 07 Siegen in 1923 to become an independent football club called Sportfreunde Siegen von 1899 e.V.

1 History
2 Women's football
3 Club culture
4 Honours
5 External links

[edit] History

The club won local titles in the 1900's and went on to their greatest successes in the 1920's when they won several South German league titles. In spite of their good results the side did not qualify for first division play after the re-organization of German football into sixteen Gauligen under the Third Reich in 1933.

The club's next appearance in the upper levels of German football was in the 2.Oberliga West (II) in 1961. After the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963 Siegen played in the second division Regionalliga West for a single season before slipping to the third tier Amateurliga Westfalen. In the mid-80's the club fell even further to the Verbandsliga Westfalen-SW (IV) and spent nine of the next eleven seasons at that level.

Siegen recovered itself and returned to third division football in 1997. After two consecutive 16th place finishes - including a brush with relegation in 2003 which they avoided only because SV Waldhof Mannheim and SSV Reutlingen were denied licenses due to their financial weakness - the club managed to claw its way to the Second Bundesliga on the strength of a surprising second place result in 2006. However, their season there was unsuccessful and they are once again playing in the Regionalliga Sud after an 18th place finish last year.

[edit] Women's football

The club is well known for consistently fielding strong women's sides and has six national women's championships and five women's German Cups to its credit.

[edit] Club culture

The club's fanbase includes a large hooligan element and a fierce rivalry with Holstein Kiel due to a controversial German Cup tie in 1992. A Cottbus fan, Hans Karlszer, was nearly killed when Siegen thugs knocked down a fence.^{[citation needed]}