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| Full name | Fußballclub Carl Zeiss Jena e.V. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Nickname | FCC | ||
| Founded | 13 May 1903; 122 years ago (1903-05-13) | ||
| Ground | Ernst-Abbe-Sportfeld | ||
| Capacity | 15,432 | ||
| Chairman | Klaus Berka | ||
| Manager | Volkan Uluç | ||
| League | Regionalliga Nordost (IV) | ||
| 2024–25 | Regionalliga Nordost, 5th of 18 | ||
| Website | www | ||
FC Carl Zeiss Jena ([kaʁlˈtsaɪsˈjeːna]) is aGerman football club based inJena,Thuringia. Founded in 1903, it was initially associated with the optics manufacturerCarl Zeiss. From the 1960s to the 1980s it was one of the top-ranked clubs in East Germany, won theDDR-Oberliga and theFDGB-Pokal three times each and reached the1981 European Cup Winners' Cup Final. Since theGerman reunification in 1990, the club has competed no higher than the second tier.[1] Since the 2021–22 season, Jena is playing in theRegionalliga Nordost.
The club was founded in May 1903 by workers at theCarl Zeiss AG optics factory as the company-sponsoredFussball-Club der Firma Carl Zeiss. The club underwent name changes in 1911 toFussball Club Carl Zeiss Jena e.V. and in March 1917 to1. Sportverein Jena e.V.
In 1933,1. SV Jena joined theGauliga Mitte, one of 16 top-flight divisions formed in the reorganization of German football under theThird Reich. The team captured division titles in 1935, 1936, 1940, and 1941. This earnedJena entry to the national finals, but they performed poorly and were never able to advance out of preliminary-round group play. After the 1943–44 season, the Gauliga Mitte broke up into a collection of city-based leagues as World War II overtook the area.
In the immediate aftermath of the war, associations of all types (including sports and football clubs) were banned in Germany by the occupying Allied authorities. Jena was reconstituted in June 1946 asSG Ernst Abbe Jena and, like many other clubs inEast Germany, underwent a number of name changes:SG Stadion Jena (October 1948),SG Carl Zeiss Jena (March 1949),BSG Mechanik Jena (January 1951),BSG Motor Jena (May 1951) andSC Motor Jena (November 1954).
In the aftermath of World War II, East Germany authorities tagged sports teams with the names of socialist heroes:Ernst Abbe was a local son and physicist associated with the Zeiss optical factory. He made an early contribution to easing the plight of workers by introducing the8-hour work day at the Zeiss plant, a milestone for labour during the late 19th century.
In 1950 the club became a founding member of the DDR Liga (II), and in their second season captured a divisional title to win promotion to the top-flight DDR Oberliga for a single-season appearance. RenamedSC Motor Jena in 1954, they played their way back to the upper league by 1957.Jena won its first honours with the capture of theFDGB-Pokal in 1960 and followed up with the East Germany national title in 1963. The club was "re-founded" asFC Carl Zeiss Jena in January 1966, and became one of East Germany's "focus centres" for the development of players for the national side and a dominant side in the DDR-Oberliga. They took two more national titles in 1968 and 1970, but finished in second place another half-dozen times to sides such asVorwärts Berlin,Dynamo Dresden and1. FC Magdeburg. They also captured East German Cups in 1972, 1974 and 1980, and appeared in the1981 European Cup Winners' Cup Final, losing 2–1 toDinamo Tbilisi.
AfterGerman reunification in 1990, Jena entered the2. Bundesliga. Their second-place finish in 1992 deteriorated into a 17th-place finish in 1994 and relegation toRegionalliga Nordost (III). They won immediate promotion, and played for three more years at tier-II level. Since 1999 the team has primarily played tier III and IV football,[1] but a second place-finish in theRegionalliga Nord secured Jena promotion to the 2. Bundesliga for the2006–07 season. Jena remained in the 2. Bundesliga by winning 2–1 away againstFC Augsburg in their final match of the season. They finished last in the 2. Bundesliga in2007–08, returning to the third tier. However, this would not be one of the Regionalligen; theGerman Football Association (DFB) launched the new3. Liga for 2008–09, of which Jena was a charter member.
On 9 November 2009 chairman Peter Schreiber announced his retirement;[2] on 13 November the executive board accepted his resignation,[3] and on 25 November Hartmut Bayer became the new chairman.[4] The second team was involved in the2009 European football betting scandal,[5] accused of match-fixing in the game againstZFC Meuselwitz.[6] On 10 December 2009 the club announced that it was in financial distress, owing over €1 million.[7] In January 2010 the players agreed to accept a lower salary.[8]
Carl Zeiss Jena were relegated from the 3. Liga in 2012 and finished second in the tier four Regionalliga Nordost in 2013, and third in 2014. In the2016–17 season they won the Regionalliga Nordost and were promoted to 3. Liga after a play-off win againstViktoria Köln. CZ Jena won the first match in Köln 3–2 and lost the second leg 1–0 at home, but were promoted on the away goals rule. After three seasons in the 3. Liga, the club experienced an underwhelming season and was relegated to the Regionalliga Nordost in June 2020.[9]
Carl Zeiss Jena supporters have a friendship with the Welsh sideNewport County, after the two sides played against each other in the European Cup Winners' Cup in the early 1980s.[10] As with Carl Zeiss Jena, Newport County have seen similar struggles off and on the pitch, and the teams regularly play each other during pre-season.
The club compete in aThuringia derby withRot-Weiß Erfurt, which often features violence between the two sets of supporters and use of pyrotechnics.[11][12][13] The rivalry is exacerbated by a mutual antipathy between the cities ofJena andErfurt.[14]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
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FCC sent 33 players to theDDR (East Germany) national side.
Before the end of World War II, Jena sent three players to the Germany national side:Willy Krauß (1911–12), Heinz Werner (1935) andLudwig Gärtner (1939–41).
American defender,Brian Bliss, played at the club from 1992 to 1996 and received regular calls to theUnited States men's national soccer team. He went on to play forMLS sideColumbus Crew and would later serve as technical director in the club's front office.
Another notable player is former Germany goalkeeperRobert Enke, who started his career at the club and then went on to play for clubs such asHannover 96,FC Barcelona andS.L. Benfica.
The recent season-by-season performance of the club:[16][17]
| Year | Division | Tier | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1999–2000 | Regionalliga Nordost | III | 9th |
| 2000–01 | Regionalliga Süd | 18th ↓ | |
| 2001–02 | NOFV-Oberliga Süd | IV | 3rd |
| 2002–03 | NOFV-Oberliga Süd | 2nd | |
| 2003–04 | NOFV-Oberliga Süd | 2nd | |
| 2004–05 | NOFV-Oberliga Süd | 1st ↑ | |
| 2005–06 | Regionalliga Nord | III | 2nd ↑ |
| 2006–07 | 2. Bundesliga | II | 13th |
| 2007–08 | 2. Bundesliga | 18th ↓ | |
| 2008–09 | 3. Liga | III | 16th |
| 2009–10 | 3. Liga | 5th | |
| 2010–11 | 3. Liga | 15th | |
| 2011–12 | 3. Liga | 18th ↓ | |
| 2012–13 | Regionalliga Nordost | IV | 2nd |
| 2013–14 | Regionalliga Nordost | 3rd | |
| 2014–15 | Regionalliga Nordost | 4th | |
| 2015–16 | Regionalliga Nordost | 7th | |
| 2016–17 | Regionalliga Nordost | 1st ↑ | |
| 2017–18 | 3. Liga | III | 11th |
| 2018–19 | 3. Liga | 14th | |
| 2019–20 | 3. Liga | 20th ↓ | |
| 2020–21 | Regionalliga Nordost | IV | 4th |
| 2021–22 | Regionalliga Nordost | 2nd | |
| 2022–23 | Regionalliga Nordost | 2nd | |
| 2023–24 | Regionalliga Nordost | 7th |
| ↑Promoted | ↓Relegated |
Director (2008–2009)
psychologist (2009)
Theclub's reserve team,FC Carl Zeiss Jena II, currently plays in the tier fiveNOFV-Oberliga Süd. It first played at this level from 1994 to 1999, and again since 2006 with a third place in 1996 and 2010 as its best results.[16][18]
The team also won theThuringia Cup in 1993. The latter allowed the club qualification to the1993–94 DFB-Pokal where it lost 2–0 toBayern Munich.
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