The club traces its origins to a pair of clubs founded in 1904: Freiburger Fußballverein 04 was organised in March of that year; FC Schwalbe Freiburg just two months later.[citation needed] Both clubs underwent name changes, with Schwalbe becoming FC Mars in 1905, Mars becoming Union Freiburg in 1906, and FV 04 Freiburg becoming Sportverein Freiburg 04 in 1909.[citation needed] Three years later, SV and Union formed Sportclub Freiburg, at the same time incorporating thegriffin head.
In 1918, afterWorld War I, SC Freiburg entered a temporary arrangement with Freiburger FC to be able to field a full side called KSG Freiburg.[citation needed] The next year, SC Freiburg associated themselves withFT 1844 Freiburg as that club's football department, until 1928 when they left to enter into a stadium-sharing arrangement with PSV (Polizeisportverein) Freiburg 1924 that lasted until 1930 and the failure of PSV.[citation needed] SC Freiburg then started again with FT 1844 Freiburg in 1938. The club played first in theBezirksliga Baden in 1928, then in theGauliga Baden, from which they were relegated in 1934.
At the end ofWorld War II,Allied occupation authorities disbanded most existing organizations in Germany, including football and sports clubs. The clubs reconstituted themselves after about a year, but were required to take on new names in an attempt to disassociate them from Nazis. SC Freiburg was therefore briefly known as VfL Freiburg. By 1950, French-occupation authorities allowed the clubs to reclaim their old identities. Finally, in 1952, SC Freiburg left FT Freiburg behind again.
Historical chart of Freiburg league performance
Through the 1930s, SC Freiburg played in the Bezirkliga (II), in the Gauliga Baden (I), winning local titles. After World War II, they resumed playing in theAmateurliga Südbaden (III).
The Finke era with ten Bundesliga seasons (1991–2007)
SC Freiburg were promoted to the2. Bundesliga in1978–79, which they would compete in for a decade-and-a-half before making the breakthrough to the top-flightBundesliga in1993–94 under the management ofVolker Finke. In their first Bundesliga season, Freiburg narrowly avoided relegation. They made a third-place finish in theirsecond season at the top level, finishing third, just three points behind championsBorussia Dortmund. It was at this time that they were first nicknamedBreisgau-Brasilianer (literallyBreisgau-Brazilians), due to their attractive style of play.
Freiburg's first Bundesliga relegation was in 1997 after they finished in 17th position. While they have been relegated four times since first making the Bundesliga, they have thrice won immediate promotion back to the top league. It was the first time since 1992 that Freiburg played in the 2. Bundesliga for two consecutive seasons.
Freiburg finished the2006–07 season in fourth place in the 2. Bundesliga, missing out on the third automatic-promotion spot on goal difference toMSV Duisburg, although they won 12 of their last 16 league games. They were knocked out of theDFB-Pokal in the second round byVfL Wolfsburg on 24 October 2006.
On 20 May 2007,Volker Finke resigned as the club's coach after 16 years in the job. He was succeeded byRobin Dutt, who himself left the club forBayer Leverkusen in 2011.
On 10 May 2009, Freiburg secured promotion into the Bundesliga once again, beatingTuS Koblenz in an away game 5–2.
In the2011–12 season, a coaching change by appointingChristian Streich, with the club finishing 12th. Under Christian Streich, the2012–13 Bundesliga season saw the club finish in fifth place, their best league standing since 1994–95. The fifth-place finish secured a position in the2013–14 UEFA Europa League. Had Freiburg defeatedSchalke 04 on the final matchday of the season, Freiburg would have advanced further in the league table against Schalke and qualified for theUEFA Champions League for the first time in club history. The 1–2 defeat to Schalke, however, saw Schalke secure fourth place in the league and qualify for the tournament instead.[2][3] During the 2012–13 season, Freiburg also advanced to the semi-finals of theDFB-Pokal for the first time in the club's history, but lost to local rivalsVfB Stuttgart 1–2, and missed the chance to playBayern Munich in thefinal.[4]
In the2014–15 season, after six years in the top flight, Freiburg was relegated to the 2. Bundesliga by a single point after a final-day defeat atHannover 96. This was despite beatingBayern Munich in the second-last game. In thefollowing season, however, the club earned its fifth promotion to the Bundesliga, with two matches to spare. The first season back in the Bundesliga saw them end seventh. This saw Freiburg qualify for theEuropa League, as German cupwinners Borussia Dortmund were already qualified for the Champions League. The side were eliminated in the third qualification round againstNK Domžale from Slovenia. Freiburg stayed in the top flight, finishing 15th.
In the2021–22 season Freiburg reached the final of the DFB-Pokal for the first time. In the league Freiburg finished sixth to qualify to the next season'sEuropa League, where they reached the round of 16.[5] In thefollowing season, they finished fifth in the league to achieve another direct qualification to theEuropa League group stage, despite being in the Champions League spots most of the season; however, two consecutive losses against rivalsRB Leipzig andUnion Berlin had them drop down in the league table with two games remaining. In theDFB-Pokal of the same season, defeated Bayern Munich 2–1 in the quarter-finals, in an away match for the first time in their history,[6] before losing in the semi-finals at home 1–5 to RB Leipzig.[7]
In March 2024, it was announced that Streich's assistant coach,Julian Schuster, would take over as head coach of the club.[8] During the2024–25 season, Freiburg reached the Champions League spots, climbing to fourth place after a crucial away win againstWolfsburg on matchday 31.[9] However, a 3–1 home defeat toEintracht Frankfurt on the final matchday saw them drop to fifth place andEuropa League qualification, narrowly missing out on the Champions League for the fifth time following 2001, 2013, 2022, and 2023.[10][11]
The club's reserve team, formerly theSC Freiburg Amateure, nowSC Freiburg II, has, for the most part of its history played in the lower amateur leagues. It made a three-season appearance in the tier fourVerbandsliga Südbaden from 1983 to 1986, but then took until 1994 to return to this league. In 1998 the team won promotion to theOberliga Baden-Württemberg after a league championship in the Verbandsliga. Freiburg II spent the next ten seasons at this level as an upper table side before another league championship took the team to theRegionalliga Süd. After four seasons at this league the team became part of the newRegionalliga Südwest in 2012. After a seventh place in its first season in the league the team finished runner-up in 2013–14.
ASouth Baden Cup win in 2001 qualified it for the first round of the2001–02 DFB-Pokal, the German Cup, where it lost to Schalke 04.
SC Freiburg formerly played its home games at theDreisamstadion, named after theDreisam River which flows through Freiburg. Because of sponsorship agreements, the stadium was known as the Schwarzwald-Stadion. The stadium has an approximate capacity of 24,000 spectators, and was built in 1953. Forty years later, then managerVolker Finke began an initiative to transform the Dreisamstadion into Germany's firstsolar powered football stadium. There are solar modules on the north, south, and main tribunes. These panels generate 250,000kWh of energy per year.[12][13]
In April 2022, the team announced their sponsorship with car retailerCazoo starting in July 2022. The Cazoo brand is visible on the front of the new jerseys as the team's main sponsor. In addition to the Bundesliga professionals, Cazoo appeared as shirt sponsor and advertising partner of the second team of SC Freiburg in the third division and as co-sponsor of the Freiburg Football School, and became visible at all matches of the SC junior teams. Cazoo also became a co-sponsor and sleeve sponsor of SC Freiburg's Bundesliga women.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
This list of former players includes those who received international caps while playing for the team, made significant contributions[vague] to the team in terms of appearances or goals while playing for the team, or who made significant contributions[vague] to the sport either before they played for the team, or after they left.[relevant?] It is not complete or all inclusive, and additions and refinements will continue to be made over time.[29]
With the introduction of theRegionalligas in 1994 and the3. Liga in 2008 as the new third tier, below the2. Bundesliga, all leagues below dropped one tier. In 2012, the number of Regionalligas was increased from three to five with all Regionalliga Süd clubs except the Bavarian ones entering the newRegionalliga Südwest.
^Zorn, Roland (16 March 2023)."Freiburg raus gegen Juventus".Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German).Archived from the original on 27 May 2023. Retrieved27 May 2023.
^"Kader Profis" [Professional squad].scfreiburg.com (in German). Sport-Club Freiburg e.V.Archived from the original on 1 July 2018. Retrieved22 July 2024.
