The1947–48 Oberliga was the third season of theOberliga, the first tier of thefootball league system in the three western zones ofAllied-occupied Germany. The league operated in six regional divisions,Berlin,North,South,Southwest (north and south) andWest. For the Northern division, the Oberliga Nord, and the Western division, the Oberliga West, it was the inaugural season, the leagues having been created in 1948. The champions and runners-up of the US, British and French occupation zones and the champions of Oberliga Berlin entered the1948 German football championship, the first edition of the German championship after theSecond World War, which was won by1. FC Nürnberg. It was 1. FC Nürnberg's seventhnational championship.[2][3]
In the British occupation zone the best four teams each of the Oberliga Nord and Oberliga West played out a zone championship with the two finalists advancing to the German championship.
In the US occupation zone the champion and runners-up of the Oberliga Süd directly advanced to the German championship.
In the French occupation zone the Oberliga Südwest operated in two regional divisions, north and south, with a championship final at the end of season. At the end of the season the four clubs in the league from theSaar Protectorate left the German league system with the Saar clubs returning three seasons later, in 1951. The Saar clubs entered the newEhrenliga Saarland, with the exception of1. FC Saarbrücken who joined the FrenchLigue 2 instead.[4] Eventually, on 1 January 1957, the Saar Protectorate would officially join West Germany, ending the post-Second World War political separation of the territory from the other parts of Germany.[5][6][7]
In theSoviet occupation zone an Eastern zone championship, the1948 Ostzonenmeisterschaft, was held and won bySG Planitz, but its winner, also invited, was not permitted to travel to the German championship.[8]
In post-Second World War Germany many clubs were forced to change their names or merge. This policy was particularly strongly enforced in the Soviet and French occupation zones but much more relaxed in the British and US one. In most cases, clubs eventually reverted to their original names, especially after the formation of theFederal Republic of Germany in 1949.[9]
The 1947–48 season was the inaugural season of the league.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hamburger SV[a] | 22 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 66 | 17 | +49 | 37 | Qualification toGerman championship |
| 2 | FC St. Pauli | 22 | 17 | 3 | 2 | 73 | 20 | +53 | 37 | |
| 3 | TSV Braunschweig | 22 | 12 | 4 | 6 | 50 | 31 | +19 | 28 | Qualification to British occupation zone championship |
| 4 | VfL Osnabrück | 22 | 11 | 4 | 7 | 49 | 36 | +13 | 26 | |
| 5 | Werder Bremen | 22 | 12 | 2 | 8 | 43 | 38 | +5 | 26 | |
| 6 | Arminia Hannover | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 35 | 44 | −9 | 21 | |
| 7 | VfB Lübeck | 22 | 9 | 2 | 11 | 41 | 53 | −12 | 20 | |
| 8 | Concordia Hamburg | 22 | 8 | 3 | 11 | 44 | 46 | −2 | 19 | |
| 9 | Bremer SV | 22 | 8 | 1 | 13 | 40 | 46 | −6 | 17 | |
| 10 | Holstein Kiel[b] | 22 | 6 | 2 | 14 | 35 | 65 | −30 | 14 | |
| 11 | Hannover 96(R) | 22 | 6 | 1 | 15 | 32 | 69 | −37 | 13 | Relegation to Amateurliga |
| 12 | Victoria Hamburg(R) | 22 | 2 | 2 | 18 | 24 | 67 | −43 | 6 |
The 1947–48 season was the inaugural season of the league.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Borussia Dortmund | 24 | 17 | 2 | 5 | 62 | 22 | +40 | 36 | Qualification to British occupation zone championship |
| 2 | Sportfreunde Katernberg | 24 | 15 | 4 | 5 | 47 | 30 | +17 | 34 | |
| 3 | STV Horst-Emscher | 24 | 11 | 7 | 6 | 55 | 43 | +12 | 29 | |
| 4 | Sportfreunde Hamborn | 24 | 11 | 6 | 7 | 40 | 29 | +11 | 28 | |
| 5 | Rot-Weiß Oberhausen | 24 | 12 | 3 | 9 | 43 | 32 | +11 | 27 | |
| 6 | FC Schalke 04 | 24 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 40 | 35 | +5 | 24 | |
| 7 | Fortuna Düsseldorf | 24 | 9 | 6 | 9 | 41 | 41 | 0 | 24 | |
| 8 | SpVgg Erkenschwick | 24 | 9 | 3 | 12 | 48 | 48 | 0 | 21 | |
| 9 | Alemannia Aachen | 24 | 8 | 5 | 11 | 29 | 46 | −17 | 21 | |
| 10 | TSG Vohwinkel | 24 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 33 | 48 | −15 | 19 | |
| 11 | Preußen Dellbrück(R) | 24 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 37 | 55 | −18 | 19 | Relegation to Amateurliga |
| 12 | VfR Köln(R) | 24 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 23 | 43 | −20 | 17 | |
| 13 | VfL Witten(R) | 24 | 4 | 5 | 15 | 30 | 56 | −26 | 13 |
TheBritish occupation zone championship saw the best four teams in the two Oberligas compete against each other. The two finalists, both fromHamburg, would advance to the German championship. Like in 1947Hamburger SV won the second and last edition of this competition.[11][12]
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| FC St. Pauli | 3–1 | STV Horst-Emscher |
| Sportfreunde Hamborn | 0–1 | Hamburger SV |
| Sportfreunde Katernberg | 1–2 | TSV Braunschweig |
| SV Werder Bremen | 2–3 aet | Borussia Dortmund |
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Hamburger SV | 3–2 | TSV Braunschweig |
| FC St. Pauli | 2–2 aet | Borussia Dortmund |
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| FC St. Pauli | 1–0 | Borussia Dortmund |
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Hamburger SV | 6–1 | FC St. Pauli |
The 1947–48 season saw three new clubs promoted to the league,SG Spandau-Altstadt,Union Oberschöneweide andVfB Pankow.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Union Oberschöneweide | 22 | 16 | 3 | 3 | 68 | 21 | +47 | 35 | Qualification toGerman championship |
| 2 | SG Wilmersdorf | 22 | 15 | 4 | 3 | 57 | 20 | +37 | 34 | |
| 3 | SG Charlottenburg | 22 | 12 | 7 | 3 | 63 | 23 | +40 | 31 | |
| 4 | Alemannia 90 Berlin | 22 | 13 | 4 | 5 | 65 | 31 | +34 | 30 | |
| 5 | SG Reinickendorf-West | 22 | 10 | 7 | 5 | 47 | 27 | +20 | 27 | |
| 6 | SG Spandau-Altstadt | 22 | 7 | 8 | 7 | 43 | 33 | +10 | 22 | |
| 7 | SC Südring | 23 | 8 | 6 | 9 | 39 | 47 | −8 | 22 | |
| 8 | VfB Pankow | 22 | 7 | 6 | 9 | 26 | 35 | −9 | 20 | |
| 9 | SG Köpenick | 22 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 36 | 58 | −22 | 17 | |
| 10 | SC Staaken(R) | 22 | 4 | 3 | 15 | 25 | 79 | −54 | 11 | Relegation to Amateurliga |
| 11 | SG Mariendorf(R) | 22 | 3 | 3 | 16 | 35 | 69 | −34 | 9 | |
| 12 | BSG Nordstern(R) | 22 | 2 | 4 | 16 | 29 | 90 | −61 | 8 |
The 1947–48 season saw five new clubs promoted to the league,SpVgg Andernach,VfL Neustadt,Saar 05 Saarbrücken,FK Pirmasens andSG Gonsenheim.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 26 | 23 | 2 | 1 | 151 | 18 | +133 | 48 | Qualification toGerman championship |
| 2 | 1. FC Saarbrücken | 26 | 20 | 3 | 3 | 73 | 22 | +51 | 43 | Withdrawn from the Oberliga |
| 3 | TuS Neuendorf | 26 | 19 | 2 | 5 | 74 | 36 | +38 | 40 | Qualification toGerman championship |
| 4 | Borussia Neunkirchen | 26 | 18 | 2 | 6 | 109 | 36 | +73 | 38 | Withdrawn from the Oberliga |
| 5 | Wormatia Worms | 26 | 14 | 4 | 8 | 80 | 51 | +29 | 32 | |
| 6 | VfL Neustadt | 26 | 12 | 3 | 11 | 56 | 54 | +2 | 27 | |
| 7 | FK Pirmasens | 26 | 12 | 2 | 12 | 46 | 67 | −21 | 26 | |
| 8 | FSV Mainz 05 | 26 | 8 | 9 | 9 | 36 | 49 | −13 | 25 | |
| 9 | Saar 05 Saarbrücken | 26 | 10 | 5 | 11 | 42 | 64 | −22 | 25 | Withdrawn from the Oberliga |
| 10 | Phönix Ludwigshafen | 26 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 32 | 57 | −25 | 21 | |
| 11 | SG Gonsenheim | 26 | 3 | 4 | 19 | 31 | 89 | −58 | 10 | |
| 12 | SV Röchling Völklingen | 26 | 4 | 2 | 20 | 33 | 99 | −66 | 10 | Withdrawn from the Oberliga |
| 13 | FSV Kürenz | 26 | 3 | 4 | 19 | 24 | 95 | −71 | 10 | |
| 14 | SpVgg Andernach | 26 | 4 | 1 | 21 | 31 | 81 | −50 | 9 |
The 1947–48 season saw four new clubs promoted to the league,Eintracht Singen,SpVgg Trossingen,SV Laupheim andFortuna Freiburg.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fortuna Rastatt | 22 | 13 | 7 | 2 | 53 | 19 | +34 | 33 | Qualification to French occupation zone championship |
| 2 | SpVgg Offenburg | 22 | 15 | 2 | 5 | 47 | 25 | +22 | 32 | Qualification to runners-up play-offs |
| 3 | Eintracht Singen | 22 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 44 | 21 | +23 | 27 | |
| 4 | VfL Konstanz | 22 | 10 | 5 | 7 | 40 | 30 | +10 | 25 | |
| 5 | Fortuna Freiburg | 22 | 9 | 7 | 6 | 39 | 32 | +7 | 25 | |
| 6 | VfL Schwenningen | 22 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 41 | 34 | +7 | 24 | |
| 7 | SSV Reutlingen | 22 | 9 | 5 | 8 | 38 | 37 | +1 | 23 | |
| 8 | SG Friedrichshafen | 22 | 9 | 3 | 10 | 39 | 37 | +2 | 21 | |
| 9 | VfL Freiburg | 22 | 8 | 5 | 9 | 30 | 31 | −1 | 21 | |
| 10 | SV Biberach | 22 | 6 | 4 | 12 | 32 | 43 | −11 | 16 | |
| 11 | SpVgg Trossingen(R) | 22 | 4 | 2 | 16 | 15 | 46 | −31 | 10 | Relegation to Amateurliga |
| 12 | SV Laupheim(R) | 22 | 3 | 1 | 18 | 14 | 77 | −63 | 7 |
The winners of the two regional divisions of the Oberliga Südwest played a final to determine the league champion who was also directly qualified for the German championship:[9]
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 9–1 | Fortuna Rastatt | 3–0 | 6–1 |
The runners-up of the two divisions determined the club who would face the loser of the championship final for the second place in the German championship:
| Team 1 | Agg.Tooltip Aggregate score | Team 2 | 1st leg | 2nd leg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TuS Neuendorf | 7–1 | SpVgg Offenburg | 5–1 | 2–0 |
| Team 1 | Score | Team 2 |
|---|---|---|
| TuS Neuendorf | 3–1 | Fortuna Rastatt |
The 1947–48 season saw four new clubs promoted to the league,VfB Mühlburg,Rot-Weiß Frankfurt,FC Wacker München andSportfreunde Stuttgart.
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts | Promotion, qualification or relegation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1. FC Nürnberg(C) | 38 | 28 | 4 | 6 | 88 | 37 | +51 | 60 | Qualification toGerman championship |
| 2 | TSV 1860 München | 38 | 23 | 6 | 9 | 77 | 63 | +14 | 52 | |
| 3 | Stuttgarter Kickers | 38 | 23 | 4 | 11 | 113 | 58 | +55 | 50 | |
| 4 | FC Bayern Munich | 38 | 21 | 8 | 9 | 72 | 38 | +34 | 50 | |
| 5 | VfB Stuttgart | 38 | 21 | 3 | 14 | 96 | 60 | +36 | 45 | |
| 6 | SV Waldhof Mannheim | 38 | 19 | 7 | 12 | 77 | 59 | +18 | 45 | |
| 7 | FSV Frankfurt | 38 | 17 | 9 | 12 | 66 | 50 | +16 | 43 | |
| 8 | VfR Mannheim | 38 | 17 | 9 | 12 | 66 | 55 | +11 | 43 | |
| 9 | Kickers Offenbach | 38 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 75 | 55 | +20 | 42 | |
| 10 | Eintracht Frankfurt | 38 | 16 | 9 | 13 | 64 | 56 | +8 | 41 | |
| 11 | Schwaben Augsburg | 38 | 15 | 11 | 12 | 66 | 59 | +7 | 41 | |
| 12 | TSG Ulm 1846 | 38 | 14 | 10 | 14 | 60 | 60 | 0 | 38 | |
| 13 | FC Schweinfurt 05 | 38 | 13 | 8 | 17 | 49 | 53 | −4 | 34 | |
| 14 | VfB Mühlburg | 38 | 13 | 7 | 18 | 53 | 59 | −6 | 33 | |
| 15 | SpVgg Fürth(R) | 38 | 15 | 1 | 22 | 68 | 86 | −18 | 31 | Relegation to Amateurliga |
| 16 | VfL Neckarau(R) | 38 | 11 | 8 | 19 | 48 | 81 | −33 | 30 | |
| 17 | Viktoria Aschaffenburg(R) | 38 | 8 | 9 | 21 | 46 | 88 | −42 | 25 | |
| 18 | Rot-Weiß Frankfurt(R) | 38 | 9 | 4 | 25 | 50 | 99 | −49 | 22 | |
| 19 | FC Wacker München(R) | 38 | 7 | 7 | 24 | 41 | 89 | −48 | 21 | |
| 20 | Sportfreunde Stuttgart(R) | 38 | 4 | 6 | 28 | 30 | 100 | −70 | 14 |
The 1948 German football championship was contested by the eight qualified Oberliga teams and won by1. FC Nürnberg, defeating1. FC Kaiserslautern in the final. It was played in a knock-out format and consisted of eight clubs. The champion of the Soviet occupation zone was however not permitted to travel toStuttgart to play 1. FC Nürnberg, with the game awarded to the latter.[11]