 | |||
| Full name | Sport-Club Fortuna Köln e.V. | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Founded | 1948; 77 years ago (1948) | ||
| Ground | Südstadion | ||
| Capacity | 11,748 | ||
| Chairman | Hanns-Jörg Westendorf | ||
| Head coach | Matthias Mink | ||
| League | Regionalliga West (IV) | ||
| 2024–25 | Regionalliga West, 6th of 18 | ||
 Current season | |||
SC Fortuna Köln is aGerman association football club based in the city ofCologne,North Rhine-Westphalia.
The club was formed as on 21 February 1948 through the merger of three local sides: Victoria Köln 1911 (one of two clubs to bear the name), Bayenthaler SV 1920, and Sparkassen-Verein Köln 1927. Of these clubs, Victoria had the best results, winning its way to the first division of theGauliga Köln-Aachen in 1941 and capturing the division title there the following season. Bayenthaler SV 1920 side also spent a season in theGauliga in 1943–44 before the division collapsed as war overtook the region. In 1976, SC Fortuna Köln was joined by FC Alter Markt Köln.
Through most of the last four decades Fortuna has played as a second division side. Highlights of the club's history include promotion to theBundesliga for the 1974 season and an impressive run through the 1983DFB-Pokal. The team took outSC Freiburg in the first round and eked out a win on penalties overSSV Ulm 1846 in their next match. They then eliminated three first division sides in a row: firstEintracht Braunschweig andBorussia Mönchengladbach, before crushingBorussia Dortmund 5–0 in their semi-final match. This put them into the final against hometown rivals1. FC Köln, the first time the Cup final had come down to a local derby. Although they outplayed their opposition, Fortuna's magic had run out and they lost 0–1 on a late goal byPierre Littbarski.
In 1986, the side came close to a return to the Bundesliga, but was beaten by Borussia Dortmund in the promotion round. Each team had won their home match in a two-game series, which forced a third contest under the rules in effect at the time. Instead of advancing on the strength of away goals, Fortuna was crushed 0–8 by Borussia Dortmund. A handful of seasons later the club avoided relegation to third-tier football at the end of the 1991–92 schedule only when division rivalsBlau-Weiß 90 Berlin were denied a licence.
One of the key features of Fortuna's history was the presidency of deep-pocketedJean Löring. Beginning in 1967, the millionaire's support of the club helped them to continue to field competitive sides for much longer than they might otherwise have. In 1982, he even helped out in another way: trained as an electrician, he personally fixed the floodlights when they failed during a match againstSV Darmstadt 98 so the game could go on. Löring, who had been anOberliga player himself withAlemannia Aachen in his younger years, was ousted as president in 2000 and the club soon deteriorated. In 2005 the club failed financially and was forced to withdraw from league play.
Since 2008, the club has been owned (likeEbbsfleet United F.C.) partially by the web-based venturedeinfussballclub.de.[1] Until 2008, the SCF played in the fifth division Verbandsliga Mittelrhein, gaining promotion with a second-place finish to the newOberliga Nordrhein-Westfalen. Fortuna Köln finished Oberliga as ninth in 2008–09, as 15th in 2009–10 season and as third in 2010–2011 saison. From the 2011–12 season the club played in theRegionalliga West until in 2014 they won that league and beat thesecond team of Bayern Munich to get promoted to theGerman third league.
Despite insolvency, the club was able to salvage its youth department, one of the largest in Germany with over 500 players on 25 teams, through a fundraising campaign organized by the former chairman Egbert Bischoff that included a benefit game against 1. FC Köln.
Recent chairmanKlaus Ulonska once competed in the1962 European Championships in Athletics, co-winning the 4 × 100 m Relay.
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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The recent season-by-season performance of the club:[3][4][5]
| Year | Division | Tier | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1967–68 | Regionalliga West | II | 16th |
| 1972–73 | Regionalliga West | II | 2nd ↑ |
| 1973–74 | 1. Bundesliga | I | 17th ↓ |
| 1999–2000 | 2. Bundesliga | II | 16th ↓ |
| 2000–01 | Regionalliga Nord | III | 4th |
| 2001–02 | Regionalliga Nord | 18th ↓ | |
| 2002–03 | Oberliga Nordrhein | IV | 10th |
| 2003–04 | Oberliga Nordrhein | 8th | |
| 2004–05 | Oberliga Nordrhein | 18th ↓ | |
| 2005–06 | Verbandsliga Mittelrhein | V | 7th |
| 2006–07 | Verbandsliga Mittelrhein | 9th | |
| 2007–08 | Verbandsliga Mittelrhein | 2nd ↑ | |
| 2008–09 | NRW-Liga | V | 9th |
| 2009–10 | NRW-Liga | 14th | |
| 2010–11 | NRW-Liga | 3rd ↑ | |
| 2011–12 | Regionalliga West | IV | 7th |
| 2012–13 | Regionalliga West | 2nd | |
| 2013–14 | Regionalliga West | 1st ↑ | |
| 2014–15 | 3. Liga | III | 14th |
| 2015–16 | 3. Liga | 11th | |
| 2016–17 | 3. Liga | 16th | |
| 2017–18 | 3. Liga | 8th | |
| 2018–19 | 3. Liga | 19th ↓ | |
| 2019–20 | Regionalliga West | IV | 10th |
| 2020–21 | Regionalliga West | 4th | |
| 2021–22 | Regionalliga West | 5th | |
| 2022–23 | Regionalliga West | 6th | |
| 2023–24 | Regionalliga West | 4th | |
| 2024–25 | Regionalliga West | 6th |
| ↑Promoted | ↓Relegated |
The women's football department was founded 2003 and has experienced rapid growth. The team had been often qualified as winner of theMiddle Rhine Cup for theDFB-Pokal Frauen.
The women's team mostly competed in the third-tierRegionalliga West. In the2024–25 DFB-Pokal Frauen, the team reached the Round of 16.[6]
(in German)
