The "04" in the club's name derives from its formation in 1904. Schalke have been one of the most popular professionalfootball teams in Germany, even though the club's heyday was in the 1930s and 1940s. As of September 2025, the club has 200,000 members,[2] making it the third-largest football club in Germany and thesixth-largest club in the world in terms of membership.[3]
1900s typical mining structure in the Ruhr, source of the Schalke nickname Die Knappen – from an old German word for "miners"– because the team drew so many of its players and supporters from the coalmine workers of Gelsenkirchen.
The club was founded on 4 May 1904 asWestfalia Schalke by a group of high school students and first wore the colours red and yellow.[citation needed] The team was unable to gain admittance[why?] to theWestdeutscher Spielverband (Western German Football Association) and played in one of the "wild associations" of early German football. In 1912, after years of failed attempts to join the official league,[vague] they merged with the gymnastic clubSchalker Turnverein 1877 in order to facilitate their entry. This arrangement held up until 1915, whenSV Westfalia Schalke was re-established as an independent club. The separation proved short-lived and the two came together again in 1919 asTurn- und Sportverein Schalke 1877. The new club won its first honours in 1923 as champions of theSchalke Kreisliga. It was around this time that Schalke picked up the nicknameDie Knappen, from an old German word for "miners" because the team drew so many of its players and supporters from the coal miners of Gelsenkirchen.[citation needed]
In 1924, the football team parted ways with the gymnasts again,[why?] this time taking the club chairman along with them. They took the nameFC Schalke 04 and adopted the now familiar blue and whitekit from which their second nickname would derive,Die Königsblauen (English:The Royal Blues). The following year, the club became the dominant local side, based on a style of play that used short, sharp, man-to-man passing to move the ball. This system would later become famous as theSchalker Kreisel (English:spinning top; gyroscope).[citation needed] In 1927, it carried them into the top-flightGauliga Ruhr, onto the league championship, and then into the opening rounds of the national finals.[citation needed]
Following the club's initial success, it quickly gained in popularity, especially among the working class.[4] In 1928, the club built a new stadium, the Glückauf-Kampfbahn, and acknowledged the city's support by renaming themselvesFC Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04. They won their first West German championship in 1929,[5] but the following year were sanctioned for exceeding salary levels set by the league and, in an era that considered professionalism in sport to be anathema, found themselves banned from play for nearly half a year.[citation needed]
However, the ban had little impact on the team's popularity: in their first match after the ban againstFortuna Düsseldorf, in June 1931, the team drew 70,000 spectators to its home ground. The club's fortunes begun to rise from 1931 and they made a semi-final appearance in the1932 German championship, losing 1–2 toEintracht Frankfurt.The year after, the club reached the final, where Fortuna Düsseldorf proved the better side, winning 3–0.[6]
With the re-organisation of German football in 1933 underNazi Germany, Schalke were placed in theGauliga Westfalen, 1 of 16 top-flight divisions established to replace the innumerable regional and local leagues, all claiming top status. This league saw Schalke's most successful decade in their history: from 1933 to 1942, the club would appear in 14 of 18 national finals (ten in the German championship and eight in theTschammerpokal, the predecessor of today'sDFB-Pokal) and win their league in every one of its eleven seasons.[citation needed]
The club never lost a home match in the Gauliga Westfalen in all these 11 seasons and only lost six away matches, while remaining unbeaten in the 1935–36, 1936–37, 1937–38, 1938–39, 1940–41 and 1942–43 seasons, a sign of the club's dominance.[7]
FC Schalke 04 supporters in 1941
Schalke's firstnational title came in1934 with a 2–1 victory over favourites1. FC Nürnberg.The next year, they successfully defended their title againstVfB Stuttgart with a 6–4 win. The club missed the1936 final, but would make appearances in the championship match in each of the next six years, coming away victorious in1937,1939,1940 and1942. Three of those national finals were against Austrian teams –Admira Wien,Rapid Wien andFirst Vienna – which played in Germany's Gauliga Ostmark after Austria's incorporation into the Reich through the 1938Anschluss.[citation needed]
Die Königsblauen also made frequent appearances in the final of the Tschammerpokal, but had less success there. They lost theinaugural Tschammerpokal 0–2 to 1. FC Nürnberg in 1935. They also made failed appearances in the1936,1941, and1942 finals with their only victory coming in1937 against Fortuna Düsseldorf.[citation needed]
Over a dozen seasons, from 1933 to 1945, Schalke won 162 of 189 Gauliga matches, drawing 21 and losing only 6. Within this period, they scored 924 goals and conceded just 145. From 1935 to 1939, they did not lose a single league match. The club's dominance throughout this period led them to be held up for propaganda purposes by theNazi regime as an example of "new Germany".[citation needed]
Commonly regarded as the greatest S04 player of all time alongsideFritz Szepan,Ernst Kuzorra is also commonly regarded as one of the greatest Germanforwards and led S04 to become the dominant team inGerman football winning sixGerman championships and oneDFB-Pokal from 1934 to 1942.Ernst Kuzorra was one of the main axes of what became known as the "Schalker Kreisel; a system that used quick and shortpassing", to confuse and overwhelm the opponent.
With Germany in chaos towards the end ofWorld War II, Schalke played just two matches in 1945. They resumed regular play following the war and, for a few years, continued to compete as a strong side. They set a record in a national championship round match with a 20–0 win againstSpVgg Herten, but that spoke more to the weakened condition of German football than to the ability of the team.[according to whom?] Schalke's play fell off, and they only finished sixth in the new Oberliga West in 1947. Within two years, they slipped to 12th place.[citation needed]
It would take Schalke until the mid-1950s to recover their form. They finished third in a tight three-way race for the 1954 Oberliga West title, decided on the last day of the season. The following year, they appeared in theDFB-Pokal final, where they lost 2–3 toKarlsruher SC. The club's next, and to date last, German championship came in1958 with a 3–0 victory overHamburger SV. The strong fanbase of the club is as well documented in a local church, St. Joseph, in Gelsenkirchen. It was renovated shortly after the 1958 victory, where one of the glass windows showsAloysius Gonzaga with a football and the dress and colours of Schalke.[8]
1960–2000: Entry to the Bundesliga and theEuro Fighters
Schalke continued to play well, having several top four finishes in the years leading up to the 1963 formation of theBundesliga, West Germany's new federal, professional league. Those results earned them selection as 1 of 16 clubs admitted to the top-flight league.[citation needed]
Their first years in the Bundesliga were difficult. In1964–65, they escaped relegation only through the expansion of the league to 18 teams. A number of finishes at the lower end of the league table followed, before a marked improvement in1971–72, culminating in a second-place finish toBayern Munich and after having led the league for much of the season. In the same season, Schalke won theDFB-Pokal for the second time in its history.[citation needed]
Despite their improved results, the seeds of a major reversal had already been sown. A number of the team's players and officials were accused of acceptingbribes as part of the widespreadBundesliga scandal of 1971. Investigation showed that Schalke had deliberately played to lose their 17 May, 28th-round match againstArminia Bielefeld, 0–1. As a result, several Schalke players were banned for life, including three –Klaus Fischer,"Stan" Libuda andKlaus Fichtel – who regularly played for theWest Germany national team at the time.[9][10]
Even though the penalties were later commuted to bans ranging from six months to two years, the scandal had a profound effect on what might have possibly become one of the dominant German teams of the 1970s.[citation needed] In 1973, the club moved to theParkstadion, newly built for the1974 FIFA World Cup and having a capacity of 70,000 spectators. In the wake of the scandal, the club's performance was uneven. They managed another second-place result in1976–77, finishing just one point behind championsBorussia Mönchengladbach.[citation needed]
In the early 1980s,Die Knappen ran into trouble[tone] and were relegated to thesecond division of the Bundesliga for the 1981–82 season and, after promotion, again in 1983–84. They returned to the top flight in1984 but were relegated once more to the second tier in 1988. They returned to the Bundesliga in the1991–92 season and stayed in the top flight until 2021.
The club earned their first honours since the DFB-Pokal win of 1972 with a victory in the final of the1996–97 UEFA Cup overInter Milan on penalties. Coached by the Dutch coachHuub Stevens, the 1997 Schalke squad earned the nickname "Euro Fighters", which is still in use among fans.[citation needed] Stevens, who was widely unknown in Germany at the time, quickly earned himself a cult following among the Schalke supporters.
Stevens successfully implemented a system of rigid discipline, especially in the defence. His motto "Die Null muß stehen" (inEnglish, "It has to read nil"), which emphasized his importance on his side not conceding any goals, has found its way into everyday language in Germany.[citation needed]
2000–2019: Top-table mainstay, European semi-final
During the 1990s and early 2000, the club underwent a transformation into a modern, commercial sports organization and established itself as one of the dominant teams of the Bundesliga. Schalke won consecutive DFB-Pokals in2000–01 and2001–02, and earned second-place finishes in the Bundesliga in2000–01,2004–05 and2006–07. The2000–01 season finish was heartbreaking for Schalke's supporters as it took a goal in the fourth minute of injury time by Bayern Munich away to Hamburger SV to snatch the title fromDie Königsblauen.[11]
Schalke finished in second place in 2005, a result that led to Schalke making its second appearance in theUEFA Champions League. There, Schalke finished in third place during the group stage and continuing into theUEFA Cup, where they were eliminated by the eventual winnersSevilla in the semi-finals. In2005–06, Schalke finished in fourth place in the Bundesliga, narrowly missing out on a Champions League spot. In2006–07, Schalke came agonizingly close to their first-ever Bundesliga title, finishing runners-up for the third time in seven seasons. They led much of the campaign, but a 2–0 away loss to rivalsBorussia Dortmund on the penultimate matchday left them second, just two points behindVfB Stuttgart.[12]
In the2007–08 season, Schalke progressed past theChampions League group stage for the first time and advanced to the quarter-finals after defeatingPorto on penalties in the round of 16. They were eliminated byBarcelona in the quarter-finals, losing both home and away matches 0–1.[13]
On 9 October 2006, Russian oil companyGazprom became the club's new sponsor. The company stated it expected to invest as much as €125 million in the club over a five-and-a-half-year period.[14] Gazprom's sponsorship has been seen by some analysts as a politically motivated attempt to buy friendship in Germany.[15] Within this sponsorship, Schalke 04 andZenit Saint Petersburg signed a "partnership agreement"; both clubs intended to work closely on improving football-related issues.
On 13 April 2008, the club announced the dismissal of managerMirko Slomka after a heavy defeat at the hands[tone] ofWerder Bremen and elimination from the Champions League. Former playersMike Büskens andYouri Mulder were put in charge of the first team on an interim basis. For the2008–09 Bundesliga season, Schalke signed a new head coach,Fred Rutten, previously ofTwente. Rutten signed a contract running until June 2010.[16] In March 2009, Rutten was sacked, and, once more, Mike Büskens, Youri Mulder and Oliver Reck took over the helm.
Raúl, then all-time top goalscorer in European club competitions, played for Schalke from 2010 to 2012
On 1 July 2009,Felix Magath, who had ledVfL Wolfsburg to the top of the table in the Bundesliga, became head coach and general manager of theKönigsblauen. The appointment of Magath as manager coincided with a multimillion-euro spending spree, allowing Schalke to acquire internationally known forwardsKlaas-Jan Huntelaar andRaúl. Magath's tenure at the club was initially successful, seeing the side score a lot of goals in the first few months of the season, though defensive frailties and Magath's questionable squad selection had made him unpopular with Schalke supporters by December 2010.[citation needed]
On 16 March 2011, Magath was sacked, and replaced withRalf Rangnick, who previously, between 2004 and 2005, had a brief spell being in charge of the team. Within just weeks of his appointment, Rangnick masterminded a 5–2 victory over Inter Milan at theSan Siro during thequarter-finals of the Champions League. Schalke advanced to thesemi-final where they lost 2–0 toManchester United in the first leg and 4–1 in the second leg.[17] However, Schalke 04 managed to win the2010–11 DFB-Pokal after thrashingMSV Duisburg 5–0.[18] On 1 June 2011, Schalke's captain,Manuel Neuer, made his move to Bayern Munich.[19]
On 22 September 2011, Ralf Rangnick announced his immediate resignation as head coach of Schalke 04 due tolong-term exhaustion.[20] Assistant coach Seppo Eichkorn coached the team as interim manager until the appointment of Huub Stevens on 27 September 2011. Stevens' contract was to run until 30 June 2013.[21]
FC Schalke 04 in the UEFA Champions League line-up againstFC Barcelona
Despite having legendary[tone] status among Schalke supporters, Stevens's return to Schalke was met with some scepticism,[by whom?] as fans feared that Stevens, who coached Schalke to the 1997 UEFA Cup win with a rigidly defensive system, could abandon Rangnick's system of attacking play in favour of returning to his 1997 defensive antics.[22] The doubts of the supporters proved unfounded. Although Schalke played a somewhat inconsistent season, they reached third place in the Bundesliga and therefore direct qualification for the UEFA Champions League.
Schalke had an excellent start to the2012–13 Bundesliga season, and worked their way to second place in the league by November, just behind Bayern Munich. On 20 October, Schalke traveled toBorussia Dortmund for matchday 8, and defeated the home side 2–1 to secure their first leagueRevierderby win since February 2010 while securing a Champions League place by finishing in fourth place. In the2013–14 UEFA Champions League group stage, Schalke's opponents wereFCSB,FC Basel andChelsea. Schalke ultimately finished the group stage in second place, behind Chelsea, and was eliminated in the round of 16 byReal Madrid CF.
The most prominent Schalke addition was the arrival ofKevin-Prince Boateng fromMilan.[23] After a disappointing first round of the2013–14 Bundesliga that saw Schalke in seventh place in the Bundesliga table, as well as an early exit from the2013–14 DFB-Pokal in the first knockout round, the club played their most successful second half of the season in club history. The season was marked by numerous injuries to key squad players, includingJefferson Farfán and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, for almost the entire season. It also led to performance related discussions[by whom?] about head coach Jens Keller. Partially, Schalke fielded up to ten young players with potential who played in the Schalke youth system throughout the season. Among the most promising young player discoveries of the 2013–14 season wereMax Meyer andLeon Goretzka. The young Schalke squad won 11 out of 17 matches, totaling 36 points. At the end of the 2013–14 season, the club finished in third place in the Bundesliga table to qualify for their third-straight UEFA Champions League appearance, a feat Schalke had never before achieved.[citation needed]
On 7 October 2014, after a 1–2 defeat to1899 Hoffenheim and after amassing just eight points from seven matches, Keller was sacked and succeeded byRoberto Di Matteo.[24]
Domenico Tedesco was the youngest coach in Schalke's club history.
In the2014–15 UEFA Champions League, Schalke 04 finished second in a group with Chelsea,Sporting CP andMaribor. Later on, they played against the reigning champion Real Madrid again in the round of 16, where they lost the first leg at home 0–2, but they won 4–3 at theSantiago Bernabéu Stadium.[25] After finishing sixth in the2014–15 season, the club announced the resignation of head coach Roberto Di Matteo on 26 May 2015.[26] Schalke 04 then played in the Europa League, in the2015–16 and2016–17 seasons, and were eliminated byShakhtar Donetsk andAjax respectively.[citation needed]
Starting with the2017–18 season,Domenico Tedesco took over the managerial spot for Schalke 04.[27] At the end of the season, he led the team to finish as runners-up to Bayern Munich. On 29 July 2018, the team's captain,Benedikt Höwedes, decided to leave after more than ten years at the club.[28]
Schalke was hit particularly hard by theCOVID-19 pandemic, and in April 2020 the club said that it was threatened by bankruptcy.[32] Against the backdrop of a worsened financial situation caused by a high level of debt and a decrease in revenue related torestrictions put in place to combat the COVID-19 pandemic, the club decided to introduce a player salary cap of €2.5 million per year.[33]
In the second half of the2019–20 season, Schalke set a new club record of 16 league games without a win between 25 January and 27 June 2020.[34] Despite this losing streak, Wagner remained as manager,[35] withClemens Tönnies stepping down from his role as the chairman of Schalke's supervisory board after 19 years in service instead.[36]
2020–present: Relegations and growing financial troubles
Schalke started with significant difficulties into the2020–21 season. After 8–0[37] and 4–0[38] losses away at the hands of Bayern Munich andRB Leipzig and a 1–3[39] loss at home against Werder Bremen, Schalke was last in the league table after three games, with one goal scored and fifteen conceded. After only two match days, Schalke dismissed David Wagner as head coach on 27 September in the aftermath of the loss against Bremen.[40] At 1.08 average points per game, Wagner was then the lowest-scoring head coach in Schalke's recent history.[41]
Three days later,Manuel Baum was nominated as Wagner's successor, withNaldo, a former Schalke player, as assistant coach.[42] Baum, who had taken over from Wagner at a winless streak of 18 games, was unable to win a single Bundesliga game between the 3rd and 12th match days, and was dismissed ahead of the 13th match day against Arminia Bielefeld.[43] Huub Stevens once again returned as head coach, beginning his fourth tenure.[43] Baum's tenure had brought the winless streak up from 18 to 28 Bundesliga games, bringing Schalke to the brink of breaking the all-time record of 31 winless games, set bySC Tasmania 1900 Berlin in the1965–66 season.[44][45] Stevens did not change Schalke's fortunes in his first game, losing the home game against Arminia Bielefeld, themselves in 16th place and thus threatened by relegation, with a 0–1 scoreline.[46]
On 27 December 2020, Schalke 04 announced that they signed a contract with Swiss managerChristian Gross to be the head coach of the club until the end of the season, making him the fourth head coach for Schalke 04 during the2020–21 season.[47] Under Gross, Schalke's negative streak continued with a 3–0 loss toHertha BSC, marking the 30th consecutive winless game, a losing streak of 358 days.[48][49] On 9 January 2021 Schalke finally recorded a victory over1899 Hoffenheim, which meant they avoided matching Tasmania Berlin's record.[50] It remained Schalke's only victory under Gross, who was sacked as head coach after just eleven matches on 28 February 2021, following losses against rival Borussia Dortmund (0–4) andVFB Stuttgart (1–5). Alongside Gross, sporting director Jochen Schneider, team coordinator Sascha Riether, assistant coach Rainer Widmayer and fitness coach Werner Leuthard were also relieved of their duties.[51] At 0.45 average points per game, Gross was the least successful head coach at Schalke sinceKarl-Heinz Marotzke in 1967.[citation needed]
On 2 March 2021,Dimitrios Grammozis was announced as new head coach for Schalke 04.[52] Grammozis started with a scoreless draw againstMainz 05, but his team was unable to collect any points in the two following matches, which were lost 5–0 againstVfL Wolfsburg and 3–0 againstBorussia Mönchengladbach. Schalke did not score a goal in the first three matches under Grammozis, a joined negative record for the club (Helmut Schulte in1992–93 and Markus Weinzierl in2016–17 also waited for the first goal until their fourth match as head coach for Schalke).[53][54] Against Borussia Mönchengladbach, Schalke conceded its fifthown goal of the season, yet another negative record.[53]
Relegation to the2. Bundesliga was confirmed on 20 April 2021, as Schalke 04 lost 1–0 toArminia Bielefeld,[55] which led to riots by Schalke supporters.[56]
On 28 February 2022, followingRussia's invasion of Ukraine, Schalke cancelled their contract with main sponsorGazprom,[57] further straining the club's financial situation. Grammozis was sacked as head coach on 6 March 2022, as promotion back to theBundesliga appeared uncertain.[58][59] He was replaced by Mike Büskens as caretaker manager until the end of the season.[60] Schalke recovered under Büskens, winning eight of the remaining nine matches. The club secured promotion on 7 May 2022, following a 3–2 victory overFC St. Pauli that guaranteed a top-two finish in the 2. Bundesliga. Fans invaded the pitch in celebration.[61] One week later Schalke won the 2. Bundesliga in dramatic fashion[tone] after a 88th-minute winner bySimon Terodde defeating1. FC Nürnberg 2–1.[62]
At the end of the2021–22 season, Büskens moved back to the position ofassistant coach. On 7 June 2022, Schalke appointedFrank Kramer as head coach.[63] As a result of the club's financial problems, most of the players who were essential for the success in the previous season, likeKo Itakura, could not be kept,[64] and Schalke struggled to be competitive at the beginning of the2022–23 season. Following a series of losses, including a 1–5 against Hoffenheim, Kramer was relieved of his duties on 19 October 2022. At the time, Schalke was 17th in the Bundesliga after ten matchdays.[65][66]Matthias Kreutzer took over as caretaker manager. A week after Kramer's dismissal, on 26 October 2022, sporting directorRouven Schröder also announced his instant resignation.[67][68]
On 27 October 2022,Thomas Reis was named as Schalke's new head coach.[69] The first match under Reis, againstSC Freiburg, was lost 0–2, marking Schalke's seventh consecutive loss.[70] After the game, commentators likeHuub Stevens praised the team for its better organization, compared to previous matches.[71] Schalke finished the first half of the 2022–23 Bundesliga season in 18th and last position in the table, with just nine points to their name.[72][73] Following a 1–6 loss against RB Leipzig on match day 17, the club noticeably improved, especially in the defense. Between match days 18 and 21, Schalke played 0–0 four times in a row, a new Bundesliga record.[74] The following two matches were won, and on 4 March 2023, Schalke left the last place in the table for the first time since October 2022.[75]
On 19 February 2023, four people were seriously injured when a group of about 100 people, assumed to be supporters of Schalke's rivalsRot-Weiss Essen andBorussia Dortmund, attacked a group of Schalke supporters with baseball bats and screwdrivers.[76] The incident sparked fears over the upcoming derby against Dortmund.[77][78][79] This came less than three weeks after the police had uncovered a possible plot by radical Dortmund supporters, who had tried to hide razor blades behind stickers in the stadium ahead of Dortmund's match againstMainz. In 2014, the police had warned of a similar danger ahead of the derby, after razor blades were found in the stadium hidden behind anti-Schalke stickers.[80] On 11 March 2023, in the 100th derby between the two clubs, Schalke played 2–2 against Borussia Dortmund, who were in second place at the time.[81] This ended Dortmund's streak of eight wins in a row.[82] The police called the match "extremely peaceful", which they attributed to the successful police operation. Media reports noted that several people had been injured by illegal pyrotechnics, with one woman suffering an eye injury. At least one man was taken to the hospital after an intoxicated supporter of the opposing team had bitten off his earlobe.[83] On the final match-day of the 2022–23 season, Schalke lost 4–2 against RB Leipzig. They finished 17th in the league table, and were relegated again to the 2. Bundesliga.[84]
After four defeats in the first seven games of the2023–24 2. Bundesliga season, head coach Thomas Reis was sacked on 27 September 2023.[85] On 8 October 2023,Karel Geraerts was appointed as his successor, with a contract until June 2025.[86] Schalke finished the first half of the season in 14th position, three points ahead of the relegation spots.[87]
On 3 January 2024, Schalke appointedMarc Wilmots assporting director, after sackingPeter Knäbel.[88][89] For Wilmots, who was one of the most prominent former Schalke players,[90] it was his first job as a director.[91] On 31 January,Sky reported that Schalke's financial situation may result in the end of the club in its current form by the end of the season. If relegated from the 2. Bundesliga, Schalke would not get a license for the3. Liga, and would have to play in theRegionalliga West, the fourth division of German football. In that scenario, the current squad and staff would have to leave the club on a free transfer.[92][93] The club formally requested a license for the 3. Liga on 15 March 2024.[94]
The second half of the 2023–24 season started with a series of defeats. The difficult sportive situation was exacerbated by growing unrest within the club, attributed to the relationship between Wilmots, Geraerts, and the team.[95] After losing 3–0 againstMagdeburg, Wilmots openly criticized both the squad and head coach Geraerts.[96] On match-day 24, Schalke achieved a 3–1 surprise victory against league leaderSt. Pauli, which was St. Pauli's first defeat of the season.[97] Schalke followed up with a strong 3–3 againstSC Paderborn.[98] This, together with good individual performances fromYusuf Kabadayı andRon Schallenberg, sparked new hope that the club would be able to avoid relegation.[99] The following week, after a 5–2 loss against Hertha BSC, Geraerts was criticized heavily again for his lineup, and his lack of tactical direction,[100][101] while Wilmots reaffirmed that Geraerts's position as head coach was not in question.[94]
Schalke 04 royal blue trademarkjersey with former sponsor Gazprom elaborately showcased prior to a match with Zenit Saint Petersburg at the Veltins-Arena to celebrate Gazprom's investment of over €125 million in S04
Exterior of the S04 museum at the S04 Veltins-Arena
Restaurants at the S04 Veltins-Arena
Ice hockey events are hosted at the S04 Veltins-Arena
Biathlon and a variety ofwinter sport events are hosted at the S04 Veltins-Arena
As of 2022, the headline sponsor of Schalke 04 is the China-based electronics manufacturerHisense. The Russia-based hydrocarbon giant Gazprom was dropped in February 2022 as a result of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.[102] Additional sponsors include Düsseldorf-based insurance groupERGO Insurance Group; Munich-based automotive manufacturerBMW; and its motorcycle divisionBMW Motorrad; Spanish-based security insurance companyReale Seguros; China-based telecommunications companyHuawei; cyber gambling and sports betting companybet-at-home.com; beverage giantCoca-Cola; North Rhine Westphalia-based breweryVeltins; and the current manufacturer of Schalke's squad kits, Germany-basedAdidas.[102]
In terms of operating income, Schalke possessed an operating income of €13 million as of 2014,[103] and 12 per cent debt as of May 2019.[104] As of 2019, Schalke generated the 14th-highest revenue of any football club in the world at €291 million.[104][needs update]
In May 2019, Schalke 04 were still ranked byForbes magazine as the14th-richest football club in the world,[103] at €683 million, a decrease of 3 per cent from the previous year.[104] As of 2022, the club is no longer listed among the top 20 for either revenue or value.[105]
Schalke 04 were among the Bundesliga teams that were hit hardest by theCOVID-19 pandemic,[106] and in April 2020 the club said it was threatened by bankruptcy.[32]
October 2024 saw Schalke undertake a two-year sponsorship deal with Rootz Ltd. brand Wildz.[107]
In January 2024, Sky reported that Schalke's financial situation may result in the end of the club in its current form by the end of the season: If relegated from the 2. Bundesliga, Schalke would not get a license for the 3. Liga, and would have to play in the Regionalliga West, the fourth division of German football. The current squad and staff would have to leave the club on a free transfer.[92][93]
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.
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Sculptures with some of the FC Schalke 04 "Team of the Century"
In the year 2000, the supporters voted forSchalker Jahrhundertelf, the "Team of the Century":[90]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
Schalke's stadium, known as theVeltins-Arena under a sponsorship agreement withVeltins brewery, was built in the summer of 2001 and has a capacity of 62,271 spectators.[1] Schalke regularly draws sell-out crowds to what is widely regarded[by whom?] as one of the most modern and best multi-use facilities in Europe.[112] The facility was previously known as the Arena AufSchalke and replaced theParkstadion (capacity of 62,000) built in 1973.[113] Prior to this, the club played its matches in theGlückauf-Kampfbahn, constructed in 1928 with a capacity of 35,000.[114][115] The Glückauf-Kampfbahn was used for amateur matches during its later years with a reduced capacity of 11,000.[116] It is still used by the club for ceremonial purposes, like for the introduction of new players and head coaches.[114]
An interior design panorama of the Veltins-Arena
Exterior of the Veltins-Arena
Training ground of FC Schalke 04 known as the Geschäftsstelle
S04Ultras GelsenkirchenS04 fans in the streets of Gelsenkirchen on a matchday
The number of members of Schalke 04 grew from 10,000 in 1991 to 160,000 in 2022.[117] This figure makes Schalke 04 the second-biggest sports club in Germany and fourth-biggest sports club in the world, behind Bayern Munich,Benfica, andCA Boca Juniors.[3] As of 2022, Schalke is ranked as the 94th-best football club in Europe and in Continental Europe byUEFA'sUEFA club rankings.[118] A representation of the Schalke 04 membership structure in 2014 showed, among other things, a female share of 20 per cent and a share of the age group up to ten years of 14 per cent.[119] Around 30 per cent of the members were not from North Rhine-Westphalia. Apart from Gelsenkirchen (10,197 members) and its immediate neighbouring towns, the members of Schalke 04 also come from more distant cities such asCologne (1,117) andBerlin (932).[119] This high growth in Schalke 04 membership is also promoted by promotions of Schalke 04,[vague] as from 2013 to further "advertise Schalke 04 brand".[119][120]
On 21 August 2013, Schalke 04 played their first home match of the 2013–14 season, aUEFA Champions League qualifier at the Veltins-Arena against the Greek runners-upPAOK (led by former head coach Huub Stevens), drawing 1–1.[121] The match and result was more than overshadowed by a controversial police operation in the "S04 Ultras Gelsenkirchen" block of the Veltins-Arena against the fans of the home team with nearly 80 of the home team's fans injured.[121] The return match was won 3–2 by Schalke without any of their supporters allowed to attend the match.[121]
Schalke 04 Fan Club Association (SFCV) is an umbrella organization which, according to their own statement, has an estimated 1,500 fan clubs.[122] Of those listed by the SFCV, 860 Schalke 04 fan clubs in October 2012 were divided geographically as follows: an estimated 200 were in Ruhr, 360 in the rest of North Rhine-Westphalia and 300 in the other federal states.[123] A member of the board of SFCV has a permanent seat on the board of FC Schalke 04 and in 2013 SFCV merged with the "Ultras Gelsenkirchen" and later the supporters' club, Schalke Fan-Initiative eV with several members of strong fan groups from the SFCV, as is clear from the merger of the SFCV with the fan section of S04 has not adequately represented the fan interests.[vague][124][125]
The Revierderby is the rivalry between local clubs Schalke 04 andBorussia Dortmund, both situated in the densely populatedRuhr region, about 30 kilometers from each other. The term may be used for any match between two football clubs of the Ruhr region (such asVfL Bochum,Rot-Weiss Essen orMSV Duisburg), but it is most commonly associated with the rivalry between Schalke and Dortmund due to the derby's popularity and prestige. To some fans, the win of the derby itself is more important than the actual performance in the Bundesliga.[citation needed]
Respective league placements of Schalke 04 and Borussia Dortmund since the 1963–64 season
Theboots worn by the entire S04 squad players in the 1920s displayed at the museum of Schalke 04
Schalke has been subject of a feature-length film calledFußball ist unser Leben ("Football is our life"). ActorsUwe Ochsenknecht andRalf Richter, both of whom were in the award-winning filmDas Boot, played the main roles, while many persons associated with Schalke had cameo roles, such as managerRudi Assauer, coaches Huub Stevens and Helmut Schulte, and player Yves Eigenrauch. Also featured were prominent fans like Manfred Breuckmann, Ulrich Potofski or DJ Hooligan.[134] The film is a comedy about "Hans", a Schalke fanatic, and his three pals who somehow get involved in kidnapping and trying to bring back to form the team's new star player "Di Ospeo" and in the process bet Hans' house that their idol will score in the final match.[134]
"Schalke" is mentioned in the filmDas Boot when thebosun tells the crew in their ward room: "I got bad news for you men. Schalke lost 5–0, looks like we won't be in the final this year." This is historically inaccurate, as Schalke never lost 5–0 in an important match during the time-frame of the movie (1941).[135]
Huub Stevens coached the club in four spells: firstly, from 1996 to 2002, where he won theUEFA Cup in1997; secondly, from 2011 to 2012; thirdly, in 2019 as an interim; and again in 2020 as interim coach. He was voted 'Coach of the Century' by Schalke fans in 1999.[141]
Thebasketball department played in the 1988–89 season in the National Basketball LeagueBasketball Bundesliga and from 2004 for several seasons in theProA, the second highest basketball league in Germany.[142] 2009 saw Schalke 04 voluntarily withdrawal from the ProA. Currently, the team competes inProB.[143] The club founded a blind football department in 2015, which plays in the Blindenfußball-Bundesliga.[144]
The women's football club was initially dissolved in the mid-1980s, but achieved some notable successes, including five-time Westphalia championships, and competed in the German championship and DFB Cup. Schalke 04 later cooperated with1. FFC Recklinghausen [de], a women's football club, from 2007 to 2010,[145] and the currentwomen's team was established in July 2020, to compete in Kreisliga B, theeighth tier of women's football, in 2021.[146]
