SV Stuttgarter Kickers (Germany)

SV Stuttgarter Kickers is a football club from the district of Degerloch in the German city of Stuttgart in the Baden-Württemberg region, who were formed on the 21st September 1899 as Stuttgarter Cickers.

The club joined the Süddeutscher Fußball-Vereine in 1900, playing their games at Stöckachplatz, quickly establishing itself as one of the best teams in Württemberg. In 1903, the local football was run by the Süddeutsche Fußballverband, which placed Cickers in Gau Schwaben.

In 1907-08, the team won the Süddeutschen Meisterschaft (southern title) to compete in the national championship. Cickers progressed to the final, where they were defeated 3-1 in Berlin by Vizemeister BFC Viktoria 1889. The club lifted a second Southern championship in 1913, which was repeated four years later.

In 1920, the club changed its name to its present title. Over the next several years, Stuttgarter Kickers dominated football in Württemberg. In 1933, the ruling Third Reich decreed that top-tier football would be divided into 16 regional Gauligen. In 1936, Kickers were crowned Württemberg Gauliga champions. They went on to reach the final rounds of the national championship.

Between 1939 and 1942, Kickers lifted four consecutive titles. They didn’t lift a national title, but in one memorable game of the day, they played in front of a crowd of 70,000 against Admira Wien at the Stuttgarter Adolf-Hitler-Kampfbahn. Following the end of World War II, Kickers became members of Oberliga Süd, attaining a third-place finish in the inaugural season. 

In 1948, FC Bayern München were hammered 5-1 in the third-place playoff. However, in 1950, local rivals VfB Stuttgart lifted the DFB Pokal (German Cup) for the first time. It changed the balance of power in the city between the two clubs. Kickers found themselves relegated to the second tier, but won an immediate promotion. 

In 1962, the club came very close to facing relegation to the amateur sections. A winning goal in the final minute in the away game against Viktoria Aschaffenburg from Pál Csernai rescued the second division Kickers. The Bundesliga was introduced to German football in 1963. Kickers were placed in the second-tier Regionalliga Süd against the likes of FC Bayern München, Kickers Offenbach and SpVgg Fürth. 

In the late 60s, Kickers threatened to win promotion on a couple of occasions. The 2. Bundesliga was introduced in 1974, with the Regionalliga Süd forming part of it. Kickers were one of the included clubs thanks to their good previous record, where they became steady members in the second tier for several years. 

They appeared in the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 1980-81 with Guido Buchwald in their line-up. As the 2. Bundesliga slimlined to a single division, Kickers were forced to decamp from their Waldau Stadion to the Neckarstadion home of rivals VfB, leading to a drop in attendances. Fans were cheered by the debut of a young Jürgen Klinsmann, who spent three years at the club. 

They were even happier by their return home for the 1982-83 campaign. The following season was threatened by relegation until the appointment of new coach Horst Buhtz during the winter break, as he led the side up the table. The DFB Pokal of the 1986-87 season created a club highlight. 

Victories over Tennis Borussia Berlin, Borussia Neunkirchen, Hannover 96, Eintracht Frankfurt and Fortuna Düsseldorf saw Kickers reach the final at the Olympic Stadion in Berlin. Dieter Renner’s side went up against Hamburger SV in front of 76,000 fans. Dirk Kurt Bach put the underdogs ahead, but they eventually lost 3-1.

Manfred Krafft came in as the new head coach for 1987-88 and led the club to even glory as they were promoted to the top-flight Bundesliga as champions over second-place FC St Pauli.

Once more, Kickers had to decamp to the Neckarstadion, but unfortunately, their first campaign at the top table ended in relegation. 

Within two years, the side now led by Rainer Zobel was promoted once again following a playoff win against FC St. Pauli at Gelsenkirchen’s Parkstadion. The Bundesliga was extended to twenty teams for 1991-92 to allow the inclusion of East German sides following the unification of the two states. Kickers’ stay in the top flight once again lasted just one season.

The club went down once again to start the 1994-95 season in Regionalliga Süd. Within two seasons, Kickers were back in 2. Bundesliga. The 1999-00 campaign saw another majestic DFB-Pokal run all the way to the semi-finals after wins over Borussia Dortmund, Arminia Bielefeld and SC Freiburg. Werder Bremen ended the dreams in the last four clash.

Unfortunately, the run hid some poor league form. Kickers went back down to Regionalliga Süd in 2001. It could have got a lot worse in the first season at the lower level. The side finished in a relegation spot but were reprieved from relegation to Oberliga Baden-Württemberg as SV Waldhof Mannheim had their license withdrawn because of financial problems.

Kickers' president Axel Dünnwald-Metzler resigned after twenty-four years at the helm owing to health reasons in the summer of 2003. The club had their own financial problems of their own. The club’s grounds were sold to the local council along with the naming rights for ten years.

Robin Duff came in to lead the team to the Württemberg Cup victories of 2004-05 and 2005-06, and with it qualification for the DFB-Pokal. In 2008-09, Kickers became members of the newly formed 3. Liga. At the end of the campaign, the club took voluntary relegation to the fourth-tier Regionalliga Süd to avoid paying a fine to the DFB.

The club looked to rebuild on and off the pitch and set a target of promotion in three years. This was achieved with promotion back to 3. Liga at the end of the 2011-12 season, as Kickers finished as champions and attendances increased by nearly a 1,000 average to cheer on a mainly home-grown side.

In their first season back in the third tier, Kickers finished close to the relegation places, but things were to improve. A steady 2013-14 season followed, which was backed up in the 2014-15 campaign; even though the team had to play the opening half of the season at the Kreuzeiche in Reutlingen.

Meanwhile, the renamed Gazi Stadion at Waldau had a new main stand built. The team ended the season in fourth place under head coach Horst Steffen. Tomislav Stipić took over as coach in November 2015 but couldn’t help Kickers avoid the drop at the end of the season. The team narrowly avoided relegation from Regionalliga Südwest in 2016-17, but there would be no escape in 2017-18. 

Kickers finished the 2018-19 fifth-tier Oberliga Baden-Württemberg season as runners-up, with the team led by Tobias Flitsch, in which Mijo Tunjic top scored. The promotion play-offs proved to be a step too far. Die Blauen were in third place with Ramon Gehrmann in charge of the side when the season ended owing to the Coronavirus outbreak.

An online view inside Gazi-Stadion

Second place followed in 2020-21, which was repeated twelve months later, under new trainer Mustafa Ünal, as Kevin Dicklhuber scored the goals in a season that ended in playoff disappointment. There was no mistake in 2022-23, as the Oberliga title was secured to win promotion to the fourth-tier Regionalliga Südwest.

Dicklhuber continued to score as Kickers ended as runners-up on their return, losing their final game to allow the second team of VfB Stuttgart to deny them promotion. Marco Wildersinn took over as trainer following the disappointment.

SV Stuttgarter Kickers will play in Regionalliga Südwest in the 2025-26 season.

My visit

Sunday 16th August 2015

It was half-time in the game in the Oberliga clash between Kickers' second-string Under 23 team and FC 08 Villingen just over the road at Bezirkssportanlage. It had been a very wet morning, but the weather was gradually improving. I thought it was a good idea to have a look at the Gazi-Stadion auf der Waldau, as the old Waldau had been renamed for sponsorship reasons. 

Walking up a pleasant lane and past the home of SV Eintracht Stuttgart 1896, I looked for a way in to the impressive-looking arena with its imposing sloping floodlight pylons. I couldn’t find a gate to actually get inside, but I got several good views through gaps.

The stadium was overlooked by the huge Fernsehturm Stuttgart TV tower. Both ends had very modern open terracing blocks. One side had a cover over the decent-sized full-length terrace. The newly raised seating deck of the Main Stand was most impressive, along with its corporate facilities. It was typical of a lower division venue in the UK.

I returned over the road to see a very entertaining and competitive second half before heading to my second match of the day at the Mercedes-Benz Arena.