1. FC Kaiserslautern (Germany)

1. FC Kaiserslautern is a professional football club from the city of the same name, which is located in south-west Germany. ‘Die Roten Teufel’, The Red Devils were formed on June 2nd 1900. The history of the club is complicated.

FC Kaiserslautern had been formed by the merger with Germania 1896 before it merged with FC Palatia 1901 and FC Bavaria 1902 on March 1st 1909 to form FV Phönix Kaiserslautern. The previous season had seen FCK crowned as western champions of the South German football.

The newly formed FV Phönix Kaiserslautern became members of the Bezirksliga; one of several top level divisions in the country before league reorganisation in 1923. Stadion Betzenberg was constructed for the club in 1920.

FV returned to the Bezirksliga for two years before German football was divided into sixteen regional Gauliga top flight divisions by the ruling Third Reich in 1933; with Phönix being placed in Gauliga Südwest.

In 1935 the team was relegated to the Bezirksliga, before regaining their Gauliga place in 1937. Young forward Fritz Walter made his debut for the club and went on to score four goals against SV Niederauerbach. It would be the beginning of a brilliant career.

Another demotion quickly followed before the team won the Bezirksklasse Mittelpfalz title in 1939 to win promotion back to Gauliga Südwest by virtue of a 4-0 win against SG Burbach; with Walter netting a hat trick under coach Karl Berndt; who had succeeded Maximilian Eduard Eheberg.

The Gauliga split into two shortly after; with Kaiserslautern winning Staffel Saarpfalz in 1940. Walter became the clubs first full international when he made his debut later in the same year. The newly formed Gauliga Westmark title was collected in 1942 as the club qualified to play in the German championship.

Many players were called away at the time for the war effort, as guests took up positions at times for the team. Following the war Fritz Walter returned from Romania and with the help of his brother Ludwig began the process of re-establishing the club that had been disbanded by the Allied forces as 1. FC Kaiserslautern.

Erbsenberg; the home of VfR Kaiserslautern became the training ground, while the confiscated Stadion Betzenberg; which had been renamed Stade Monsabert, after a French General was returned to the club as the team were placed in of Oberliga Südwest, where ‘Lautern were placed in the Saar-Pfalz-Hessen section.

Germany national team manager Sepp Herberger was often a guest at FCK and proved a great influence on the club, as he watched over his star player Walter. The team quickly went on to establish themselves as the biggest in the region.

Kaiserslautern were crowned as Oberliga Südwest champions in 1946-47, 1947-48, 1948-49, 1949-50 and 1950-51. The fifth success led to the team going all the way to the final of the German championship; where they became national champions with a 2-1 win against Preußen Münster as Ottmar Walter; brother of Fritz scoring twice at Berlin’s Olympiastadion.

In 1952-53 ‘Lautern won the Oberliga and became champions of Germany after defeating VfB Stuttgart 4-1 with goals from Fritz Walter, Karl Wanger, Erwin Scheffler and Willi Wenzel in Berlin. The team went on to lift further Oberliga titles in 1953-54, 1954-55, 1955-56 and 1956-57.

Fritz Walter finished his playing career with the club in 1959 as he ended up making 384 appearances and scoring 327 goals as well as appearing 61 times for Germany and scoring 33 goals.

FCK reached the final of the national cup; DFB Pokal final in 1960-61 under coach Richard Schneider, but lost 2-0 to SV Werder Bremen at Glückauf-Kampfbahn in Gelsenkirchen. 1. FC Kaiserslautern became founder members of the Bundesliga for the 1963-64 season under the team managership of Günter Brocker.

The team struggled to retain their status; although they did weigh in with a fifth place finish in 1966-67 with coach Gyula Lóránt in charge of the team. Otto Knefler Lóránt had taken over for the following season as FCK narrowly avoided relegation.

Lóránt returned to the club before he was replaced by Dietrich Weise who employed a different stye of football. ‘Lautern reached the 1971-72 Pokal final where they were hammered 5-0 by Schalke 04 in Hanover’s Niedersachsenstadion.

The cup run led to the club appearing in European competition the following season for the first time in the UEFA Cup. Erich Ribbeck arrived as the new ‘Lautern head coach in the summer of 1973. 

Under Ribbeck the club took part in one of the most amazing Bundesliga matches; as FCK fought back from being 4-1 down to win the game 7-4 against FC Bayern München in October 1973. The match action can be viewed here:

Ribbeck's team reached the DFB Pokal final of 1975-76; which ended in a 2-0 loss to Hamburger SV at the Waldstadion in Frankfurt in front of an attendance of 61,000.

Ribbeck departed during the 1977-78 campaign before new boss ‘Kalli’ Feldkamp led the side to a third place league finish in 1978-79. His side reached another DFB Pokal final in 1980-81. The match ended in defeat; this time 3-1 to Eintracht Frankfurt at the Neckarstadion in Stuttgart.

The following season saw Kaiserslautern reach the quarter finals of the UEFA Cup after seeing off Akademik Sofia, FC Spartak Moscow and SC Lokeren before going out 6-3 on aggregate to Real Madrid.

Rudi Kröner arrived as the new manager along with new signings Torbjörn Nilsson and Thomas Allofs. Ernst Diehl replaced Kröner in March 1983 before Dietrich Weise and then Manfred Krafft followed in rapid succession.

Hans Bongartz became the latest head coach at the club as the team finished in mid table, with Gerd Roggensack and the returning Feldkamp having spells in charge of the team; who would lead FCK to silverware.

In 1989-90 Kaiserslautern lifted the DFB Pokal following a 3-2 win against SV Werder Bremen with Bruno Labbadia scoring twice and league player of the year Stefan Kuntz grabbing the other goal. Further glory was to come as the club became Bundesliga champions in 1990-91.

Rainer Zobel took over as team manager in the summer of 1992, but his contract was cut short a year later as the team failed to reach European qualification; with Friedel Rausch coming in as his replacement. In 1993-94 FCK finished as league runners-up.

The 1995-96 saw FCK narrowly avid relegation but coach Eckhard Krautzun led his team to win the Pokal for a second time, as a solitary Martin Wagner saw ‘Lautern defeat Karlsruher SC in Berlin. Otto Rehhagel was appointed as the new coach in July 1996 as a new club board was appointed.

Rehhagel was in charge as 1. FC Kaiserslautern when they clinched a fourth national title in 1997-98 before the team went all the way to the quarter final of the Champions League the following season before going out to FC Bayern München with Youri Djorkaeff and Mario Basler starring.

Rehhagel departed in October 2000 with the club struggling financially after overspending on players such as Taribo West, Steffen Freund, Christian Nerlinger, Carsten Jancker and Stefan Malz; with results not matching the investment.

His successor was World Cup champion Andreas Brehme; who took the side to the semi-finals of the UEFA Cup in 2000-01 before being defeated by Deportivo Alavés, as well as finishing in third place in the Bundesliga.

Further financial problems occurred before Eric Gerets arrived as the new head coach in August 2002. In his first season the Belgian led the team to the DFB Pokal final; where they went down 3-1 in Berlin to FC Bayern München; with new star Miroslav Klose netting the consolation goal.

Gerets departed after a couple of years at the helm and was succeeded in quick succession by Kurt Jara, Hans Werner Moser, Michael Henke and Wolfgang Wolf as cash issues continued to bite before FCK were relegated at the end of the 2005-06 season.

Wolf was replaced full time by Kjetil Rekdal in June 2007, who in turn lasted until the following Februrary, when Milan Šašić was appointed as head coach. He eventually saved the team from dropping down to the third tier after a few scares.

The Croatian was replaced after a seventh place finish by Marco Kurz in June 2009. A crowd of 50,300 assembled at the renamed Fritz-Walter-Stadion to celebrate Kaiserslautern winning the 2. Bundesliga title against FC Augsburg in May 2010.

‘Lautern finished in seventh place on their return to the top flight, with Srđan Lakić leading the scoring charts. Itay Shechter, Dorge Kouemaha, Richard Sukuta-Pasu, and Sandro Wagner arrived to try and score the goals as Kurz was shown the door in March 2012, with Krasimir Balakov arriving but not being able to prevent relegation back to 2. Bundesliga.

Franco Foda came in a few months later to replace him, with the task of rebuilding the side. Foda lasted fourteen months, with the Red Devils finishing in third place and qualifying for the relegation play-off; which was lost 5-2 on aggregate to 1899 Hoffenheim.

Kosta Runjaic took over team affairs in September 2013 as the goals of Mohammadou Idrissou and Simon Zoller took the team to a fourth place finish in 2013-14. The side, captained by Albert Bunjaku, finished in the same position in 2014-15.

Konrad Fünfstück became the successor to Runjaic after a few games of the 2015-16 season as the team finished in a disappointing tenth place. He paid by losing his job, with the Turk Tayfun Korkut replacing him before the start of 2016-17 season.

Korkut was sacked during the mid-season break and replaced by Norbert Meier; whose team finished in thirteenth. In September 2017 Jeff Strasser was appointed as head coach, with Daniel Halfar captaining the team. 

Michael Frontzeck was appointed as the new coach in February 2018 but couldn’t help to save his team from relegation in bottom place. The goals of Christian Kühlwetter helped settle the ship in 2018-19 with Sascha Hildmann taking over as coach in December 2018.

Florian Pick was top scorer in a disappointing 2019-20 campaign, disrupted by the outbreak of COVID-19.

1. FC Kaiserslautern will play in 3. Liga in the 2020-21 season.

My visit

1. FC Kaiserslautern 0 MSV Duisburg 1 (Sunday 22^nd October 2017) 2. Bundesliga (att: 22,883)

I had three real match options when planning the Sunday of my German trip. I was based at the Golden Leaf Hotel & Residence in the east end of Frankfurt, so transport wasn’t to be a problem from such a decent hub.

Two matches; Waldhof Mannheim v Kickers Offenbach and Wormatia Worms v SSV Ulm in the fourth tier Regionalliga Süd were both attractive enough, but Kaiserslautern won the day; despite the slightly more awkward journey.

I’d seen 1. FC away from home at Dresden and Hannover the previous season, and I knew of a passionate club steeped in a rich history. The Fritz-Walter-Stadion also looked a cracking venue, which also swayed my selection.

I’d bought and printed my €14 ticket online before my departure from London for the 1.30pm kick off, along with my rail ticket. It was cold and windy upon my arrival as I journeyed up the hill adjacent to Fritz-Walter-Stadion to visit VfR Kaiserslautern.

That call can be viewed here. It was quickly becoming apparent that the majestic home of FCK up on the hill looking over the town was probably its major feature. I crossed under the railway and headed to what looked like the old town; which is generally the place to head in German cities.

I listened while still in a semi-delicate condition to TalkSport as Max Rushden and Barry Glendenning were making me laugh while I trudged the streets of Kaiserslautern. While alcohol wasn’t at the top of my list, I needed to shelter and sit somewhere warm.

Brauhaus am Markt saved the day. I enjoyed a slow large helping of one of their house brewed ales, in among the locals; nearly all of whom were wearing the red and white scarves or shirts of the local favourites.

Rather than hurry a second drink I decided to follow one or two who were heading out for the walk to the stadium. Fans of all ages and both sexes were heading in the same direction towards the station and then under the railway bridge.

The roundabout with the model Lautern players on the island at Löwenburgkreisel was a nice feature. There seemed to be rather a large police presence all around, considering FCK were bottom of the table and the visitors had a fair distance to travel.

A gap under the flats at the bottom of Bremerstraße led to a flight of steps to join up with Zum Betzenberg. It was a steep old meandering walk, past the gates to the Nordtribune; which was built hanging on to edge of the hill.

An older fella, who was sat next to me in the bar, came walking up the hill with a laugh at another visitor who had been caught unawares by the gradient. I wasn’t upset to reach the summit and the welcoming sight of the Westtribune turnstiles.

Before going inside I bought a bratwurst at a stall in the name of Bernhard’s. Just how could I turn that down? Once inside I quickly realise that all purchases were by stadium card. Fortunately they accepted my €1.50 for a programme in coins.

I’d selected my seat for block 6.3, which was in the corner around two thirds up. It proved to be a good choice; at least when I eventually climbed several sets of steep steps. It was as well I didn’t want any further refreshments, as they were all at ground level.

Fritz-Walter-Stadion really was impressive. The Nordtribune was a two tiered stand alone structure, with corporate blocks at either end joining it up with the other three continuous sides; which were in one tier, but sectioned off with four different entrances of differing height.

The seats were unreserved, so it was a matter of grabbing the best view. Each seat had a little barrier on the back of it to protect the person behind from toppling over; such was the steepness of the rake.

The most passionate Lautern fans were to my left; both on a similar level, and on the terracing behind the goal. A loyal band of followers had headed south west from Duisburg to occupy terracing in the far corner.

Jeff Strasser, the Luxemburg head coach of FCK tried to rally the fans on the Westtribune as the players warmed up. The fans also played their part, and continued to do so throughout what would be another testing afternoon.

Duisburg skipper Branimir Bajić upset the home fans from the outset when opting for Lautern to kick towards the Westtribune in the first half. Boos rang around the ground, with keeper Mark Flekken receiving a right earful.

Both sides were desperate for points in this relegation battle; and so it showed. Play was cautious and generally poor, with Lautern looking a team desperately low on confidence. Some of their passing was woeful at times.

The visiting ‘Der Meidericher’ looked more comfortable on the ball, although the FCK players gradually grew in confidence; although a loose pass often stifled an attack. They needed someone to take responsibility and do something special.

Moritz Stoppelkamp and Gerrit Nauber had efforts for Duisburg stopped by home keeper Marius Müller. Despite Kaiserslautern improving as the half went on, they conceded a penalty with a clumsy challenge.

Stoppelkamp missed from the spot to give the hosts a lifeline. Osei Kwadwo had an effort on goal but it flew high and wide of Flekken’s net.

The wind was blowing around inside the arena, and I was getting quite cold. I moved during the break to another position so I could stand up and move about without blocking the views of others.

Lautern upped the pace after the restart, but too many errors let Duisburg off the hook. MSV remained the more measured of the sides. It was surely a matter of when, rather than if, that they would take the lead.

The goal eventually came on sixty seven minutes. The ever erratic Müller made more of a save than was necessary as he pushed the ball behind. From the resulting corner central defender Dustin Bomheuer was left unmarked to head home.

Lautern tried to fight back, but they really did lack punch and creativity. Philipp Mwene and Benjamin Kessel had efforts, but it wasn’t going to be their day. The game gradually petered out in some comfort for the visitors.

I felt for Kaiserslautern’s excellent fans. Their team really did look to have a struggle on their hands on this performance. I’d seen many similar signs and performances over the years; with the team putting them on rarely escaping relegation.

On leaving I was hungry and had a long journey ahead of me. I returned to the earlier stall and bought a decent enough piece of steak, with paprika powder in a roll for €5. I walked down the hill with other disgruntled fans to the station.

The return rail fare was extremely pricy, so I’d taken up the option of a FlixBus ticket; the German version of Megabus for a third of the price. I soon found the correct stand and got a seat on a busy service.

I nodded off for what must have been a while, before awaking on the outskirts of Mainz. The bus dropped me at Frankfurt central station, from where I took the tram back to the hotel to shower and freshen up.

My evening was spent in the excellent Klapper 33 over the river, where the service was first class and the Frankheimer Alt beer matched it. I ended my evening with a couple of drinks in the Birmingham pub and a currywurst supper.

I’d got a bit confused with my travel App and ended up on the last UBahn train to Zoo. Fortunately, I had the presence of mind to remember vaguely where that was located, before walking home for a well deserved long sleep.

Pre match atmosphere from my visit can be viewed here.