Floridsdorfer Athletiksport-Club is a football club formed in August 1904 which is based in the Florisdorf district in the north east suburbs of the Austrian capital of Vienna. The team started out playing matches on Birnerplatz.
A new ground at Nordbahnbrücke was inaugurated against SK Slovan Wien in October 1906 with SC Hakoah Wien moving into the former venue. FAC, as the club is commonly known, reached the final of the ÖFV Wiener Cup, the forerunner to the ÖFB Cup, where they went down 1-0 to First Vienna.
Florisdorfer became founder members of the Vienna based national championship in 1911-12, with the team initially struggling in the new competition before the goals of Robert Kutschera helped them reach sixth place in 1914-15.
That same season would also see the club win its first honour as the ÖFV Wiener Cup was lifted after a 3-1 victory over neighbourhood rivals Admira Wien. FAC went on to finish as league runners-up in 1915-16 and 1916-17.
The team went one better as they were crowned as champions of Austria on goal difference in 1917-18. Florisdorfer also won the cup to complete the double, but the game was nulled because it took place a week later than scheduled and was played without consent from the ÖFB.
Between 1915 and 1919 FAC had several Austrian international players; Franz Biegler, Gustav Deutsch, Josef Deutsch, Viktor Hierländer, Ferdinand Humenberger, Gustav Kraupar, Johann Kraus, Karl Neubauer and Heinrich Plhak.
Despite the goals of Viktor Hierländer, the team could not replicate the glory. The team was relegated which was marred in controversy after an administrative oversight in 1922-23 despite seventeen goals from Karl Jiszda.
FAC ended as runners-up of Zweite Klasse Nord in 1923-24 prior to winning promotion the following season as II Liga champions. The side consolidated with a couple of fifth place finishes assisted by Karl Langer’s goals while winger Rudolf Seidl thrilled the crowds.
In 1933 the club moved to take up residence in the home vacated by Admira on Deublergasse with star goalkeeper Peter Platzer in the team who played out several seasons in mid-table but dropped down once again in 1937-38 after Platzer and striker Alfred Kern moved on.
During the period of Austrian Anschluss, the championship became one of sixteen top level Gauliga’s of German football. the club merged with district rivals, SV Amateure Fiat Wien FAC as well as FC Stadlau joining forces over the war years.
FAC ended 1938-39 as runners-up of Bezirksklasse Wien B before going up to Gauliga Ostmark twelve months later. A third placed finish in the retitled Gauliga Donau-Alpenland ensued in 1942-43 with Karl Kerbach netting thirty-one goals.
Fellow international Johann Müller in the side before FAC ended as runners-up the following season. Midfielder Ernst Ocktiv starred before being sold to Austria Wien with internationals Otto Walzhofer and Robert Dienst also moving after starting their careers at FAC after Austria had been liberated.
Otto Walzhofer became the new fans favourite as he was capped by the national side before moving to First Vienna. The team was eventually relegated in 1953-54, finishing fourth as the side attempted to go straight back up before dropping from Staatsliga B in 1955-56 down to the Wiener Liga.
FAC narrowly escaped a further demotion twelve months prior to winning promotion as champions in 1958-59. However, the success proved to be a false dawn as the side went straight back down from Regionalliga Ost.
Florisdorfer ended the 1961-62 campaign as Wiener Liga runners-up which was repeated the following season. The club was promoted in 1965-66 despite finishing third. At the same time, they vacated their home on the junction of Galvanigasse and Deublergasse which would become the site of Pfarrkirchen Gartenstadt church.
Not for the first time FAC benefitted as Admira moved elsewhere, this time south to merge with Wacker Wien in Mödling. Florisdorfer took up residence of what would become Leopold-Stroh-Stadion on Hopfengasse.
The move failed to deliver immediate luck on the pitch as FAC were relegated from Regionalliga Ost just a year after reaching the second tier. The team ended as Wiener Liga runners-up in 1968-69, 1969-70 and again in 1973-74 before league restructuring took FAC to Regionalliga Ost which was now the third tier.
A runners-up place followed in 1976-77 and again in 1978-79. However, on this occasion the league was again restructured meaning that Florisdorfer would drop down to the fourth level Wiener Stadtliga. FAC climbed back to Regionalliga Ost, finishing third in 1985-86 and again in 1987-88.
The hopes of further promotion were short lived as FAC were relegated in 1988-89. A club called Wacker/Groß Viktoria replace them. In 1990 Florisdorfer merged with SV Groß Viktoria took place to form FAC Viktoria Wien and take up the Regionalliga Ost place.
The original name was soon restored with Gustav Thaler installed as coach before the side went down in 1995-96 under Helmut Senekowitsch before Thaler was reappointed. Marko Arnautović began his youth career at the club before moving to Austria Vienna in 1998.
FAC came straight back up from the Wiener Stadtliga prior to Christian Keglevits becoming coach in September 1997. Keglevits led the side to third place in 1999-00 before making way for Erich Obermayer six months later who helped his charges to a runners-up berth in 2000-01
The performance was repeated a year later under the tutelage of Rudolf Eggenberger and then again in 2002-03 before the team was relegated the season after. The club was merged again, this time with FK Alte Formation-RAG Feibra who had been formed in 1985.
Arnautović returned to play the 2005-06 season as a seventeen year old before being snapped up by FC Twente in Holland. The club played as FAC-OFR in the Wiener Stadtliga before a further amalgamation took place.
Police club, PSV-Team für Wien joined forces in June 2007 to play as FAC Team für Wien, which also allowed the team to take the place of PSV in the third tier Regionalliga Ost. The side claimed second place in 2007-08 before the team dropped down to regular mid-table positions.
A third place in 2012-13 under coach Hans Kleer was backed up with the league title the following campaign as Michael Pittnauer and Nenad Panić were among the goals. SV Austria Salzburg were defeated in the play-offs as FAC returned to the second tier of Austrian football for the first time in forty seven years.
The Team für Wien addition to the club name was dropped in the summer of 2014 before the team stayed narrowly away from relegation in Erste Liga in 2014-15 as experienced coach Peter Pacult arrived as a late run was produced.
Jürgen Halper was at the helm in 2015-16 when FAC finished bottom of the table but were reprieved owing to financial issues at other clubs. The following season saw the side stay clear of the drop by five points prior to Thomas Eidler taking over team affairs
He replaced by Mario Handl towards the back end of the 2017-18 campaign as again FAC finished second from bottom. Oliver Oberhammer was appointed as team boss in 2018-19 in an extended 2. Liga in which he departed in the winter break before Andreas Heraf led FAC to tenth place.
Belmin Jenciragic had a fine season in goal while defender Stefan Umjenovic ended as top scorer. FAC, under Mario Handl were just inside the relegation spots when the COVID-19 brought a halt to proceedings in 2019-20.
Floridsdorfer AC will play in 2. Liga in the 2019-20 season.
My visit
My visit
Saturday 7th March 2020
It was just gone midday when I set out to cross the Danube on a pleasant if chilly Saturday. My day was going really well and exactly to plan. I’d visited a couple of good venues and had been fed and watered while watching a friendly match, which can be read about here.
The 38A bus took me from Fernsprechamt outside the home of Nußdorfer AC back down the hill to Heiligenstadt station. The U4 took me to Schwedenplatz past the impressive Wien Energie Tower where a quick change let me connect to the U1 towards Praterstern.
There was even enough time for me to go one stop on the wrong direction before correcting myself, or so I thought. I hadn’t accounted for the size of the station and the transfer upstairs. I got aboard the S3 train to Jedlersdorf in the nick of time.
It was a thirteen minute ride across the river and through Florisdorf before alighting and walking just over five minutes along Hopfengasse to the stadium. I was enthused by seeing junior matches taking place on the all weather surface alongside the main arena.
Sure enough, this meant that the gates were open for me to explore and take my photos. Inside I found a pleasant tidy small stadium which reminded me more of a rugby venue back in the UK with plenty of space and a couple of semi temporary stands.
One was behind the goals at the entrance end, the other in the far corner, presumably for visiting fans. There was a neat Main Stand down one touchline with an open section facing it across the pitch. That side seemed to be where the vocal home support would congregate.
The day was going so well that I studied my IPhone Map App at the Hopfengasse tram stop just around the corner on Prager Strasse and found that I had enough time to fit in a visit to another club before heading back towards my 3pm game.
A number 26 tram soon came along to transport me towards the home of FC Stadlau, who can be read about here.
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