SC Wacker Wien (Austria)

Sportclub Wacker Wien is a famous name in Austrian football that was revived by a new organisation in 2018 after the original Wacker disappeared in a merger in 1971 before the name reappeared twice under different organisers.

The original club was formed in 1906 by student Max Freund who lived in the Meidling district of the capital. The next couple of years were spent putting foundations in place with a base being procured at Aichholzgasse 33 while black and white were chosen as club colours.

The youngsters persuaded adult Mr. Rudolf Krones to become chairman so that the club could be formally registered. A sand pitch was provided by local innkeeper Nitsch as the club started in the third level before going up and then winning 2. Klasse A in 2011-12.

Wacker didn’t go up after losing the play-off to SC Rudolfshügel before they ended up top of the table again the following season. Again, the chance of promotion went in the play-off, this time against ASV Hertha Vienna.

A third consecutive second tier championship was collected in 1913-14, which this time was rewarded with automatic promotion with Franz Twaroch the star player being capped by the national team.

The club suffered as most of the team was called up to fight in World War One, with half not returning. Wacker stabilised in the top flight Erste Klasse. The popularity of the club in Meidling led to a new Wacker-Platz ground being built on Rosagasse with a capacity of 20,000 which opened in 1921.

In 1922-23 Wacker reached the ÖFB Cup final, going down 3-1 to Wiener Sport-Club in front of a 20,000 crowd at Hohe Warte with Ferdinand Feigl in goal and Leopald Resch starring in midfield.

The team continued to generally finish in mid table as the professional 1. Liga kicked in for the 1924-25 season. Otto Haftl scored the goals before his departure with Johann Walzhofer taking over the mantle in 1932-33.

‘Die Meidlinger’ provided Karl Zischek and Hans Walzhofer for the Austria ‘Wunderteam’ that played in the 1934 World Cup. The 1934-35 campaign saw Wacker finish fourth place in 1. Liga as Franz Binder topped the scoring charts.

Fourth place was matched in both 1936-37 and 1937-38 before the country was annexed by the German Reich. During Anschluss the title became Gauliga Ostmark, one of sixteen top level divisions.

Wacker finished as runners-up in 1938-39 thanks in part to the goals of Ernst Reitermaier with the performance replicated the following two seasons as the team was coached by former player Haftl.

Wacker-Platz in 2020

His side also went all the way to the semi-final of the Tschammer Pokal, the German Cup in 1938-39, VfL Köln 99 and Blau-Weiß 90 Berlin were defeated before Wacker went out to  Waldhof Mannheim on a lottery after three matches had been drawn.

During the conflict of World War Two Wacker lost international players, keeper Alexander Martinek while Josef Pekarek lost a leg. In 1943-44 Wacker won a relegation game against SG Reichsbahn to preserve their top flight status.

Football returned to a bomb damaged Wacker-Platz in 1945 as the team was strengthened by the signings of Otto Marischka and Wilhelm Hahnemann in time for the resumed Austrian championship with the Meidlingers finishing third.

In 1946-47 Wacker were crowned as national champions as a 4-0 win against Wiener Sport-Club with Turl Wagner scoring twice sealing the title. The club completed the double as Sc Austria Wien were beaten 4-3 in the final of the ÖFB Cup as both Ernst Reitermaier and Hahnemann netted twice.

‘Die Schönbrunner’ known because of their close location to Schloß Schönbrunn, ended 1947-48 as league runners-up. Gerhard Hanappi was considered the best player in Austria when he controversially left Wacker to join Rapid Wien in 1950 which enhanced hostility between the clubs and their fans.

A forward line of Ernst Bokon, Richard Brousek, Walter Haummer and Turl Wagner took Wacker to the final of the Zentropapokal, the forerunner of the European Cup in 1951 where the side lost 3-2 to Rapid Wien at Praterstadion.

Wacker-Platz in 2020

In 1952-53 Wacker finished as league runners-up for a sixth time before international midfielder Theodor Brinek moved on to AS Monaco. Franz Pelikan, Walter Kollmann, Haummer and Wagner were part of the Austrian squad that finished third in the 1954 World Cup.

In 1955-56 a defeat in their final game meant yet another second place in Staatsliga A with Jenő Kalmár coaching the side. Walter Kollmann along with Ernst and Paul Kozlicek played for Austria at the 1958 World Cup, as Wacker were experiencing financial problems.

Several players went on strike in the 1958-59 season over payments. Forty five year old coach Hahnemann came out of retirement to score against First Vienna before the club was relegated for the first time in 1960-61.

Wacker regained their status twelve months later after securing the Regionalliga Ost title, but then returned to the second level in 1962-63. Over 6,000 fans turned up at Wacker-Platz to see their team go back up in 1963-64 as champions.

The yo-yo effect continued as Wacker were relegated in bottom place in 1964-65 before returning to the top flight at the first attempt. The team returned to Regionalliga Ost at the end of the 1966-67 campaign on goal difference.

Die Schönbrunner won another Regionalliga title in 1967-68 after which they remained playing in top level football until the end of the 1970-71 season. Their final game saw a 4-2 defeat to FC Wacker Innsbruck who became national champions for the first time.

Wacker-Platz in 2020

Ernst Dokupil scored the final goal for the team in black and white before the club management decided to merge with Admira Energie from Maria Enzersdorf to form FC Admira/Wacker.

The history of that club can be read here.

In the 1990’s a club called Wacker Wien was formed after a merger with Groß Viktoria by an eccentric owner Mr Krischke, who was notorious in the Lower Austria football region. The team progressed to the Wiener Stadtliga, playing some games at Wacker-Platz.

Wacker/Groß Viktoria won the league in 1988-89 to go up to the third tier Regionalliga Ost before dropping back down to the Wiener Stadtliga where they remained until the end of the 1995-96 season before folding.

Otto Neu a fan of the original club started up a new incarnation of Wacker in 2005 backed by former legend Turl Wagner, starting out in 3. Klasse A and becoming tenants of SC Wiener Viktoria in Meidling before then using the Union ground on Hervicusgasse.

Promotion was won in 2005-06 before the side dropped back down and disappeared a few years later, before the Wacker name got another lease of life when the new set up became members of 2. Klasse A Wien for the 2018-19 season.

HMI Arena - Wacker's home from 2019-20

The team finished as runners-up to secure promotion with Veselin Rafailovic leading the scoring while playing home games at 1980 Wien-Arena prior to becoming the tenants of SV Wienerberg at HMI Arena.

Wacker were placed in eleventh place under coach Manfred Führer in 1. Klasse A, the seventh level of Austrian football, when the COVID-19 pandemic abandoned the 2019-20 season.

SC Wacker Wien will play in 1. Klasse A Wien in the 2020-21 season.

My visits

HMI Arena

Sunday 8^th March 2020

To read about the venue where Wacker were tenants with SV Wienerberg from the 2019-20 season, please click here.

Wacker-Platz

Monday 9^th March 2020

I’d visited the BSFZ Arena the previous day as I watched Admira Juniors play in the Regionalliga and researched the history behind FC Admira Wacker Mödling. This took me to looking into Wacker’s past, which in turn revealed that Wacker-Platz still existed.

Before I plan out my trips, I always scan over the satellite on Google Maps to see if it reveals any venues that I am previously unaware of. It often does. I’d noticed the ground on Rosasgasse but it gave no clue as to its origins.

I was heading to visit Rapid Wien before taking the train over the border to Bratislava for a few hours. The venue was on my route, so I left the Star Inn Hotel Wien Schönbrunn to take the U4 train from Längenfeldgasse for a couple of stops to Schönbrunn.

It took five minutes to walk along Grünbergstraße and then Rosasgasse to the now titled Bundesspielplatz Schönbrunn, which had been converted into a venue that could be hired for school sports.

There wasn’t a very good view of the pitch through the locked gates, so I went round to the far end on Tivoligasse via Zenogasse, where I got an excellent view from a raised elevation through the wire fences.

It wasn’t difficult to imagine it holding decent sized crowds. The pitch was in excellent conditions with artificial surfaces on the area where I think the larger structures stood. The banking on the other side was now grown over with a couple of concrete steps at the base.