New York Red Bulls (USA)

New York Red Bulls are a football club based in Harrison, New Jersey who were originally formed as Empire Soccer Club and then New York/New Jersey MetroStars  in 1995.

Eddie Firmani, the experienced ex head coach of New York Cosmos was the clubs first head coach, with USA World Cup stars Tab Ramos and Tony Meola joining the Italian Roberto Donadoni.

MetroStars caused a sensation when they registered players Juninho and Túlio with fans and the media alike presuming that they were the Brazilian stars of the same name. However, both were juniors who were later released.

The team were ready to go in the first season of Major League Soccer (MLS) with the team playing at Giants Stadium, where they shared with NFL teams New York Giants and New York Jets.

In 1998 the club’s location was dropped from their title as they became known as MetroStars. The side had a terrible 1999 season with former USA team boss Bora Milutinović in charge of team affairs.

To improve matters, the signing of German legend Lothar Matthäus improved matters both on and off the pitch. The club became the first MLS team to lift an overseas trophy when Dynamo Kyiv and then Norway’s Viking FK were defeated to win the La Manga Cup in 2004.

In 2005 MetroStars reached the play-offs but were knocked out at the first stage by New England Revolution. The following year the Red Bull organisation bought the club and changed its title, colours and logo.

Huge crowds flocked to Giants Stadium to see the locals defeat Bayern Munich 4-2 and then a second friendly against FC Barcelona that ended in a 4-1 defeat in front of a sell out crowd of 79,000 fans. Davis Beckham’s appearance with LA Galaxy drew a gate of 66,238.

Bruce Arena took over as head coach following a disappointing World Cup campaign in charge of the USA. The goals of Jozy Altidore helped the team to the 2007 play-offs, but once again they were eliminated by Revolution.

Juan Carlos Osorio was named as head coach in 2008 with Juan Pablo Ángel the stand out player. Altidore was sold for a record $10 million transfer fee to Villarreal CF. Once again, Red Bulls reached the play-offs. On this occasion they saw off the two time defending champions Houston Dynamo and then Real Salt Lake to make the MLS Final. In the showpiece held in Los Angeles, New York went down 3-1 to Columbus Crew.

The successful campaign led to qualification for the CONCACAF Champions League of 2009–10. Red Bulls went out on aggregate to Trinidad and Tobago side W Connection. The team endured an even worse league season, with fans wanting the firing of Sporting Director Jeff Agoos, while Osorio resigned.

2010 saw a new head coach in the shape of the Swede Hans Backe. The club also opened their new Red Bull Arena in Harrison, across the river from New York and close to Newark. The signing of Thierry Henry captivated the home support along with Mexican international Rafael Márquez.

However, the 2010 season ultimately ended in disappointment as the Eastern Conference semi-finals saw the Red Bulls fall to the San Jose Earthquakes. The team won the 2011 Emirates Cup in London after defeating Paris Saint-Germain and then drawing with Arsenal. DC United ended the championship hopes with a play-off defeat.

Former player Mike Petke was named as the new head coach for the 2013 season following a overhaul of the staff off the pitch. Several prominent players were sold or traded. The 2014 season saw the signs of improvement and a run all the way to the Eastern Conference final following wins over Sporting Kansas City and DC United.

New England Revolution defeated Red Bulls in the final, with Henry announcing his retirement following the game. On January 7, 2015 Jesse Marsch was named head coach of New York Red Bulls.

New York Red Bulls will play in the MLS Eastern Conference in the 2015 season.

My visit

New York Red Bulls 2 Orlando City 5 (Friday 25^th September 2015) MLS Eastern Conference (att: 20,695)

My first ever visit to the USA for a long weekend in New York had started better than I could have dreamed of. After a few beers on the opening night, I had enjoyed a cruise around Manhattan and a life long dream of going up the Empire State Building before lunch watching the Friday night football back from Europe.

Having taken a siesta at my room at the West Side YMCA by Central Park and Columbus Circle, it was time to try and fight through the crowds and security as Pope Francis was being greeted by 80,000 worshipers over the road. It was also United Nations week in the city, which was adding to the heightened security.

The subway took me to Penn Station where I changed for an E train to the World Trade Center. Following the signs, I had soon got my return ticket and was by the huge building sight still rebuilding the area following the 2001 September 11 atrocities. The PATH train heading to Penn Station in Newark was busy. I was glad to see a few Red Bulls shirts on board to signify I’d caught the correct train.

The journey took around twenty minutes to Harrison. Red Bull Arena stood across some wasteland a ten minute walk away. It was good to see some small tailgate party’s in action on the vast car parks, with kids having impromptu games. The future of the game in the US seemed bright. On the cruise I saw numerous pitches on the East Lower Village, but little baseball and no American Football.

I followed the signs to the entrances of the immaculate stadium. My advance ticket cost $30 (around £20). There were no programmes, but free posters were given out. I went upstairs and was impressed to see free phone chargers in locked cabinets for public usage. The catering however, was not very fan friendly.

There were numerous concessions with some tremendous options, but the prices were ridiculous. Craft beers were as much as $11 a pint. The food wasn’t much cheaper. The best option I could find was the hot dog and Pepsi combo for $9; until I then saw the size of the hot dog. I was not impressed; especially when the same dogs were given away for free in the brilliant Rudy’s Bar & Grill at 44th St 9th Avenue. I went upstairs to enjoy my meal and take in the scene.

The Red Bull Arena was a fine stadium. The Main Stand had a lower deck with corporate and media facilities above. The other three sides wrapped around the rest of the arena with one continuous roof, which rose over the far touchline to add aesthetics. Each side had a lower section with another above. The wide concourse ran all the way around at the back of the lower tier.

Before kick off the current Cosmos manager and former Metrostars goal scoring hero Giovani Savarese was presented to the crowd, while the jumbotrons showed highlights of his career. The full regalia of American sport followed as servicemen were given a warm welcome on the pitch and the national anthem was sung. There were swathes of empty seats around the arena, so I was more than surprised when the official attendance was announced.

Both teams had some well known names. The visitors from Orlando were managed by Adrian Heath and fielded Brazilian legend Kaká in the number ten shirt. Red Bulls started with Bradley Wright-Phillips, with his brother Shaun on the bench.

As the game began I made a video for my Facebook page, commenting on how so many football matches of all levels around the globe appeared to be following a similar pattern of sterile neat play and short passing without error or risk taking. How little I knew!

Orlando went ahead when some very slack marking allowed Cyle Larin to flick home Kaká’s corner with a fine header on twenty four minutes. The predominantly young support carried on cheering. Many were from local clubs, which was good to see, including plenty of young girls who have fallen for the game. The Ultras downstairs were doing their best to rouse their heroes.

Earlier in the season Red Bulls had beaten their new rivals New York City on three occasions. It would also seem that it had led to plenty of bother between the fans. I cannot condone any violence, but I sympathised heavily with Red Bulls who had worked long and hard over the previous twenty years to build support, community links and a base of their own. New York City just popped up and were given Yankee Stadium as a base. That did not appear fair to me.

They were rewarded four minutes later. Sacha Kljestan played in a free kick to the back post. Matt Miazga headed it back across goal where a diving Dax McCarty swooped to level with his head. City defender Seb Hines was carried off after a long delay after trying to prevent the goal.

The men on the PA earned their cash. All announcements, including for yellow cards, were made in Spanish and English to appeal to the home support. It seemed that “Ladies and gentlemen. Your attention please,” seemed to boom out every few minutes. Red Bulls spurned two great opportunities to draw level before the break. McCarty hit the crossbar with a header and Bradley Wright-Phillips headed against the post.

City substitute Carlos Rivas put Larin through with a fine pass just before the break. The forward made no mistake finishing with style past New York custodian Luis Robles. At the break I wandered round the concourse and found somewhere to charge my phone before deciding to take a seat at the far end near to the fifty or so purple clad away fans.

I expected a big response from the home side who were riding high in the standings. Orlando were having a very indifferent campaign, but they had pace aplenty and it was worrying the home side.

Just one minute after the restart, the pace of Rivas and Larin caused absolute mayhem, causing Red Bulls defender Damien Perrinelle to put into his own net trying to cut out a square ball. I couldn’t help but laugh. It was turning into superb entertainment.

Red Bulls coach Jesse Marsch was sent to the stands by referee Jorge Gonzalez as the shambles on the pitch got too much for him. Just before the hour mark Lloyd Sam narrowed the deficit with a fine swivel and shot from a low Gonzalo Veron cross.

Surely this would be the time for Red Bulls to turn the game around? Not a chance as Orlando had very different ideas. Their pace and counter attacking was just too much for the home side. Kaká was past his very best pace wise, but he ran the game from midfield. His footballing brain stood out like a sore thumb.

Once again Rivas set up the Canadian star Larin who fired into the roof of the net from just inside the area on sixty one minutes to make it 4-2. Red Bulls bought on Shaun Wright-Phillips with twenty minutes remaining to try and change things. Seven minutes later they were down to ten men after Miazga received his second yellow card.

With the very last action of the game City scored a fifth goal after numerous near misses. They had poured forward at will taking pot shots at the home net. This time it was left to Bryan Rochez who made no mistake firing into the bottom corner.

City thoroughly deserved their win. Red Bulls were shocking at the back and would have probably been better off fielding female pop trio Wilson Phillips than the Wright-Phillips brothers. I’d put in a more exhausting shift during the day.

As everyone left the stadium they were given a thermal drink flask from match sponsors Bayer, which was a nice touch. Courtesy school buses were awaiting us outside on the junction of Cape May Street and Pete Higgins Boulevard. Within a few minutes we were back at Newark Penn Station. I got on the wrong train and headed back to New York Penn. The conductor was most sympathetic and told me not to worry about a ticket.

I decided to walk to my new found local bar past Madison Square Gardens and the main Post Office building. This offered me the chance to grab some value pizza slice on the way up 9^th Avenue.

My old Scarborough FC Black Death shirt attracted attention back at the pub. I got chatting with Raul, an Argentinian now based in New York. He was delighted to speak to someone of his age who preferred non commercialised football. He insisted it was football and not soccer. He reiterated the point to his pal who responded with “Go Jets!”

Raul supported Huracon, the club where Osvaldo Ardiles had cut his teeth. We had a great laugh chatting about football and music. My new friend loved British punk. Top barman Conor kept providing us with drinks in the packed bar before I had to call it a night as I had a 7am bus to Boston for more MLS action the following day.

To see how that turned out totally unexpectedly, click here!

A brief video as part of my New York tour diary can be see by clicking on the link:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3nD5oVE4KA

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 who 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 to 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 Two 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 play off. 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 60’s Kickers threatened to win promotion on a couple of occasions.

2. Bundesliga was introduced in 1974, with Regionalliga Süd forming part of it. Kickers were one of the included clubs thanks to their good previous record.

Kickers were 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 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 in the winter break, as he led the side up the table.

The DFB Pokal (German Cup) 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 were promoted once again following a play off 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 unification of the two states. Kickers’s 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 for 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 sat in third place with Ramon Gehrmann in charge of the side when the season ended owing to the Coronavirus outbreak.

SV Stuttgarter Kickers will play in Oberliga Baden-Württemberg in the 2020-21 season.

My visit

Sunday 16^th August

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.

During the interval I thought it 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 e,V, 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 new 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 back 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.

SV Eintracht Stuttgart 1896 e,V. (Germany)

SV Eintracht Stuttgart 1896 eV is a sports club from the Degerloch area of Stuttgart which has sections for gymnastics, table tennis and walking; but the most prominent part of the club is football.

The club was formed in 1896 as FV Schwaben. After a series of mergers the club found a place in the highest ranked local league; the Gauliga in 1920. 1. FV Stuttgart merged with the club in 1921 as it became Eintracht.

Around the same time the hockey section of the club was highly successful, while the football side was just outside the top regional level. By 1924 they had progressed to the Verbandsliga.

The period under the Third Reich around wartime led to much turmoil of several local clubs. The plan was to dissolve many and to merge into one big club at Waldau. The idea disbanded in 1945 which saw the continuation of SV Eintracht 1896 Stuttgart.

Eintracht re-grouped and developed players through their youth system. Promotion to A Class (the highest local level of football) was achieved at the completion of the 1953-54 season. Unfortunately the spell lasted only two years before they returned to Class B.

Worse was to come as in 1959 Eintracht found themselves in Class C. The club once again took stock of their situation and won a couple of promotions to celebrate their 75th anniversary in 1971 in the A Class. The clubs Articles of Association were rewritten to allow members of 16 years old and above a vote.

After years of planning the club were afforded new facilities under the grandstand of Stuttgarter Kickers Waldau Stadion. In 1982 Waldau undertook a re-arrangement which meant the demolition of Eintracht’s clubhouse. 

A convivial arrangement was made to share some of Kickers facilities. Unfortunately, the team were relegated around the same time. However the women’s team won their league. The old wooden grandstand at Eintracht Stadion was demolished to make room for a new structure as the team slipped down to Kreisliga B. 

In the summer of 1989 a new clubhouse with spectator balcony was erected at a cost of DM 1.4 million. It obviously brought luck as the first team won promotion to Kreisliga A.

Sadly relegation soon followed as Eintracht put an emphasis on developing their youth system. By 1995 they’d returned to the top Kreisliga division, with the club being advanced by landscaped car parking and a beer garden.

The club continued to run along well on and off the pitch, with the women’s side also prospering. By 2010-11 the team were competing in the tenth tier Kreisliga B 5 where they finished in third position.

The league title was won the following season, but Eintracht lasted just one season in Kreisliga A 3 before being relegated. Back in Kreisliga B 4 the team continued to finish in the top six without really mounting a serious challenge for the league title.

Back in B5 the side were in second place when the 2019-20 season halted owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. The club would have to await their fate after the goals of Robin Wagner had propelled the team led by coach Mehmet Mehmet up the table.

SV Eintracht Stuttgart 1896 e,V. will play in Kreisliga B5 Württemberg in the 2019-20 season.

My visit

Sunday 16^th August 2015

I had enjoyed a very competitive first half in the Oberliga clash between Stuttgarter Kickers II and FC 08 Villingen at the nearby Bezirkssportanlage Waldau. With fifteen minutes to kill I decided to have a wander over the road to have a look around the vast Waldau complex. It was there I came across Eintracht Stadion.

It was quite a basic but very neat venue, in common with the other district standard grounds I’d come across. The playing surface was artificial with a rail around it. The only structure was along the far side in the shadow of the new Main Stand of Waldau Stadion with the two storey clubhouse with changing rooms downstairs and club rooms and balcony above it.

The far end of the ground had a car park behind the trees. It looked like I’d either missed a friendly game or a training session as players were drifting away as I wandered round.

SV Sillenbuch (Germany)

SV Sillenbuch is a sports club with an amateur football club from the German city of Stuttgart, a few hundred kilometres from the headquarters of Stuttgarter Kickers. The club were formed in 1892, with the football section beginning in 1920.

Emil Kraemer made a pasture available to the club, who took on their green and white colours from 1926. The club struggled financially in the years up to and around World War Two, until it was re-structured in 1947 with Willi Senn as head of the football department.

In 1950 SV Sillenbuch moved into their new Spitalwald home, with improvement work to the pitch being carried out in subsequent years as the team prospered on the pitch. The turning point came in 1956 following the appointment of new coach Siegfried Boll who arrived from PSV Stuttgart.

Boll took the team to the championship of the B-Class as well as lifting the cup competition with victory over SV Heslach. Unfortunately Sillenbuch’s second season in the A Class ended in relegation under new coach Eberhardt.

Coaches came and went in the early 60’s as the city council installed a 400m running track around the pitch at Spitalwald. Further works were carried out under the guidance of general manager Dieter Benk. The 1964-65 season saw the team end as league runners up along with victory in the District Cup Final over Weil im Schönbuch.

In 1970-71 SVS just missed out on promotion to the top amateur league. Sadly as the decade progressed Sillenbuch hit a slump and found themselves back in the Kreisliga in 1980. Under Edgar Short the team returned to the Bezirksliga following the lifting of the Kreisliga B title as the club’s youth development came to the fore.

Despite a further relegation the club climbed back once more in 1989-90. As ever, the success was celebrated wildly with a trip away for the squad. Membership increased as teams were added as the club embarked on much community work.

On the 18^th June 1995 VfB Stuttgart visited Spitwald and attracted a crowd of 1,000 for a friendly game. The following season Sillenbuch reached the District Cup Final but went down 3-2 to ASV Botnang. This performance gave the club entry into the Württemberg Cup.

A new artificial pitch was installed at Spitwald in 1998 along with a brand new turf surface.

The club has sections for judo, boxing, handball, dancing, tennis, table tennis, volleyball, gymnastics as well as the football section. Sillenbuch promote fun for all their members.

The men’s first team were relegated from the Bezirksliga down to the Kreisliga in 2011, but they returned to the higher status within two years. The side looked for honours under the tuition of head coach Tim Schwab from 2014.

A fourteenth place finish in 2016-17 put Sillenbuch in the relegation play-offs where defeat to SV Vaihingen sent the club down to the ninth tier Kreisliga A 2. The goals of Luca Krieglstein helped Zvonimir Topalusic’s side win the title at the first attempt.

Back in the Bezirksliga, Sillenbuch finished sixth in 2018-19 before sitting in second place when the 2019-20 campaign was halted owing to the outbreak of Coronavirus. Louis Schmidt led the scoring but he and his team would have to wait and see if it was enough to secure a play-off game. 

SV Sillenbuch will play in the Bezirksliga Württemberg in the 2019-20 season.

My visit

Sunday 16^th August 2015

Although I had marked down a visit to Spitwald on my itinerary when I first left my hotel on a very wet Sunday morning, it was still in the balance. I’d gone back to get changed into dry clothes and was setting out for my afternoons entertainment in the Oberliga between Stuttgarter Kickers II and FC 08 Villingen.

As it turned out I arrived at Waldau station on the U7 tramline early so I stayed on for a couple of stops to Silberwald. Within a few minutes I’d walked up the footpath past some allotments to the gates of the ground.

A huge sports hall building was behind the near goal. The remnants of the old running track were down the near side touchline with a step of hard standing for spectators. A couple of attractively painted portable buildings in the club colours were just inside the gate. In all, it was a basic but neat venue with trees giving an enclosed feel around two sides.

I walked back to the tram and with ten minutes I was walking through the gates of my first game of the day.

FC Stuttgart-Cannstatt (Germany)

FC Stuttgart-Cannstatt is an amateur football club from the city of Stuttgart, who are located in the north of the city. They were formed in 1995 as TSV Hilalspor, serving mainly members of Turkish extraction.

In 2006 they changed their title. At the same time many Turks left the club but this was compensated by the formation of a youth section to gradually build the clubs stature in the district competitions.

The team was demoted from the eighth tier Bezirksliga in 2007-08 before the following season ended in a twelfth place finish in Kreisliga A1 to confirm consecutive relegations. However, Cannstatt bounced back by winning the B1 title in 2009-10.

The step up proved too much but the team was received a reprieve from relegation twelve months later. There was to be a second successive escape in 2011-12 and then a third in 2012-13 despite the side finished bottom of the table.

In 2013-14 Cannstatt lifted the A2 title to return to the Bezirksliga where the side adapted well, finishing in sixth on their first season back which continued in 2015-16 before finishing bottom in 2016-17.

Once again, the team failed to recover as they finished bottom of Kreisliga A1 in 2017-18 despite the goals of Saban Erdogmus. In the same pattern of a decade previously Cannstatt then won the B1 title at the first attempt.

Erdogmus scored thirty eight goals in just twenty six games for the team led by Burak Demirel. When the 2019-20 season ended early Cannstatt were in thirteenth spot in Kreisliga A1 and waiting to hear if they would be relegated.

FC Stuttgart-Cannstatt will play in the Bezirksliga A1 Württemberg in the 2019-20 season.

My visit

Sunday 16^th August 2015

I was extremely damp on a dreary summer’s morning as I decided that FC Stuttgart-Cannstatt would be last call before I went back to the hotel to get dry before my afternoon double header of matches.

The U Bahn tram service 12 to Riethmüllerhaus dropped me just a few minutes from the Sportzplatz.

I crossed the road and went through the car park and up a slope showing signs for the very tempting TC Original American Barbecue. The finely named restaurant was at the top of the hill next to the stadium clubhouse.

The pitch with running track surround was on the right hugging the side of the hill with some impressive trees flanking the surrounds. A lone athlete was doing laps round the track in the rain.

On the entrance side there was a fine block of wide terracing for spectators as well as some semi-permanent cover near to the clubhouse; no doubt for the provision of the staple sausages and beer?

I headed back down the hill ready to change trams at Lowentor, and to change shirts at my hotel. I would have time to dry out and take stock before heading off to Stuttgarter Kickers II’s Oberliga.encounter against FC 08 Villingen.