VfL Bochum

Football club infobox
clubname = VfL Bochum


fullname = Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft e.V.
nickname = "Die Unabsteigbaren" ("The Unrelegables", only prior to 1994)
founded = 1848
ground = rewirpowerSTADION
capacity = 31,328
chairman = flagicon|Germany Werner Altegoer
mgrtitle = Head Coach
manager = flagicon|Switzerland Marcel Koller
league = Bundesliga
season = 2007/08
position = Bundesliga, 12th
pattern_la1=_whiteborder|pattern_b1=_thinwhitestripes|pattern_ra1=_whiteborder
leftarm1=0000FF|body1=0000FF|rightarm1=0000FF|shorts1=0000FF|socks1=0000FF
pattern_la2=_blueborder|pattern_b2=_thinstripesonwhite|pattern_ra2=_blueborder
leftarm2=ffffff|body2=0000ff|rightarm2=ffffff|shorts2=ffffff|socks2=ffffff

pattern_la3=_whiteborder|pattern_b3=_thinwhitestripes|pattern_ra3=_whiteborder
leftarm3=600000|body3=600000|rightarm3=600000|shorts3=600000|socks3=600000

VfL Bochum is a German football club based in Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.

History

Founding to World War II

"VfL" is one of the oldest sports organizations in Germany claiming an origin date of July 26, 1848 when an article in the "Märkischer Sprecher" - a local newspaper - called for the creation of a gymnastics club. The "Bochumer Turnverein" was then formally established with the authorities on February 18, 1849. However, the origin of the VfLs football department is the predecessor side of the "Fußballklub 06" formed in 1906, later known as "SV Germania 06 Bochum".

Another ancestor - "Spiel und Sport Bochum" - was formed in 1908 and played the first football match at the "Castroper Straße" (Ruhrstadion) on October 8, 1911. After a merger with another local side in 1919, they took on the name "TuS Bochum 1848".

Two of these clubs played in the Gauliga Westfalen, one of sixteen top-flight divisions established through the re-organization of German football under the Third Reich in 1933. "TuS Bochum" appeared there briefly in 1936 and 1937, while "Germania Bochum" played in the division from 1933 to 1938. "VfL Bochum" was formed when the Naziregime ordered the consolidation of "TuS", "Germania", and "Turnverein Bochum 1848" on April 14, 1938 and began play in the 1938-39 season. After 1943 they played with yet another club as the combined wartime side "Kriegsspielgemeinschaft (KSG) VfL 1848 Bochum/Preußen Bochum" until the end of the conflict. Although the club was able to field competitive sides, they had the misfortune of playing in the same division as "Schalke 04" which was the dominant team of the era: "Bochum"'s best results were a number of distant second place finishes.

Postwar and entry to Bundesliga play

Following the war the football section resumed play as the independent "VfL Bochum Fussballgemeinschaft 1848" and played its first season in the second division 2.Oberliga West in 1949, while "Preußen Bochum" went on to lower tier amateur level play. "VfL" captured the division title in 1953 to advance to the Oberliga West for a single season. They repeated their divisional win in 1956 and returned to the top-flight until again being relgated after the 1960-61 season.

With the formation of the Bundesliga, Germany's new professional league, in 1963, "VfL" found itself in the third tier Amateurliga Westfalen. A first place result there in 1965 raised them to the Regionalliga West (II) from where they began a steady climb up the league table to the Bundesliga in 1971. During this rise "Bochum" also played its way to the final of the 1968 German Cup where they dropped a 1:4 decision to "1. FC Köln".

In spite of being a perennial lower table side, "Bochum" developed a reputation for tenaciousness on the field in a run of twenty seasons at the top flight. The club made a repeat appearance in the German Cup final in 1988, this time going down 0:1 to "Eintracht Frankfurt". Relegated after a 16th place finish in 1993, the team has become a classic "elevator side", bouncing up and down between the Bundesliga and 2.Bundesliga. The club's best Bundesliga results have come relatively recently as 5th place finishes in 1997 and 2004, which earned them appearances in the UEFA Cup tournament. In 1997, they advanced to the third round where they were put out by Dutch side "Ajax Amsterdam", and in 2004, they were eliminated early through away goals (0-0 and 1-1) by "Standard CL Liège" of Belgium.

Current

Today's sports club has 5,000 members with the football department accounting for over 2,200 of these. Other sections now part of the association include athletics, badminton, basketball, dance, fencing, gymnastics, handball, hockey, swimming, table tennis, tennis, and volleyball.

Players

Current squad

"As of July 1, 2008"

Players out on loan

"For recent transfers, see List of German football transfers summer 2008#VfL Bochum."

VfL Bochum II squad

"As of July 2, 2007"

Notable players

"See also: "Germany
*flagicon|Germany Holger Adencite web|url=http://vfl-bochum.de/webcache/Historie_VfL_Legenden_en_123.htm |title=VfL legends: Portraits of legendary players |accessdate=2008-06-12 |last= |first=VfL Bochum 1848 |authorlink= |date= |work=]
*flagicon|Germany Dieter Bast
*flagicon|Germany Frank Benatelli
*flagicon|Germany Mirko Dickhaut
*flagicon|Germany Thomas Ernst
*flagicon|Germany Frank Fahrenhorst
*flagicon|Germany Harry Fechner
*flagicon|Germany Hermann Gerland
*flagicon|Germany Dirk Helmig
*flagicon|Germany Michael Hubner
*flagicon|Germany Mathias Jack
*flagicon|Germany Josef Kaczor
*flagicon|Germany Hans-Jürgen Köper
*flagicon|Germany Peter Közle
*flagicon|Germany Martin Kree
*flagicon|Germany Stefan Kuntz
*flagicon|Germany Michael Lameck
*flagicon|Germany Uwe Leifeld
*flagicon|Germany Kai Michalke
*flagicon|Germany Josef Nehl
*flagicon|Germany Walter Oswald
*flagicon|Germany Peter Peschel
*flagicon|Germany Thomas Reis
*flagicon|Germany Dirk Riechmann
*flagicon|Germany Hilko Ristau
*flagicon|Germany Michael Rzehaczeck
*flagicon|Germany Christian Schreier
*flagicon|Germany Frank Schulz
*flagicon|Germany Thomas Stickroth
*flagicon|Germany Franz-Josef Tenhagen
*flagicon|Germany Hans Walitza
*flagicon|Germany Uwe Wegmann
*flagicon|Germany Andreas Wessels

Greece
*flagicon|Greece Theofanis Gekas

Iceland
*flagicon|Iceland Thordur Gudjonsson

Iran
*flagicon|Iran Mehdi Mahdavikia

Netherlands
*flagicon|Netherlands Rob Reekers

Poland
*flagicon|Poland Tomasz WałdochUSA
*flagicon|USA Eric Wynalda

Honours

;UEFA Cup: 1997/98 (Third Round), 2004/05 (First Round);German Cup finalists: 1967/68, 1987/88;Bundesliga UEFA Cup qualification: 1996/97 (5th), 2003/04 (5th);Bundesliga top goal scorer: 1985/86 (Stefan Kuntz, 22 goals), 2002/03 (Thomas Christiansen, 21 goals (w/Giovane Elber)), 2006/07 (Theofanis Gekas, 20 goals);Promoted to Bundesliga: 1970/71 (1st Regionalliga West, 1st promotion group #1), 1993/94 (1st), 1995/96 (1st), 1999/2000 (2nd), 2001/02 (3rd), 2005/06 (1st);2. Bundesliga champions: 1993/94, 1995/96, 2005/06;2. Bundesliga top goal scorer: 1993/94 (Uwe Wegmann 22 goals)

League results

ImageSize = width:1600 height:60PlotArea = left:10 right:10 bottom:30 top:10TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyyDateFormat = dd/mm/yyyyPeriod = from:01/07/1938 till:01/07/2008ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:1 start:1939Colors = id:1st value:rgb(0.5,0.8,0.5) id:2nd value:rgb(0.9,0.9,0.3) id:3rd value:rgb(0.8,0.6,0.6)PlotData= bar:Position width:15 color:white align:center from:01/07/1938 till:01/07/1939 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1939 till:01/07/1940 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1940 till:01/07/1941 shift:(0,-4) text:8 from:01/07/1941 till:01/07/1942 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1942 till:01/07/1943 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/1943 till:01/07/1944 shift:(0,-4) text:6 from:01/07/1944 till:01/07/1945 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/1945 till:01/07/1946 shift:(0,-4) text:7 from:01/07/1946 till:01/07/1947 shift:(0,-4) text:7 from:01/07/1947 till:01/07/1948 shift:(0,-4) text:6 from:01/07/1948 till:01/07/1949 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1949 till:01/07/1950 shift:(0,-4) text:12 from:01/07/1950 till:01/07/1951 shift:(0,-4) text:7 from:01/07/1951 till:01/07/1952 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/1952 till:01/07/1953 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1953 till:01/07/1954 shift:(0,-4) text:8 from:01/07/1954 till:01/07/1955 shift:(0,-4) text:16 from:01/07/1955 till:01/07/1956 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1956 till:01/07/1957 shift:(0,-4) text:10 from:01/07/1957 till:01/07/1958 shift:(0,-4) text:14 from:01/07/1958 till:01/07/1959 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/1959 till:01/07/1960 shift:(0,-4) text:11 from:01/07/1960 till:01/07/1961 shift:(0,-4) text:16 from:01/07/1961 till:01/07/1962 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/1962 till:01/07/1963 shift:(0,-4) text:14 from:01/07/1963 till:01/07/1964 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1964 till:01/07/1965 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1965 till:01/07/1966 shift:(0,-4) text:12 from:01/07/1966 till:01/07/1967 shift:(0,-4) text:4 from:01/07/1967 till:01/07/1968 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/1968 till:01/07/1969 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/1969 till:01/07/1970 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1970 till:01/07/1971 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1971 till:01/07/1972 shift:(0,-4) text:9 from:01/07/1972 till:01/07/1973 shift:(0,-4) text:12 from:01/07/1973 till:01/07/1974 shift:(0,-4) text:14 from:01/07/1974 till:01/07/1975 shift:(0,-4) text:11 from:01/07/1975 till:01/07/1976 shift:(0,-4) text:14 from:01/07/1976 till:01/07/1977 shift:(0,-4) text:15 from:01/07/1977 till:01/07/1978 shift:(0,-4) text:14 from:01/07/1978 till:01/07/1979 shift:(0,-4) text:8 from:01/07/1979 till:01/07/1980 shift:(0,-4) text:10 from:01/07/1980 till:01/07/1981 shift:(0,-4) text:9 from:01/07/1981 till:01/07/1982 shift:(0,-4) text:10 from:01/07/1982 till:01/07/1983 shift:(0,-4) text:13 from:01/07/1983 till:01/07/1984 shift:(0,-4) text:15 from:01/07/1984 till:01/07/1985 shift:(0,-4) text:9 from:01/07/1985 till:01/07/1986 shift:(0,-4) text:9 from:01/07/1986 till:01/07/1987 shift:(0,-4) text:11 from:01/07/1987 till:01/07/1988 shift:(0,-4) text:12 from:01/07/1988 till:01/07/1989 shift:(0,-4) text:15 from:01/07/1989 till:01/07/1990 shift:(0,-4) text:16 from:01/07/1990 till:01/07/1991 shift:(0,-4) text:14 from:01/07/1991 till:01/07/1992 shift:(0,-4) text:15 from:01/07/1992 till:01/07/1993 shift:(0,-4) text:16 from:01/07/1993 till:01/07/1994 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1994 till:01/07/1995 shift:(0,-4) text:16 from:01/07/1995 till:01/07/1996 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/1996 till:01/07/1997 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/1997 till:01/07/1998 shift:(0,-4) text:12 from:01/07/1998 till:01/07/1999 shift:(0,-4) text:17 from:01/07/1999 till:01/07/2000 shift:(0,-4) text:2 from:01/07/2000 till:01/07/2001 shift:(0,-4) text:18 from:01/07/2001 till:01/07/2002 shift:(0,-4) text:3 from:01/07/2002 till:01/07/2003 shift:(0,-4) text:9 from:01/07/2003 till:01/07/2004 shift:(0,-4) text:5 from:01/07/2004 till:01/07/2005 shift:(0,-4) text:16 from:01/07/2005 till:01/07/2006 shift:(0,-4) text:1 from:01/07/2006 till:01/07/2007 shift:(0,-4) text:8 from:01/07/2007 till:01/07/2008 shift:(0,-4) text:12

from:01/07/1938 till:01/07/1945 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "Gauliga Westfalen" from:01/07/1945 till:01/07/1949 color:3rd shift:(0,13) text: "Landesliga Westfalen" from:01/07/1949 till:01/07/1953 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2. OL West" from:01/07/1953 till:01/07/1955 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "OLW" from:01/07/1955 till:01/07/1956 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2OLW" from:01/07/1956 till:01/07/1961 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "OL West" from:01/07/1961 till:01/07/1963 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2OLW" from:01/07/1963 till:01/07/1965 color:3rd shift:(0,13) text: "VLW" from:01/07/1965 till:01/07/1971 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "Regionalliga West" from:01/07/1971 till:01/07/1993 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "Bundesliga" from:01/07/1993 till:01/07/1994 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2.BL" from:01/07/1994 till:01/07/1995 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "BL" from:01/07/1995 till:01/07/1996 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2.BL" from:01/07/1994 till:01/07/1995 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "BL" from:01/07/1996 till:01/07/1999 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "Bundesliga" from:01/07/1999 till:01/07/2000 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2.BL" from:01/07/2000 till:01/07/2001 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "BL" from:01/07/2001 till:01/07/2002 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2.BL" from:01/07/2002 till:01/07/2005 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "Bundesliga" from:01/07/2005 till:01/07/2006 color:2nd shift:(0,13) text: "2.BL" from:01/07/2006 till:01/07/2008 color:1st shift:(0,13) text: "BL"

tadium

rewirpowerSTADION (formerly known as "Ruhrstadion") was one of the first modern football-only stadiums in Germany. It was built in the 1970s on the traditional ground of "TuS Bochum 08" at the Castroper Straße north of the city centre.

The fully-roofed venue's capacity is 31,328, including standing room for 15,639.

Team trivia

* One of the most prominent supporters of "VfL Bochum" is popular German musician and actor Herbert Grönemeyer, who wrote the song "Bochum" which soon became the club's unofficial anthem sung by "VfL" fans prior to every home match.
* Some team supporters share a fan-friendship with "FC Bayern Munich".
* In 1955, "VfL Bochum" became the first German football club to travel to Israel to play a friendship match.
* The club does not assign the number 12 to any player in order to honour its fans as the 12th man.

Coaches

References

External links

* [http://www.abseits-soccer.com/clubs/bochum.html The Abseits Guide to German Soccer]
* [http://www.vfl-bochum.de Official website]
* [http://www.fussball.com/mannschaft-index-130/vfl-bochum.html fussball.com]
* [http://www.vfl-bochum.pl/ vfl-bochum.pl]