2nd Oberliga West

The Oberliga West was the second-highest level of the German football league system in the west of Germany from 1949 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963. It covered the state of Nordrhein-Westfalen, the most populous state of Germany.

Overview

The 2nd Oberliga West was formed in 1949 with two groups of sixteen teams each as a feeder league to the Oberliga West. It was the first of the three second Oberligas, the other two being 2nd Oberliga Süd (1950) and 2nd Oberliga Südwest (1951). The league adopted a single group format from 1952. The top two teams of the 2nd Oberliga gained promotion to the Oberliga while the bottom two teams were relegated to the Verbandsligas. Some years however, exceptions applied and the number of promoted and relegated teams altered.

Below the 2nd Oberliga West ranked the Amateurligas, varying in numbers and names but split into three zones, Westfalen, Niederrhein and Mittelrhein.

*Niederrhein: "Landesliga Niederrhein" in two groups until 1952, then three groups. From 1956 single-group Verbandsliga Niederrhein.
*Mittelrhein: "Landesliga Mittelrhein" in a single group in 1950, two groups from 1951. From 1956 single-group Verbandsliga Mittelrhein.
*Westfalen: "Landesliga Westfalen" in two groups in 1950, single group in 1951 and 1952, five groups from 1953. From 1956 two groups, Verbandsliga Westfalen 1 and Verbandsliga Westfalen 2.

The 2nd Oberliga West existed until 1963, when it was replaced by the Regionalliga West as the second division for Nordrhein-Westfalen.

The SpVgg Herten was the only team to have played in the league for all 14 seasons.

Schwarz-Weiß Essen became the first second division side to win the German Cup when they did so in 1959, an archivemend only repeated by Kickers Offenbach and Hannover 96.

Disbanding of the 2nd Oberliga

In 1963, the league was disbanded in favor of the new Regionalliga. The first eight teams from this season went to the Regionalliga West. The clubs placed from ninth to sixteenth were relegated to the Verbandsligas.

*VfB Bottrop
*Duisburg 48/99
*SpVgg Herten
*STV Horst-Emscher
*Sportfreunde Siegen
*Rot-Weiß Essen
*Arminia Bielefeld
*Duisburger SV

The following teams were relegated to the Amateurligas:

*To the Verbandsliga Niederrhein: SV Neukirchen, FV Duisburg 08
*To the Verbandsliga Mittelrhein: Bonner FV
*To the Verbandsliga Westfalen-Nordost: Eintracht Gelsenkirchen, Sportfreunde Gladbeck
*To the Verbandsliga Westfalen-Südwest: SC Dortmund 95, SV Sodingen, VfL Bochum

Winners and runners-up of the 2nd Oberliga

1950 Rheydter SV & Sportfreunde Katernberg 1951 MSV Duisburg & Bayer Leverkusen 1952 SV Sodingen & Borussia Mönchengladbach "league changed to single division" 1953 VfL Bochum Rheydter SV 1954 Duisburger SV Westfalia Herne 1955 Wuppertaler SV SV Hamborn 07 1956 VfL Bochum MSV Duisburg 1957 SV Hamborn 07 Rot-Weiß Oberhausen 1958 STV Horst-Emscher Borussia Mönchengladbach 1959 SV Hamborn 07 Schwarz-Weiß Essen 1960 SV Sodingen TSV Marl-Hüls 1961 Schwarz-Weiß Essen Fortuna Düsseldorf 1962 Bayer Leverkusen Wuppertaler SV 1963 VfB Bottrop Duisburg 48/99

Placings in the 2nd Oberliga West 1949 to 1963

Source:Cite web
url = http://www.f-archiv.de/
title = 2nd Oberliga West
accessdate =2008-01-10
publisher = Das deutsche Fussball-Archiv

*♦ denotes club played in the Oberliga West.
*"SSV Wuppertal" and "TSG Vohwinkel" merged in 1954 to form "Wuppertaler SV".
*"Union Gelsenkirchen" merged with "Alemannia Gelsenkirchen" to form "Eintracht Gelsenkirchen" in 1950.

External links

* [http://www.f-archiv.de/ Das deutsche Fussball Archiv ]
* [http://www.fussballdaten.de/alteoberliga/west/1963/ Oberliga West at Fussballdaten.de]

References

"Kicker Almanach" The Football Yearbook on German football from Bundesliga to Oberliga, since 1937, published by the Kicker Sports Magazine