Despite opposition from the pro gymnastics camp who viewed ball games as un-Germanic and an early flirtation with hybrid rules, Association football began to take hold in Germany towards the end of the 19th century.86 clubs were represented at Der Erste Allgemeiner Deutscher Fußballtag at the Zum Mariengarten restaurant in Leipzig on 28.01.1900. This conference led to the foundation of the DFB (Deutscher Fußball-Bund).
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Cities and towns with more than one club present were:
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Johannes Kirmse, Chairman of the Leipzig Football Association.
24 clubs who were represented are still active* (1 in France):
*Status as of 2015-16 season.
These clubs have been absorbed in mergers - present day clubs regard them as 'origin clubs':
Berlin (25) | Mannheim (5) | Dresden (2) |
Bremen (7) | Braunschweig (3) | Hanau (2) |
Hamburg (6) | Karlsruhe (3) | Magdeburg (2) |
Frankfurt (5) | Munich (3) | Pforzheim (2) |
Leipzig (5) | Altona (2) | Prague (2) |
24 clubs who were represented are still active* (1 in France):
Altonaer Fußball- und Cricketclub 1893 | Altona |
Currently known as Altonaer Fußball-Club von 1893 e. V, playing in Oberliga Hamburg (level 5) | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Alemannia 1890 e. V. | Berlin |
Plays in level 9. | |
Berliner Sport-Verein 1892 e.V | Berlin |
Level 8. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Concordia 1895 | Berlin |
FC Concordia Wilhelmsruh 1895 (Level 8). | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Germania 1888 | Berlin |
Currently play at level 10. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Hertha 92 | Berlin |
Currently a Bundesliga side. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Preußen 1894 | Berlin |
Originally BFC Friedrich Wilhelm, currently playing at the 6th level. | |
Fußball- und Cricket Club Eintracht Braunschweig | Braunschweig |
Having undergone a few trifling name changes Braunschweiger Turn- und Sportverein Eintracht von 1895 e.V. are alive and well in the 2. Bundesliga. | |
Fußballverein Werder 1899 Bremen | Bremen |
Bundesliga. | |
Dresdner Sport Gesellschaft 1893 | Dresden |
SpVgg Dresden-Löbtau 1893 currently play in the 8th level. | |
Dresdner Sportclub 1898 e. V. | Dresden |
These days it’s Level 7 football. | |
Sports-Club Erfurt | Erfurt |
FC Rot-Weiß Erfurt play in the 3rd level. | |
Verein für Leibeserziehungen Germania 1894 e.V. | Frankfurt |
Germania now play in the 9th tier. | |
Freiburger Fußball-Club 1897 | Freiburg |
Currently a 6th level club. | |
Sport Verein St. Georg von 1895 | Hamburg |
Still playing, in the 9th tier of German football. | |
Sports-Club Victoria Hamburg | Hamburg |
Level 5. | |
Erster Hanauer Fußball-Club 1893 | Hanau |
Level 7. | |
Fußball-Club Viktoria 1894 Hanau | Hanau |
Now known as TSV 1860 Hanau they play in level 8. | |
Karlsruher Fußball Verein 1891 e.V. | Karlsruhe |
Level 11. | |
Fußball-Club Lipsia 1893 | Leipzig |
7th level. | |
Sports Gesellschaft Olympia 1896 Leipzig | Leipzig |
Having been through many name changes and mergers the club now plays in the 8th tier. | |
Verein für Rasenspiele Mannheim 1896 | Mannheim |
Level 6. | |
Verein für Bewegungsspiele Pankow | Berlin |
Currently known as VfB Einheit zu Pankow 1893 e.V., playing in the 9th Level. | |
Straßburger Fußball Verein 1890 | Strasbourg |
Association Sportive de Strasbourg is now a French club, playing in the 7th tier. | |
*Status as of 2015-16 season.
These clubs have been absorbed in mergers - present day clubs regard them as 'origin clubs':
Berliner Fußball-Club vom Jahre 1893 | Berlin |
Merged with Berliner Normannia 08 in 1918 and again with Berliner Eintracht-Borussia 01 in 1933. The present Kreisliga B (level 10) club SG Nordring 1949 identifies itself as a descendant. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Fortuna 1894 | Berlin |
In 1914, Fortuna merged with Britannia Berlin to form present-day side Berliner SV, who play at Level 9. | |
Berliner Fußball und Cricket Club Rapide 1893 | Berlin |
Via a complex series of mergers the modern 11th tier club SV Nord Wedding 1893 cites Rapide as being its originator. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Stern 89 | Berlin |
Briefly BFC Marbert, Stern evolved via a post war merger into the present SV Stern Britz 1889 (level 8). | |
Berliner Thor- und Fußball-Club Union 1892 | Berlin |
In 1927 the club merged to become Blau-Weiß 90 Berlin. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Viktoria 1889 | Berlin |
Another club that had a strong cricket section, reflected in the original name Berliner Thorball- und Fußballclub Viktoria von 1889. In 2013 the club merged with Lichterfelder FC to form a new club, FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin. | |
Fußball-Club Germania Braunschweig | Braunschweig |
Were part of a complex series of mergers (1907) that led to the development of the present 8th level club VfB Rot-Weiß 04 Braunschweig. | |
Bremer | Bremen |
Later known as Allgemeine Turn- und Sportverein Bremen von 1860. In 1998 engaged in a merger, forming FC Union 60 (5th level). | |
Fußball-Club 1880 Frankfurt | Frankfurt |
A Rugby Club that no longer has any Association branch. | |
Frankfurter Fußball-Club 1899 | Frankfurt |
Merged with Frankfurter Kickers in November 1900. Merged with Victoria in 1911 to become Frankfurter Fußballverein (Kickers-Victoria) von 1899. In 1920 this new club was in turn absorbed into Eintracht Frankfurt. | |
Frankfurter Fußball-Club Victoria 1899 | Frankfurt |
See above (Frankfurter Fußball-Club 1899). | |
Hamburger Fußball-Club 1888 | Hamburg |
Hamburger SV, (following 1919 merger) Bundesliga. | |
Sport-Club Germania 1887 | Hamburg |
Hamburger SV, (following 1919 merger) Bundesliga. | |
Deutscher Sportverein 1878 Hannover e.V. | Hannover |
A Rugby Club with no Association branch. | |
Karlsruher Fußball-Club Phönix | Karlsruhe |
In 1952 via a merger developed into Karlsruher Sport-Club Mühlburg Phoenix e. V. (Karlsruher SC) who play in the second tier of the German pyramid.Walther Bensemann represented Phönix at the inaugural DFB meeting. | |
Karlsruher Fußball-Club Südstadt | Karlsruhe |
Also represented by Bensemann Südstadt survived until 2001 when a merger saw them become part of Post Südstadt Karlsruhe e.V. who currently play in the 7th level. | |
Mannheimer Fußball Gesellschaft Union 1897 | Mannheim |
Merged with Verein für Rasenspiele Mannheim 1896 in 1911. | |
Mannheimer Fußball-Club Viktoria 1897 | Mannheim |
Merged with Verein für Rasenspiele Mannheim 1896 in 1911. | |
Erster Fußball-Club Pforzheim | Pforzheim |
1896-2010, when they merged with VfR Pforzheim to form 1. CfR Pforzheim. | |
These clubs are no longer in existence:
Fußball-Club Eintracht Altona | Altona |
1897-1902. | |
Ascherslebener Sport-Club 1898 | Aschersleben |
Akademische Sport-Club 1893 Berlin | Berlin |
The club of Ivo Schricker, later Secretary-General of FIFA. After 1911 the club concerned itself only with university sport, and fell from the wider stage. | |
Akademischer Ballspiel-Club 1897 Charlottenburg | Berlin |
Formed as the result of a schism in Akademische Sport-Club 1893 Berlin. Focused on inter university competition in the 1900s. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Burgund | Berlin |
1896-1903. The club merged with BFC Phönix to form BFC Deutschland. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Columbia 1896 | Berlin |
Berliner Fußball -und Cricket Club Deutschland | Berlin |
With the growing enthusiasm for ‘English’ sports many omni-sports clubs played Rugby and cricket as well as Association football. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Favorit | Berlin |
As BSC Favorit the club endured until the Third Reich era. In 1945 the club re-emerged as VfL Nord Berlin, finally dissolving in 1973. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Frankfurt 1885 | Berlin |
Initially a Rugby club, Frankfurt were candidates for the distinction of being Germany’s first football club. | |
Berliner Sport-Club 1899 Komet | Berlin |
Dissolved in the 1930s. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Phönix | Berlin |
See BFC Burgund above. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Tasmania 1890 | Berlin |
Dissolved in the first decade of the 20th century. | |
Berliner Thorball- und Fußball-Club Toscana | Berlin |
Dissolved in the first decade of the 20th century. | |
Berliner Thor- und Fußball-Club Union 1892 | Berlin |
Merged with BFC Vorwärts 1890 in 1927 to form Blau-Weiß 90 Berlin. Blau-Weiß went out of business in 1992. | |
Berliner Fußball-Club Vorwarts 1890 | Berlin |
See above. | |
Fußball-Club Brunsviga 1896 Braunschweig | Braunschweig |
1896-1901. | |
Allgemeinen Bremer Sportclub von 1898 | Bremen |
Sportclub Germania 1899 Bremen | Bremen |
Sport-Club Hansa 1898 Bremen | Bremen |
1898-1902. | |
Kultur- und Sport Verein Simson Bremen | Bremen |
Their final competitive season was in 1901. | |
Club Spiel und Sport 1896 Bremen | Bremen |
1896-1909. | |
Sport Verein Blitz 1897 Breslau | Breslau |
Became Verein für Rasenspiel 1897 Breslau in 1907. Following a series of rebrandings the club went out of existence at the end of the 1939-45 war. | |
Chemnitzer Ballspiel-Club | Chemnitz |
1899-1945. | |
Erster Bockenheimer Fußball-Club 1899 | Frankfurt |
1899-1901. | |
Sport-Excelsior Friedenau | Friedenau |
1896-? | |
Fußball-Club Association 1893 Hamburg | Hamburg |
1893-? | |
Fußball-Club Hammonia 1896 Hamburg | Hamburg |
1896-1904. | |
Hanauer Fußball Gesellschaft 1899 | Hanau |
Leipziger Ballspielclub von 1893 | Leipzig |
Originally an English ex pats football and cricket club, they were one of the early clubs in the city. They played in minor football for 4 decades before disappearing in the wake of the 1939-45 war. | |
Verein für Bewegungsspiele Sportbrüder 1893 Leipzig | Leipzig |
3 times national champions as Verein für Bewegungsspiele Leipzig, they went out of existence in 1946. | |
Fußball-Club Wacker Leipzig | Leipzig |
Founded in 1895, the club changed its name to SC Wacker in 1918. Like many institutions in what became the German Democratic Republic, it was disbanded in 1946 under the direction of the occupying forces. | |
Sportverein Viktoria 96 Magdeburg | Magdeburg |
Founded in 1896 the club went bankrupt in 1937. | |
Magdeburger Fußball und Cricket Club Viktoria 1897 | Magdeburg |
Always a minor team, Kricketer disappeared in 1945. | |
Mannheimer Fußballgesellschaft Germania 1897 | Mannheim |
Mittweidaer Ballspielclub | Mittweida |
1896-1945- absorbed in a wartime merger to form the shortlived KSG Mittweida. | |
Fußball-Club Germania 1899 Mühlhausen | Mühlhausen |
1893-1918. | |
Erster Münchner Fußball-Club 1896 | Munich |
1896- 1910- original club members abandoned the game in favour of mountaineering. | |
Fußball-Club Bavaria 1899 München | Munich |
1899-1907. Joined with the gymnastics club Turngemeinde Munich AV. | |
Fußball-Club Nordstern 1896 München | Munich |
Dissolved in 1902. | |
Sport-Club Naumburg | Naumburg |
1899-1908. | |
Pforzheimer Fußball-Club Frankonia | Pforzheim |
Deutscher Fußball-Club Prag | Prague |
1896-1939. An ethnic German club based in Prague, then a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. | |
Deutsche Fußball-Club 1899 Germania Prag | Prague |
Relocated in 1903 to become DFC Graslitz, endured until 1945. | |