Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V., commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German
sports club
A sports club or sporting club, sometimes an athletics club or sports society or sports association, is a group of people formed for the purpose of playing sports.
Sports clubs range from organisations whose members play together, unpaid, and ...
based in
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...
,
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...
. The club's
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...
team is currently part of Germany's first division, the
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
. VfB Stuttgart has won the
national championship
A national championship(s) is the top achievement for any sport or contest within a league of a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, indi ...
five times, most recently in 2006–07, the
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considered ...
three times and the
UEFA Intertoto Cup a record three times.
The football team plays its home games at the
Mercedes-Benz Arena, in the Neckarpark which is located near the
Cannstatter Wasen
The Cannstatter Wasen is a 35 hectare festival area on the banks of the Neckar river in the part of Stuttgart known as Bad Cannstatt.
The Cannstatter Wasen form part of the Neckar Park Fairground.
Each year the Wasen hosts the Cannstatter Vol ...
, where the city's
fall beer festival takes place. Second team side
VfB Stuttgart II
VfB Stuttgart II is a German football team located in Stuttgart, currently playing in the Regionalliga Südwest. From 2008 to 2016 the team played in the 3. Liga. They are the reserve team of VfB Stuttgart. Until 2005 the team played under the n ...
currently plays in the
Regionalliga Südwest
The Regionalliga Südwest ( en, Regional League Southwest) is the fourth tier of the German football league system in the states of Hesse, Baden-Württemberg, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland. It is one of five leagues at this level, together wit ...
, which is the second highest division allowed for a reserve team. The club's junior teams have won the
national U19 championships a record ten times and the
Under 17 Bundesliga
The Under 17 Bundesliga (German: ''B-Junioren Bundesliga'') is the highest level of play in German football for male juniors between the ages of 15 and 17. It was formed in 2007 and operates in three regional divisions with 14 clubs each. At the ...
six times.
A membership-based club with over 72,000 members, VfB is the largest sports club in Baden-Württemberg and the eighth-largest football club in Germany. It has departments for
fistball
Fistball is a sport of European origin, primarily played in the German-speaking nations of Austria, Germany and Switzerland, as well as in Brazil. The objective of the game is similar to volleyball, in that teams try to hit a ball over a net ...
,
field hockey
Field hockey is a team sport structured in standard hockey format, in which each team plays with ten outfield players and a goalkeeper. Teams must drive a round hockey ball by hitting it with a hockey stick towards the rival team's shooting ci ...
,
track and field
Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...
,
table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong and whiff-whaff, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight ball, also known as the ping-pong ball, back and forth across a table using small solid rackets. It takes place on a hard table div ...
, and football
referees
A referee is an official, in a variety of sports and competition, responsible for enforcing the rules of the sport, including sportsmanship decisions such as ejection. The official tasked with this job may be known by a variety of other titl ...
, all of which compete only at the amateur level. The club also maintains a social department, the ''VfB-Garde''.
History
Foundation to WWII
''Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart'' was formed through a 2 April 1912 merger of predecessor sides ''Stuttgarter FV'' and ''Kronen-Club Cannstatt'' following a meeting in the Concordia hotel in
Cannstatt
Bad Cannstatt, also called Cannstatt (until July 23, 1933) or Kannstadt (until 1900), is one of the outer stadtbezirke, or city boroughs, of Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Bad Cannstatt is the oldest and most populous of Stuttgart's ...
. Each of these clubs was made up of school pupils with middle-class roots
[Hardy Grüne]
Mit dem Ring auf der Brust
Vorwort S. 7 who learned new sports such as
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
and football from English expatriates such as
William Cail
William Henry Cail (28 February 1849 in Gateshead – 25 November 1925 in Newcastle upon Tyne) was an English rugby pioneer.
William Cail introduced rugby in Cannstatt in 1865. That was the beginning of a community of players which founded ...
who introduced rugby in 1865.
FV Stuttgart
''Stuttgarter Fußballverein'' was founded at the Zum Becher hotel in Stuttgart on 9 September 1893. ''FV'' were initially a rugby club, playing games at Stöckach-Eisbahn before moving to Cannstatter Wasen in 1894. The rugby club established a football section in 1908. The team drew players primarily from local schools, under the direction of teacher Carl Kaufmann, and quickly achieved its first success; in 1909, they were runners-up to ''FSV 1897 Hannover'' in the national rugby final, losing 6–3. Rugby was soon replaced by association football within the club, as spectators found the game too complicated to follow.
In 1909, ''FV'' joined the Süddeutschen Fußballverband (South German Football Association), playing in the second tier B-Klasse. In their second season ''FV'' won a district final against future merger partner ''Kronen-Klub Cannstatt'' before being defeated by ''FV Zuffenhausen'' in the county championship that would have seen the side promoted. They eventually advanced to the senior
Südkreis-Liga
The Südkreis-Liga (English: ''Southern district league'') was the highest association football league in the German Empire, German Kingdom of Württemberg, Grand Duchy of Baden, the Province of Hohenzollern and Alsace-Lorraine from 1908 to 1918. ...
in 1912.
Kronen-Klub Cannstatt
''Cannstatter Fußballklub'' was formed as a rugby club in 1890 and also quickly established a football team. This club was dissolved after just a few years of play and the former membership re-organized themselves as ''FC Krone Cannstatt'' in 1897 to compete as a football-only side. The new team joined the Süddeutschen Fußballverband (SFV) as a second division club and won promotion in 1904. ''Krone'' possessed their own ground, which still exists today as the home of TSV Münster.
Following the 1912 merger of these two clubs, the combined side played at first in the
Kreisliga Württemberg
The Kreisliga Württemberg (English: ''District league Württemberg'') was the highest association football league in the German state of Württemberg from 1919 to 1923. The league was disbanded with the introduction of the Bezirksliga Württember ...
and then in the
Bezirksliga Württemberg-Baden
The Bezirksliga Württemberg-Baden was the highest association football league in the German states of Württemberg and Baden and the Prussian Province of Hohenzollern from 1923 to 1933. The league was disbanded with the rise of the Nazis to powe ...
, earning a number of top three finishes and claiming a title there in 1927. The club also made several appearances in the final rounds of the SFV in the late 1920s and early 1930s.
1930s and 1940s
In 1933, VfB moved to
Neckar Stadium, the site of its current ground. German football was re-organized that same year under the
Third Reich
Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
into sixteen top-flight divisions called
Gauligen. Stuttgart played in the
Gauliga Württemberg
The Gauliga Württemberg was the highest football league in the German state of Württemberg and the Prussian province of Hohenzollern from 1933 to 1945. Shortly after the formation of the league, the Nazis reorganised the administrative regions ...
and enjoyed considerable success there, winning division titles in 1935, 1937, 1938, 1940, and 1943 before the Gauliga system collapsed part way through the 1944–45 season due to
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. The club had an intense rivalry with
Stuttgarter Kickers
Stuttgarter Kickers is a German association football club that plays in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, founded on 21 September 1899 as FC Stuttgarter Cickers.
History
In its early years the club had a decent local squad that played in the Südk ...
throughout this period.
VfB's Gauliga titles earned the team entry to the national playoff rounds, with their best result coming in 1935 when they advanced to the final where they lost 4–6 to defending champions
Schalke 04
Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V., commonly known as FC Schalke 04 (), Schalke 04 (), or abbreviated as S04 (), is a professional German football and multi-sports club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine ...
, the dominant side of the era. After a third-place result at the national level in 1937, Stuttgart was not able to advance out of the preliminary rounds in subsequent appearances.
Successes through the 1950s
VfB continued to play first division football in the
Oberliga Süd Oberliga ( en, Premier league) may refer to:
Association football
* Oberliga (football), currently the fifth tier of the German football league system, formerly the first
* DDR-Oberliga, the first tier of football in East Germany until 1990, re ...
, capturing titles in 1946, 1952, and 1954. They made regular appearances in the German championship rounds, emerging as
national champions
National champions are corporations which are technically private businesses but due to governmental policy are ceded a dominant position in a national economy. In this system, these large organizations are expected not only to seek profit but als ...
in 1950 and 1952, finishing as runner-up in 1953, and winning two
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considered ...
titles in
1954 and
1958. The team which won four titles in eight years was led by
Robert Schlienz
Robert Schlienz (3 February 1924 – 18 June 1995) was a German football player. He is considered one of the best players ever to play for current Bundesliga side VfB Stuttgart. He also played three times for his national side.
Growing up in ...
who had lost his left arm in a car crash. Despite these successes, no player from the Stuttgart squad had a place in the team that won the
1954 FIFA World Cup.
Original Bundesligist
Due to disappointing results in international competition including the
1958 and
1962 FIFA World Cup, and in response to the growth of professionalism in the sport, the
German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball Bund, or DFB) replaced the regional top flight competitions with a single nationwide professional league in 1963. Stuttgart's consistently solid play through the 1950s earned them a place among the 16 clubs that would make up the original
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
. As an amateur organisation, and due to proverbial
Swabia
Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany.
The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...
n austerity, the club hesitated to spend money, and some players continued to work in an everyday job. Throughout the balance of the decade and until the mid-1970s, the club would generally earn mid-table results. One of the few stars of the time was
Gilbert Gress
Gilbert Gress (born 17 December 1941) is a French football coach and a former player. He was the mentor of Arsène Wenger.
Club career
Gress was born in Strasbourg. He began his professional football career in the city of his birth with R ...
from
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...
.
In
1973, the team qualified for the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
for the first time and advanced to the semi-finals of the
1974 tournament where they were eliminated by eventual winners
Feyenoord
Feyenoord Rotterdam () is a Dutch professional football club (association football), football club in Rotterdam, which plays in the Eredivisie, the top tier in Dutch football. Founded as Wilhelmina in 1908, the club changed to various names bef ...
(1–2, 2–2).
1975–2000 era of president MV
VfB Stuttgart was in crisis in the mid-1970s, having missed new trends in football such as club sponsorship. Attempts to catch up with new levels of professionalism by spending money failed. Towards the end of the
1974–75 season, with the team in imminent danger of being relegated to
Second Bundesliga, local politician
Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder was elected as new president. However, a draw in the final game of the season meant that VfB would be ranked 16th and lose its Bundesliga status. The first season in the second league, considered the worst in its history, ended with VfB being ranked 11th, having even lost a home game against local rival
SSV Reutlingen
SSV Reutlingen 05 is a German association football club from Reutlingen, Baden-Württemberg.
History
The club was founded as FC Arminia Reutlingen and was renamed SV Reutlingen 1905 in 1910. The club fused with 1. Schwimmverein 1911 to form the ...
in front of just 1,200 spectators.
With new coach
Jürgen Sundermann and new talents like
Karlheinz Förster
Karlheinz Helmut Förster (born 25 July 1958) is a German former professional footballer who played as a central defender.
The younger brother of another football defender, Bernd Förster, he was regarded as one of the world's top man-markers a ...
and
Hansi Müller
Hans-Peter "Hansi" Müller (born 27 July 1957) is a German former footballer who played as a midfielder. Both his parents were of Danube Swabian descent (German: ''Donauschwaben)'' that were displaced from Yugoslavia after World War II. His fath ...
, the team built around
Ottmar Hitzfeld
Ottmar Hitzfeld (; born 12 January 1949) is a German former professional football player ( striker) and manager. He accumulated a total of 18 major titles, mostly in his tenures with Grasshopper Club Zürich, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich. ...
scored one hundred goals in
1976–77 and thus returned to the top-flight after just two seasons.
The young team was popular for offensive and high-scoring play, but suffered from lack of experience. At the end of
1977–78, VfB was ranked fourth, but the average attendance of over 53,000 set the league record until the 1990s. They made another UEFA Cup semi-final appearance in
1980 and delivered a number of top four finishes on their way to their first Bundesliga title – the club's third national title – in
1984, now under coach
Helmut Benthaus
Helmut Benthaus (born 5 June 1935) is a German former association football, football player and coach. He spent his best playing days at Westfalia Herne and his best coaching days at FC Basel.
Early career
Born in Herne, Germany, Herne, Benthaus ...
.
In 1986, VfB lost the
DFB-Pokal final 2–5 to
Bayern Munich. In the
1989 UEFA Cup Final, with
Jürgen Klinsmann
Jürgen Klinsmann (, born 30 July 1964) is a German professional football manager and former player. Klinsmann played for several prominent clubs in Europe including VfB Stuttgart, Inter Milan, Monaco, Tottenham Hotspur, and Bayern Munich. He ...
in their ranks, they lost out to
Napoli
Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adminis ...
(1–2, 3–3), where
Diego Maradona
Diego Armando Maradona (; 30 October 196025 November 2020) was an Argentine professional football player and manager. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport, he was one of the two joint winners of the FI ...
was playing at the time.
In
1991–92, Stuttgart clinched its fourth title, in one of the closest races in Bundesliga history, finishing ahead of
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
on goal difference. Internationally, they had been eliminated from UEFA Cup play that season (
1991–92) after losing their second round match to Spanish side
Osasuna
Club Atlético Osasuna (, ''Osasuna Athletic Club''), or simply Osasuna, is a Spanish professional football club in Pamplona, Navarre. Founded on 24 October 1920, the club currently plays in La Liga, holding home games at the 23,576-capacity El ...
(2–3). As national champions, the club qualified to play in the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...
in
1992–93, but were eliminated in the first round by
Leeds United
Leeds United Football Club is a professional football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire in England. The club competes in the Premier League, the highest level of England's football league system, and plays its home matches at Elland Road S ...
after a tie-breaking third match in
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
which was required due to coach
Christoph Daum
Christoph Paul Daum (born 24 October 1953) is a German professional football manager and former player. Daum played as a midfielder and was a junior for several clubs from the region of Duisburg. He began his senior career with Hamborn 07 and E ...
having substituted a fourth non-German player in the tie's second leg.
VfB did not qualify for any European competition again until 1997, by way of their third German Cup win, with coach
Joachim Löw
Joachim Löw (born 3 February 1960) is a German football coach and former player. He was the manager of the Germany national team from 2006 until 2021. During his tenure as manager, he led Germany to victory at the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil ...
. They enjoyed a measure of success on their return, advancing to the
1998 European Cup Winners' Cup final in
Stockholm
Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
, where they lost to
Chelsea
Chelsea or Chelsey may refer to:
Places Australia
* Chelsea, Victoria
Canada
* Chelsea, Nova Scotia
* Chelsea, Quebec
United Kingdom
* Chelsea, London, an area of London, bounded to the south by the River Thames
** Chelsea (UK Parliament consti ...
in what was the penultimate year of the competition. Only one player of the "magic triangle", captain
Krassimir Balakov
Krasimir Genchev Balakov ( bg, Красимир Генчев Балъков, ; born 29 March 1966) is a Bulgarian professional football manager and former player who last served as the head coach of Bulgarian club CSKA 1948. A former attacking ...
, remained after
Giovane Élber
Élber de Souza (born 23 July 1972), commonly known as Giovane Élber, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
A prolific goalscorer in various clubs, Élber's career was mostly spent in Germany, where he repres ...
and
Fredi Bobic
Fredi Bobic ( sl, Fredi Bobič, born 30 October 1971) is a German football executive and former player who played as a striker. He is the sporting director of Bundesliga club Hertha BSC.
Club career
Bobic was born in Maribor, SFR Yugoslavia, ...
left. Löw's contract was not renewed and he was replaced by
Winfried Schäfer
Winfried "Winnie" Schäfer (born 10 January 1950) is a German football manager and former player who last managed of Qatari club Al-Khor.
Playing career
Winfried Schäfer played 403 Bundesliga matches and scored 46 goals in the (West) German to ...
, who in turn was sacked after one season.
Stuttgart's performance, however, fell off after this as the club earned just mid-table results over the next two seasons despite spending money on the transfer market and having veterans like Balakov.
2000–2007: The post-MV-era return to success
Due to high debts and the lack of results, Gerhard Mayer-Vorfelder finally resigned from VfB in 2000 to take over offices at the DFB,
UEFA
Union of European Football Associations (UEFA ; french: Union des associations européennes de football; german: Union der europäischen Fußballverbände) is one of six continental bodies of governance in association football. It governs f ...
, and
FIFA
FIFA (; stands for ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( French), meaning International Association Football Federation ) is the international governing body of association football, beach football and futsal. It was found ...
. New president Manfred Haas had to renegotiate expensive contracts with players who seldom appeared on the field anyway. As in 1976, when Mayer-Vorfelder had taken over, the team had to be rebuilt by relying on talents from the youth teams. The VfB has Germany's most successful program in the German youth Championship.
Coach
Ralf Rangnick
Ralf Rangnick (; born 29 June 1958) is a German professional football coach, executive and former player who is currently the manager of the Austria national team.
Rangnick began his coaching career in 1983, succeeding his career as a player, a ...
had started a restructuring of the team that won the Intertoto Cup, but the resulting extra strain of the UEFA Cup participation ended in narrowly escaping from relegation in
2001
The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...
by clinching the 15th spot in the league table. Rangnick was replaced by
Felix Magath
Wolfgang Felix Magath (; born 26 July 1953) is a German football manager and former player.
The most notable spell of his playing career was with Hamburger SV, with whom he won three Bundesliga titles, the 1977 European Cup Winners' Cup Final a ...
.
With players like
Andreas Hinkel
Andreas Hinkel (born 26 March 1982) is a German football coach and a former player. Hinkel played as a right-back and earned 21 caps for the Germany national team. He was known for his attacking play on the flanks and defensive solidity.
He st ...
,
Kevin Kurányi
Kevin Dennis Kurányi Rodríguez (, ; born 2 March 1982) is a German former professional footballer. He played as a striker and possessed great aerial ability and finishing skills. From 2003 to 2008, Kurányi was part of the German national te ...
,
Timo Hildebrand
Timo Hildebrand (born 5 April 1979) is a German former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
Hildebrand holds a Bundesliga record for keeping a clean sheet for the most consecutive minutes (884 minutes), which he set during the ...
, and
Alexander Hleb
Aliaksandr Paulavich Hleb ( be, Аляксандр Паўлавіч Глеб, ; russian: Александр Павлович Глеб; born 1 May 1981), commonly referred to in English as Alexander Hleb, is a Belarusian former professional foot ...
earning themselves the nickname "the young and wild" , the club soon re-bounded and finished as Bundesliga runners-up in the
2002–03 season. In July 2003,
Erwin Staudt became the new president of the club.
2003–04 Champions League
VfB qualified for their second Champions League appearance for
2003–04, beating
Manchester United
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of City of Salford, Salford to ...
and
Rangers once and
Panathinaikos
Panathinaikos Athlitikos Omilos ( el, Παναθηναϊκός Αθλητικός Όμιλος, literally in English: "Panathenaic Athletic Club" or Panathinaikos A.C.), also known simply as Panathinaikós , is a major Greek multi-sport club ba ...
twice to advance from the
group stage
A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses:
# One or more competitions held at a single venue and concent ...
as runners-up to Manchester United. They were then matched against Chelsea in the
round of 16
A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...
, falling 0–1 and 0–0 over two legs.
Stuttgart continued to play as one of the top teams in the country, earning fourth and fifth place Bundesliga finishes in
2003–04 and
2004–05 respectively, and again taking part in the
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
, but without great success. In addition, coach Magath and several players left for another clubs: Kevin Kurányi for Schalke 04,
Philipp Lahm
Philipp Lahm (; born 11 November 1983) is a German former professional footballer who played as a full-back. Considered by many to be one of the greatest full-backs of all time, Lahm was the captain of Bayern Munich, having led them to numerous ...
for Bayern Munich and Alexander Hleb for
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
.
Halfway through the disappointing
2005–06 season,
Giovanni Trapattoni
Giovanni Trapattoni (; born 17 March 1939), sometimes popularly known as "Trap" or "Il Trap", is an Italian football manager and former player, considered the most successful club coach of Italian football. A former defensive midfielder, as a p ...
was sacked and replaced by
Armin Veh
Armin Veh (; born 1 February 1961) is a German football manager and former player who last managed Eintracht Frankfurt. He won the German championship with Bundesliga team VfB Stuttgart in 2007. Veh and his team also had the chance to win "the ...
. The new coach was designated as a stop-gap due to having resigned from
Hansa Rostock
FC Hansa Rostock () is a German association football club based in the city of Rostock, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. The club is also called as "the cog" because of its club crest. They have emerged as one of the most successful clubs from the forme ...
in 2003 to focus on his family and having no football job since 2004, save for coaching his home team
FC Augsburg
Fußball-Club Augsburg 1907 e. V., commonly known as FC Augsburg () or Augsburg, is a German football club based in Augsburg, Bavaria. FC Augsburg play in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German football league system. The team was founded as ...
for one season. Supported by new manager
Horst Heldt
Horst Heldt (born 9 December 1969) is a German football executive and former player who played as a midfielder. He is the former general manager of 1. FC Köln.
Playing career
Heldt was born in Königswinter. He played at 1. FC Köln from 199 ...
, Veh could establish himself and his concept of focusing on promising inexpensive players rather than established stars. Team captain,
Zvonimir Soldo
Zvonimir Soldo (born 2 November 1967) is a Croatian football manager and a former player. During his playing career, he mostly played as defensive midfielder.
Club career
Early career
After studying law for six semesters at the University of Za ...
, retired, and other veterans left the team that slipped to ninth place and did not qualify for European competition for the first time in four years.
Bundesliga champions 2006–07
Despite early-season losses and ensuing criticism in
2006–07, including a 3–0 loss at home to
1. FC Nürnberg, Veh managed to turn the collection of new players like Mexicans
Pável Pardo
Pável Pardo Segura (; born 26 July 1976) is a Mexican former professional footballer who played as a defensive midfielder.
Pardo spent most of his career playing with Club América and is the fourth most capped player in the history of the Me ...
, and
Ricardo Osorio
Ricardo Osorio Mendoza (born 30 March 1980) is a Mexican former professional footballer who played as a defender.
Club career Early career
Born in Huajuapan de León, Oaxaca, Osorio made his debut in the Primera División de México in 2001 ...
, Brazilian
Antônio da Silva and fresh local talents, including
Mario Gómez
Mario Gómez García (; born 10 July 1985) is a German former professional footballer who played as a striker. He represented the Germany national team over a period of 11 years between 2007 and 2018.
Gómez began his professional career with ...
,
Serdar Tasci
Serdar Tasci ( tr, Serdar Taşçı; born 24 April 1987) is a German former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.
Tasci started his career with VfB Stuttgart in 2006, playing with the club until 2013; captaining the side from 2011 ...
, and
Sami Khedira
Sami Khedira (; born 4 April 1987) is a German former professional footballer who played as a central midfielder.
He began his career at VfB Stuttgart, winning the Bundesliga in 2007, before moving to Real Madrid in 2010. In his five seasons i ...
, into a strong contender that led the league on 12 November 2006 for the first time in two years. Stuttgart established themselves among the top five and delivered a strong challenge for the Bundesliga title by winning their final eight games. In the penultimate week on 12 May 2007, Stuttgart beat
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum (), is a Football in Germany, German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club has spent 35 seas ...
3–2 away from home, taking the Bundesliga lead from Schalke 04 and at minimum securing a spot in the
2007–08 Champions League. After trailing 0–1 in the final match of the season against
Energie Cottbus
FC Energie Cottbus ( Lower Sorbian: ''Energija Chóśebuz'') is a German football club based in Cottbus, Brandenburg. It was founded in 1963 as SC Cottbus in what was East Germany. After the reunification of Germany, Energie played six seasons i ...
, Stuttgart came back to win 2–1 and claim their first Bundesliga title in 15 years. The victory celebrations in Stuttgart, totalling 250,000 people, even topped those of
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
's third place win over
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
in the
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
.
In addition, VfB had their first ever chance to win the
double
A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another.
Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to:
Film and television
* Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character
* Th ...
as they also reached the final of the German Cup for the first time since their victory there ten years former. Their opponents in the cup final in Berlin were 1. FC Nürnberg, a team that had beaten them twice by three goals in regular season, 3–0 and 4–1, and had last won the cup in 1962. With the game level at 1–1 in the first half, Stuttgart's scorer
Cacau
Claudemir Jerônimo Barreto (born 27 March 1981), known as Cacau (, ), is a former professional footballer who played as a striker. Born in Brazil, he represented Germany at international level.
Cacau received German citizenship in February 20 ...
was sent off. Nürnberg gained a 2–1 lead early in the second half, but the ten men of VfB managed to fight back and equalize. In the second half of extra time, however, with both teams suffering from exhaustion and the humid conditions, Nürnberg scored the winning goal.
2007 to 2018: roller coaster rides
2007–08 UEFA Champions League
The 2007–08 UEFA Champions League draw on 30 August 2007 paired the German champions with
Spanish
Spanish might refer to:
* Items from or related to Spain:
**Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain
**Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries
**Spanish cuisine
Other places
* Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
giants
Barcelona
Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...
,
French champions
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
and
Scottish Old Firm
The Old Firm is the collective name for the Scottish football clubs Celtic and Rangers, which are both based in Glasgow. The two clubs are by far the most successful and popular in Scotland, and the rivalry between them has become deeply em ...
side
Rangers. Like in the 2003–04 UEFA Champions League season, Stuttgart's 2007–08 European campaign started with a match at
Ibrox Park
Ibrox Stadium is a football stadium on the south side of the River Clyde in the Ibrox area of Glasgow, Scotland. The home of Rangers Football Club, Ibrox is the third largest football stadium in Scotland, with an all-seated capacity of .
O ...
in
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
against Rangers. It ended in a 2–1 defeat. The second match at home against Barcelona was likewise lost, 0–2, as well as the third match, against Lyon at home, with the visitors coming out 2–0 winners from two-second-half strikes. Five defeats and just one win (over Rangers) meant the early exit on the European stage. In the league, they managed to finish in sixth place after a poor start. New German international star Mario Gómez scored 19 goals.
Subsequently, UEFA Cup qualification was ensured in the summer by succeeding in the
2008 UEFA Intertoto Cup
The 2008 UEFA Intertoto Cup was the last UEFA Intertoto Cup football tournament, the 14th to be organised by UEFA and the third since the competition's format was given a major overhaul. Fifty teams were invited, with the eleven winners after the ...
.
Post-championship seasons 2008–12
The
2008–09 season, like the one before it, got off to a bad start. After matchday 14 in November, VfB was only 11th in the table and as a result, Armin Veh was sacked and replaced by
Markus Babbel
Markus Babbel (; born 8 September 1972) is a German professional football coach and former player who last managed the Western Sydney Wanderers FC. He played as a defender for clubs in Germany and England. Babbel won the UEFA Cup twice, in 1996 ...
. After exiting the German Cup after a 1–5 thrashing from Bayern Munich in January, prospects improved considerably and the team ended third in the table, with second place just being missed after a loss to Bayern on the last matchday. That meant the chance of making the
Champions League again.
Internationally, VfB mastered the group stages of the
2008–09 UEFA Cup, but lost to Cup defenders
Zenit Saint Petersburg
Football Club Zenit (russian: link=no, Футбольный клуб «Зенит» ), also known as Zenit Saint Petersburg or simply Zenit, is a Russian professional football club based in Saint Petersburg. Founded in 1925 (or in 1914, acco ...
in the round of the last 32 in February.
Stuttgart went into the 2009–10 season with Mario Gómez leaving for Bayern Munich, just as
Pavel Pogrebnyak
Pavel Viktorovich Pogrebnyak (russian: Па́вел Ви́кторович Погребня́к ; born 8 November 1983) is a Russian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
Born in Moscow, Pogrebnyak began his career at Spart ...
arrived from Zenit Saint Petersburg and Alexander Hleb returning on loan from Barcelona.
On the European level, Stuttgart started the season with a huge success by qualifying for the group stage of the
2009–10 UEFA Champions League. Stuttgart entered that competition for the third time in six years (after 2003 and 2007) by defeating Romanian side
Politehnica Timișoara in the
Champions League play-off round on 18 and 26 August 2009. VfB were then drawn into Group G against Spanish side
Sevilla
Seville (; es, Sevilla, ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Gua ...
, Scottish champions Rangers, against whom they had also been drawn against in their previous two Champions League Group stage appearances, and Romanian champions
Unirea Urziceni
Asociația Sportivă Fotbal Club Urziceni, commonly known as FC Urziceni (), is a Romanian professional football club based in Urziceni, Ialomița County which currently plays in fourth division, Ialomița County. Unirea became national champion ...
. With two wins (one each against Rangers and Unirea), three draws (one each against all opponents) and a loss (to Sevilla) they managed second spot in the group, thus qualifying for the round of the last 16, where they had to face title holders Barcelona in late winter. After a superb home game against Barça which Stuttgart, however, did not manage to win (1–1), they were eliminated in a 4–0 rout at
Camp Nou
Camp Nou (, meaning ''new field'', often referred to in English as the Nou Camp), officially branded as Spotify Camp Nou for sponsorship and financial reasons, is a football stadium in Barcelona, Spain. It has been the home stadium of FC Barcelo ...
.
In the
2009–10 DFB-Pokal, they did not proceed further than the last 16 either, losing to second-tier side
SpVgg Greuther Fürth
Spielvereinigung Greuther Fürth (), commonly known as Greuther Fürth (), is a German football club based in Fürth, Bavaria. They play in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of the German football league system, following relegation from the B ...
. That defeat came in the course of a disappointing first half of the
2009–10 Bundesliga
The 2009–10 Bundesliga was the 47th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football league. The season commenced on 7 August 2009 with the traditional season-opening match involving the defending champions VfL Wolfsburg and VfB Stuttgart. ...
. As a consequence of slipping to 16th spot in December, young coach Markus Babbel was fired after matchday 15 and replaced by the more experienced Swiss
Christian Gross
Christian Jürgen Gross (born 14 August 1954) is a Swiss football manager and former player who most recently coached Schalke 04. He played as a sweeper and central midfielder.
Gross was manager of Basel from 1 July 1999 to 27 May 2009, winning ...
. Under his tenure, VfB improved their situation domestically as well as internationally before the winter break. During that break,
Thomas Hitzlsperger
Thomas Hitzlsperger (born 5 April 1982) is a German director of football and former footballer who played as a midfielder. In February 2019, he was appointed Head of Sport of VfB Stuttgart and was subsequently promoted to CEO. In March 2022, he ...
,
Jan Šimák
Jan Šimák (born 13 October 1978) is a Czech former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He spent most of his career in Germany while making one appearance for the Czech Republic national team. As a player, he was wel ...
and
Ludovic Magnin
Ludovic Magnin (; born 20 April 1979) is a Swiss football manager and a former player. He is the manager of Lausanne-Sport. He played as a left-back for the Switzerland national team, Yverdon Sport, FC Lugano, Werder Bremen, VfB Stuttgart, and ...
left the club;
Cristian Molinaro
Cristian Molinaro (; born 30 July 1983) is an Italian professional football official and a former full-back. He works as a technical director for club Venezia. He represented the Italy national team.
Club career
Early career
Molinaro started ...
was loaned out from
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (from la, iuventūs, 'youth'; ), colloquially known as Juve (), is a professional Association football, football club based in Turin, Piedmont, Italy, that competes in the Serie A, the top tier of the Italian football leagu ...
. In the later half of the season, the team – as in the 2008–09 season – had a fantastic, almost unbroken, winning streak. As the best team of that second (return) round of the Bundesliga, the Swabians under Gross climbed into the upper half of the table and, after a sensational rally, eventually managed to secure European football for the following season by qualifying for the Europa League.
The
2010–11 season was a mediocre one—after again spending the first half of the season almost always in the
relegation
In sports leagues, promotion and relegation is a process where teams are transferred between multiple divisions based on their performance for the completed season. Leagues that use promotion and relegation systems are often called open leagues. ...
zone (17th and 18th spot), with Christian Gross being fired and interim coach
Jens Keller
Jens Keller (; born 24 November 1970) is a German football manager and former player who played as a defender. He last coached 1. FC Nürnberg.
Playing career
Keller played professionally for VfB Stuttgart, TSV 1860 München, VfL Wolfsburg, 1. ...
taking over for the rest of the first leg,
Bruno Labbadia
Bruno Labbadia (; born 8 February 1966) is a German football manager and former player who played as a striker. He is the current manager of Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart.
Personal life
Labbadia is of Italian ancestry. His family roots go bac ...
was hired as new coach in January and managed to save VfB from relegation. Eventually, the team finished 12th after a decent second-half performance. In July 2011, Erwin Staudt did not participate again in the election of the president and
Gerd E. Mäuser was elected as president.
In the following
2011–12 season, they managed to constantly climb up the table; this was especially thanks to a long unbeaten streak in the spring. Subsequently, VfB qualified for the
2012–13 UEFA Europa League
The 2012–13 UEFA Europa League was the 42nd season of Europe's secondary club football tournament organised by UEFA, and the 4th season since it was renamed from the UEFA Cup to the UEFA Europa League.
The final was played at the Amsterdam Aren ...
. Key players during that season were
Martin Harnik
Martin Harnik (born 10 June 1987) is an Austrian professional footballer who plays for German fifth-tier club TuS Dassendorf. He has represented the Austria national football team. He plays as a forward or as a right winger.
Family
Harnik was ...
, who scored 17 goals, as well as winger
Gōtoku Sakai and forward
Vedad Ibišević
Vedad Ibišević (; born 6 August 1984) is a Bosnian former professional footballer who played as a forward. He is currently assistant head coach of Hertha BSC.
Ibišević started his professional career at Paris Saint-Germain. He had a two-year ...
, who both came to Stuttgart in January 2012.
With effect from 3 June 2013, Gerd E. Mäuser announced his resignation as president of VfB Stuttgart. On 2 July 2013, the supervisory board of the club named
Bernd Wahler as the candidate for the presidential elections. On 22 July 2013, Wahler was elected by 97.4% of the votes cast.
After barely avoiding relegation from the Bundesliga in the
2014–15 season, Stuttgart were relegated to the
2. Bundesliga in the
2015–16 season after finishing in 17th place, having been unable to lift themselves out of the bottom three positions until the end of the season. Following matchday 13, a home match against FC Augsburg and their second consecutive 4–0 loss, Stuttgart decided to terminate
Alexander Zorniger
Alexander Zorniger (born 8 October 1967) is a German football manager of Greuther Fürth and retired player who played as a midfielder.
Coaching career Early career
Zorniger started his coaching career with stints as head coach of Normannia Gmü ...
's contract and appointed
Jürgen Kramny as their manager for an indefinite period. After Stuttgart were relegated to the
2. Bundesliga, Wahler resigned as president on 15 May 2016. Kramny was subsequently sacked as coach.
On 17 May 2016,
Jos Luhukay
Jos Luhukay (born 13 June 1963) is a Dutch football manager and former player, who was most recently head coach of VVV-Venlo.
Playing career
He began his career at the age of 15 at his hometown club FC VVV and he made his league debut in Januar ...
was announced as the new head coach. Luhukay resigned on 15 September 2016 and was replaced by
Hannes Wolf. At the end of the season, Stuttgart returned to the
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
as the 2. Bundesliga champions. On 22 December 2017, after nearly 10 years since his departure, Bundesliga title winning striker Mario Gomez returned to the team from fellow Bundesliga side
VfL Wolfsburg
Verein für Leibesübungen Wolfsburg e. V., commonly known as VfL Wolfsburg () or Wolfsburg, is a German professional sports club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. The club grew out of a multi-sports club for Volkswagen workers in the city of W ...
, The team made a solid return season to the Bundesliga, finishing in 7th place. However, they slumped to 16th
the following season, eventually ending up relegated via play-offs against
Union Berlin
1. Fußballclub Union Berlin e. V., commonly known as 1. FC Union Berlin () or Union Berlin, is a professional German football club in Köpenick, Berlin.
The club's origins can be traced to 1906, when its predecessor FC Olympia Oberschöneweid ...
.
2019 – present
Stuttgart appointed
Thomas Hitzlsperger
Thomas Hitzlsperger (born 5 April 1982) is a German director of football and former footballer who played as a midfielder. In February 2019, he was appointed Head of Sport of VfB Stuttgart and was subsequently promoted to CEO. In March 2022, he ...
as the sporting CEO, and in April they appointed
Sven Mislintat as the sporting director, coming from
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...
and
Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
. In July 2019, Stuttgart was relegated to the second division, and started to rebuild the team. In mid-season, December 2019, former coach
Tim Walter
Tim Laszlo Walter (born 8 November 1975) is a German football coach, who coaches Hamburger SV.
Coaching career
In June 2019, Walter became the new head coach of VfB Stuttgart. He was sacked on 23 December 2019. He was named the new head coach o ...
was fired and
Pellegrino Matarazzo
Pellegrino Matarazzo (born November 28, 1977) is an American professional soccer coach who currently manages TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.
He was previously a youth coach of 1. FC Nürnberg and 1899 Hoffenheim. In December 2019, Matarazzo was appointe ...
was signed. After one season, Stuttgart returned to the Bundesliga after finishing second in the
2019–20 2. Bundesliga season. In 2020, the contract of Mislintat was prolonged to give him more responsibility.
Stuttgart stayed in the Bundesliga in the
2020–21 season, finishing in ninth place in the league.
In the
2021–22 season, the team narrowly avoided relegation; a win against
1. FC Köln on the last match day guaranteed them a spot in the first league for a third consecutive season.
Kits
*Current sports brand:
Jako
Jako AG is a German sportswear company based in the Hollenbach district of Mulfingen, Baden-Württemberg. The company was founded by Rudi Sprügel in 1989 in Stachenhausen. Jako provides kits for teams playing association football, handball, ...
.
* Home uniform: White shirt with a horizontal red stripe, white shorts and white socks.
* Alternative uniform: Red shirt, red shorts and red socks.
* Third uniform: Dark green or yellow shirt, dark green or yellow shorts and dark green or yellow socks.
Stadium
The home ground of VfB Stuttgart is the
Mercedes-Benz Arena which was originally built in 1933. It lies close to the River
Neckar
The Neckar () is a river in Germany, mainly flowing through the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, with a short section through Hesse. The Neckar is a major right tributary of the Rhine. Rising in the Schwarzwald-Baar-Kreis near Schwenn ...
on
Bad Cannstatt
Bad Cannstatt, also called Cannstatt (until July 23, 1933) or Kannstadt (until 1900), is one of the outer stadtbezirke, or city boroughs, of Stuttgart in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Bad Cannstatt is the oldest and most populous of Stuttgart's b ...
's Mercedes-Straße near the new
Mercedes-Benz Museum
The Mercedes-Benz Museum is an automobile museum in Stuttgart, Germany. It covers the history of the Mercedes-Benz brand and the brands associated with it. Stuttgart is home to the Mercedes-Benz brand and the international headquarters of the Merc ...
and
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquartere ...
factory. After being renovated several times, the stadium was able to hold a maximum capacity of 55,896 spectators (50,000 for international matches). For the
1974 FIFA World Cup
The 1974 FIFA World Cup was the tenth FIFA World Cup, a quadrennial football tournament for men's senior national teams, and was played in West Germany (and West Berlin) between 13 June and 7 July. The tournament marked the first time that the ...
, the Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion (its original name) was one of the venues for the
2006 FIFA World Cup
The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...
, hosting five preliminary round matches, a first knockout round match (
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
vs.
Ecuador
Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...
) and the third place play-off (
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
vs.
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
). From the 2008–09 season, the stadium was named the Mercedes-Benz-Arena, starting with a pre-season friendly against Arsenal on 30 July 2008. The stadium recently went through extensive restructuring and rebuilding as it was being converted into a pure football arena. In 2011, the capacity was increased to 60,449.
Rivalries, friendships and cooperations
The longest rivalry of VfB is the city rivalry with
Stuttgarter Kickers
Stuttgarter Kickers is a German association football club that plays in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, founded on 21 September 1899 as FC Stuttgarter Cickers.
History
In its early years the club had a decent local squad that played in the Südk ...
(''Die Roten''/''Reds'' against ''Die Blauen''/''Blues''). However, the respective first teams of the two clubs haven't played each other since Kickers were relegated to the
2. Bundesliga in 1992. Thus, this derby has increasingly been overtaken in importance by the Baden-Württemberg-Derby between VfB and
Karlsruher SC
Karlsruher SC is a German association football club, based in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg that currently plays in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of German football. Domestically, the club was crowned German champion in 1909, and won the D ...
. In this derby, old
Badenese-
Württemberg
Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart.
Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...
ian animosities are played out. The rivalry with Bavarian side
Bayern Munich ("Süd-/South Derby") is mainly one-sided, as VfB fans are angry at Bayern for buying some of Stuttgart's best players and coaches in recent years, such as
Giovane Élber
Élber de Souza (born 23 July 1972), commonly known as Giovane Élber, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as a striker.
A prolific goalscorer in various clubs, Élber's career was mostly spent in Germany, where he repres ...
,
Felix Magath
Wolfgang Felix Magath (; born 26 July 1953) is a German football manager and former player.
The most notable spell of his playing career was with Hamburger SV, with whom he won three Bundesliga titles, the 1977 European Cup Winners' Cup Final a ...
,
Mario Gómez
Mario Gómez García (; born 10 July 1985) is a German former professional footballer who played as a striker. He represented the Germany national team over a period of 11 years between 2007 and 2018.
Gómez began his professional career with ...
, and
Benjamin Pavard
Benjamin Jacques Marcel Pavard (born 28 March 1996) is a French professional footballer who plays as a right-back for club Bayern Munich and the France national team. Although usually deployed as a right-back, he is also capable of playing ...
.
Regional friendships exist between VfB and the South
Württemberg
Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart.
Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...
side
SSV Reutlingen 05
SSV Reutlingen 05 is a German association football club from Reutlingen, Baden-Württemberg.
History
The club was founded as FC Arminia Reutlingen and was renamed SV Reutlingen 1905 in 1910. The club fused with 1. Schwimmverein 1911 to form the ...
(the "little brother" of VfB) as well as with North Württembergers
SpVgg Ludwigsburg
The SpVgg Ludwigsburg was a German association football club from the city of Ludwigsburg, Baden-Württemberg.
History
The club was formed in 1907 under the name of 1. FC Ludwigsburger Kickers. In August 1907, the club then played its first g ...
. On a national level, supporters groups of VfB used to be closely connected with those of
Energie Cottbus
FC Energie Cottbus ( Lower Sorbian: ''Energija Chóśebuz'') is a German football club based in Cottbus, Brandenburg. It was founded in 1963 as SC Cottbus in what was East Germany. After the reunification of Germany, Energie played six seasons i ...
,
1. FC Saarbrücken,
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH, also known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen (), Bayer Leverkusen, or simply Leverkusen, is a professional football club based in Leverkusen in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The club competes in the Bundesliga, th ...
and
Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The team is currently playing in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the Germa ...
. All of these supporter group friendships have been discontinued by today or are only maintained by few supporter groups. Current ultras friendships are with the ultras of SSV Reutlingen 05 and Italian club
Cesena
Cesena (; rgn, Cisêna) is a city and ''comune'' in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy, served by Autostrada A14, and located near the Apennine Mountains, about from the Adriatic Sea. The total population is 97,137.
History
Cesena was o ...
.
In 2005, a cooperation treaty between VfB and
Swiss Super League
The Swiss Super League (known as the Credit Suisse Super League for sponsorship reasons) is a Swiss professional league in the top tier of the Swiss football league system and has been played in its current format since the 2003–04 season ...
side
St. Gallen
, neighboring_municipalities = Eggersriet, Gaiserwald, Gossau, Herisau (AR), Mörschwil, Speicher (AR), Stein (AR), Teufen (AR), Untereggen, Wittenbach
, twintowns = Liberec (Czech Republic)
, website ...
was signed, with particular emphasis on the youth sectors of both clubs.
Honours
National
*
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...
:
** Champions:
1950,
1952,
1983–84,
1991–92,
2006–07
*
2. Bundesliga:
** Winners:
1976–77,
2016–17
*
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considered ...
:
** Winners:
1953–54,
1957–58,
1996–97
*
German Super Cup
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany (of or related to)
**Germania (historical use)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ger ...
:
** Winners:
1992
File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...
International
*
UEFA Cup
A cup is an open-top used to hold hot or cold liquids for pouring or drinking; while mainly used for drinking, it also can be used to store Solid, solids for pouring (e.g., sugar, flour, grains, salt). Cups may be made of glass, metal, porcela ...
:
** Runners-up:
1988–89
*
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup
The UEFA Cup Winners' Cup was a European football club competition contested annually by the winners of domestic cup competitions. The cup was, chronologically, the second seasonal inter-European club competition organised by UEFA. The tournam ...
:
** Runners-up:
1997–98
*
UEFA Intertoto Cup:
** Winners:
2000
File:2000 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Protests against Bush v. Gore after the 2000 United States presidential election; Heads of state meet for the Millennium Summit; The International Space Station in its infant form as seen from ...
,
2002
File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...
(record)
Regional
*
Oberliga Süd Oberliga ( en, Premier league) may refer to:
Association football
* Oberliga (football), currently the fifth tier of the German football league system, formerly the first
* DDR-Oberliga, the first tier of football in East Germany until 1990, re ...
:
** Winners:
1945–46,
1951–52,
1953–54
*
2nd Bundesliga Süd:
** Winners: 1977
*
Bezirksliga Württemberg-Baden
The Bezirksliga Württemberg-Baden was the highest association football league in the German states of Württemberg and Baden and the Prussian Province of Hohenzollern from 1923 to 1933. The league was disbanded with the rise of the Nazis to powe ...
:
** Winners: 1926–27, 1929–30
*
Gauliga Württemberg
The Gauliga Württemberg was the highest football league in the German state of Württemberg and the Prussian province of Hohenzollern from 1933 to 1945. Shortly after the formation of the league, the Nazis reorganised the administrative regions ...
:
** Winners: 1934–35, 1936–37, 1937–38, 1942–43
European competition
:''Scores and results list Stuttgart's goal tally first.''
Club management
*
Claus Vogt, President since 15 December 2019
*
Alexander Wehrle
Alexander Wehrle (; born 11 February 1975) is a German sports administrator who has served as the chairman of Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart since 2022. From 2013 to 2022, he worked as the managing director of 1. FC Köln. Wehrle is part of the e ...
, Chairman, Executive board representative for Sport, Strategy and Communications
* Thomas Ignatzi, Executive board representative for Finances, Administration and Operations
* Rouven Kasper, Executive board representative for Marketing and Distribution
*
Sven Mislintat, Sporting Director
Players
Current squad
Out on loan
Former players
Coaches
Current coaching staff
Coaches since 1920
Managers of the club since 1920:
Bundesliga positions
The season-by-season performance of the club since 1963:
Fussball.de – Ergebnisse
Tables and results of all German football leagues
* 1963–64 – 5th place
* 1964–65 – 12th place
* 1965–66 – 11th place
* 1966–67 – 12th place
* 1967–68 – 8th place
* 1968–69 – 5th place
* 1969–70 – 7th place
* 1970–71 – 12th place
* 1971–72 – 8th place
* 1972–73 – 6th place
* 1973–74 – 9th place
* 1974–75 – 16th place ''(relegated to the 2. Bundesliga)''
* 1975–76 – 2. Bundesliga, 11th place
* 1976–77 – 2. Bundesliga, 1st place ''(promoted to the Bundesliga)''
* 1977–78 – 4th place
* 1978–79 – 2nd place
* 1979–80 – 3rd place
* 1980–81 – 3rd place
* 1981–82 – 9th place
* 1982–83 – 3rd place
* 1983–84 – 1st ''(German champions)''
* 1984–85 – 10th place
* 1985–86 – 5th place
* 1986–87 – 12th place
* 1987–88 – 4th place
* 1988–89 – 5th place
* 1989–90 – 6th place
* 1990–91 – 6th place
* 1991–92 – 1st ''(German champions)''
* 1992–93 – 7th place
* 1993–94 – 7th place
* 1994–95 – 12th place
* 1995–96 – 10th place
* 1996–97 – 4th place
* 1997–98 – 4th place
* 1998–99 – 11th place
* 1999–00 – 8th place
* 2000–01 – 15th place
* 2001–02 – 8th place
* 2002–03 – 2nd place
* 2003–04 – 4th place
* 2004–05 – 5th place
* 2005–06 – 9th place
* 2006–07 – 1st ''(German champions)''
* 2007–08 – 6th place
* 2008–09 – 3rd place
* 2009–10 – 6th place
* 2010–11 – 12th place
* 2011–12 – 6th place
* 2012–13 – 12th place
* 2013–14 – 15th place
* 2014–15 – 14th place
* 2015–16 – 17th place ''(relegated to the 2. Bundesliga)''
* 2016–17 – 2. Bundesliga, 1st place ''(promoted to the Bundesliga)''
* 2017–18 – 7th place
* 2018–19 – 16th place ''(relegated to the 2. Bundesliga via play-offs)''
* 2019–20 – 2. Bundesliga, 2nd place ''(promoted to the Bundesliga)''
*2020–21
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
– 9th place
* 2021–22 – 15th place
*2022–23
The dash is a punctuation mark consisting of a long horizontal line. It is similar in appearance to the hyphen but is longer and sometimes higher from the baseline. The most common versions are the endash , generally longer than the hyphen b ...
–
References
External links
*
HefleswetzKick – VfB Stuttgart Team and History Site
f-archiv – The German Football Archive
historical German football league tables (in German)
eufo.de
European football club profiles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stuttgart, Vfb
Football clubs in Germany
Football clubs in Baden-Württemberg
Sport in Stuttgart
Multi-sport clubs in Germany
Association football clubs established in 1893
1893 establishments in Germany
Recipients of the Silver Laurel Leaf
19th-century establishments in Württemberg
S
Bundesliga clubs
2. Bundesliga clubs