VfL Osnabrück is a German multi-sport club in
Osnabrück
Osnabrück (; ; archaic English: ''Osnaburg'') is a city in Lower Saxony in western Germany. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a population of 168 ...
, Lower Saxony. It currently fields teams in basketball, gymnastics, swimming, table tennis, and tennis but is by far best known for its
football
Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
section.
The football team currently plays in the
3. Liga
The 3. Liga is a professional association football league and the third division in Germany. In the German football league system, it is positioned between the 2. Bundesliga and the fourth-tier Regionalliga.
The modern 3. Liga was formed for t ...
following their relegation from the
2023-24 2. Bundesliga season. They are currently coached by
Marco Antwerpen and captained by
Timo Beermann
Timo 'Bottled' Beermann (born 10 December 1990) is a German professional footballer who plays as a centre back for VfL Osnabrück
VfL Osnabrück is a German multi-sport club in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony. It currently fields teams in basketball ...
.
The club has the record for most seasons played in the 2. Bundesliga without ever playing in the
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...
, and is 10th in the 2. Bundesliga's all-time table.
History
Foundation to WW2
The club has its origins in the coming together on 17 April 1899 of the memberships of the "wild" clubs Antipodia, Germania, and Minerva to create Fußball Club 1899 Osnabrück. This group joined Osnabrücker Ballverein 05 in 1920 to play as BV 1899 Osnabrück.
Predecessor Osnabrücker BV 05 was the product of the 1905 merger of Fußball Club Edelweiß 1902 Osnabrück and Fußball Club Alemannia Osnabrück. This club made an appearance in the quarterfinals of the regional Westdeutsche (West German) final in 1910 where they were decisively put out (2–9) by
Duisburger SV.
The merger that created Verein für Leibesübungen Osnabrück took place in 1924 when BV was joined by Spiel- und Sport Osnabrück. Prior to 1921, SuS had played as the football department of the gymnastics club Osnabrücker Turnverein 1861, created in 1914 when Fußball Club 1903 Olympia Osnabrück and Fußball Club Teutonia 1902 Osnabrück became part of TV.
Established 24 June 1902, Teutonia Osnabrück also had quarterfinal appearances in the Westdeutsche final to its credit, dropping decisions to
FC München-Gladbach in 1908 (0–3), and
BV Dortmund (3–4) in 1909.
VfL was formally incorporated on 8 March 1925, but part of the membership of the newly formed association soon left to create a separate side called Sportclub Rapid Osnabrück – styled after well known club
Rapid Vienna
Sportklub Rapid (), commonly known as Rapid Wien or Rapid Vienna in English language, English, is an Football in Austria, Austrian professional football club playing in the country's capital city of Vienna. Rapid has won the most Austrian cham ...
. Rapid came back to the fold thirteen years later in 1938 and the re-unified club adopted the light-purple colours of the returning footballers.
After the re-structuring of German football leagues in 1933 under the
Third Reich
Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...
, Osnabrück played second division football until winning promotion to the
Gauliga Niedersachsen
The Gauliga Niedersachsen was the highest football league in the Prussian Province of Hanover and the German states of Bremen, Brunswick, Schaumburg-Lippe and Oldenburg from 1933 to 1945. Shortly after the formation of the league, the Nazis reor ...
(I) in 1935. They were relegated after their first campaign, but returned to the top flight in 1937, capturing the division title in the 1938–39 season. The Gauliga Niedersachsen was then split into two divisions, and in each of the following two seasons VfL took the Niedersachsen-Nord title. They went on win to the overall division title in 1940, beating
Hannover 96
Hannoverscher Sportverein von 1896, commonly referred to as Hannover 96 (), is a German professional association football, football club based in the city of Hanover, Lower Saxony. They played in the Bundesliga for a total of 30 years between 19 ...
(3–2, 2–2), but lost their title to the same club the following year (1–1, 1–3). Their Gauliga titles in 1939 and 1940 put VfL into opening round group play for the national championship, but they were unable to advance.
Post-War era

After World War II, the club returned to play as 1. FSV Osnabrück but again took up their traditional name in 1946. The team played in the
Oberliga Nord
The Oberliga Nord was the fourth tier of the German football league system in the north of Germany. It covered the states of Lower Saxony, Bremen, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein. With the introduction of the 3. Liga, the league ceased to exist fr ...
(I) and delivered credible performances that left them standing fourth in the league's all-time table behind well-known sides
Hamburger SV
Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), or HSV (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its Association football, football department. Though the current HSV was founde ...
,
Werder Bremen
Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen, Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, Werder are best known for their professional association foo ...
, and
FC St. Pauli
Fußball-Club St. Pauli von 1910 e.V., commonly known as simply FC St. Pauli (), is a German professional association football, football club based in the St. Pauli district of Hamburg. The team plays in the Bundesliga from the 2024–25 Bundesli ...
.
Golden years
The
Bundesliga
The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...
was formed in 1963 as Germany's new nation-wide professional league. The club did not qualify for play there and were seeded into second division Regionalliga Nord. Osnabrück would never make it into the Bundesliga, but did enjoy lots of success in the early years of the Bundesliga era. VfL won the Regionalliga Nord three times in a row in 1969, 1970 and 1971, and finished as runners-up in 1972 and 1973. That meant five consecutive participations in the 'Aufstiegsrunde', where the best teams from each Regionalliga competed for a place in the Bundesliga. In their first attempt, in 1969, Osnabrück finished 2nd behind
Rot-Weiss Essen
Rot-Weiss Essen is a German association football club based in Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club plays in the 3. Liga, at the Stadion an der Hafenstraße.
The team won the DFB-Pokal in 1953, and the German championship in 1955. The latt ...
, only losing once in the eight-game promotion playoff. That was the closest the club came to the Bundesliga; although they would finish second in the promotion playoff round twice more, the gap to first was bigger both times.
At this time, VfL Osnabrück also had very successful departments in
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...
and table tennis, becoming German basketball champions in 1969.
2. Bundesliga regulars
In 1974, a new national second division was introduced, although split into two North and South groups. Osnabrück played in the new 2. Bundesliga Nord, but could not repeat their previous achievements. In 1978–79, Osnabrück managed one of their most famous victories, a 5–4 win over
Bayern Munich
Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...
in the
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal (), also known as the German Cup in English language, English, is a German knockout Association football, football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competiti ...
at the
Olympiastadion, with a hat-trick from Andreas Wagner. In the league, the team was far less successful, finishing 18th out of 20. This would ordinarily have seen the team relegated, but they were saved by St. Pauli and
Westfalia Herne
SC Westfalia Herne is a German football club based in Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club was founded on 13 June 1904 by the sons of the more well-heeled residents of the city as a rival to the worker-based club SV Sodingen.
History
A ...
, who did not receive licenses for the next 2. Bundesliga season and had to be relegated despite finishing in the top half.
The 2. Bundesliga was reformed in 1981, becoming a single national league. A top half finish in the final year of the 2. Bundesliga Nord meant that Osnabrück qualified for the inaugural 2. Bundesliga season in 1981–82. Aside from a single season in the third tier Oberliga Nord, which they won, the club spent the entire decade in the second division. The high point of this spell was the sixth-place finish in 1986–87, the club's best ever result in the division. A year later, the club made headlines by firing coach Anton Rudinski just one game into the 1988–89 season, in which they narrowly avoided relegation. That became a trend – in both 1990 and 1991, Osnabrück only managed to remain in the 2. Bundesliga thanks to late upturns in form.In 1992/93, the first year of a single 2. Bundesliga post reunification, Osnabrück were finally relegated to the Oberliga Nord. After one season in the Oberliga, the leagues were reorganised again and Osnabrück would finish runner up in the new Regionalliga Nord. Although that did not mean promotion, that did qualify VfL to compete for the
German amateur football championship
The German amateur football championship was a national football competition in Germany organized by the German Football Association (German: Deutscher Fußball-Bund; DFB) and in existence from 1950 to 1998.
History
Overview
The championship was ...
, which they won in 1995. In 1996, long-time president and sponsor Hartwig Piepenbrock stepped back.
21st century
After a number of years in the Regionalliga Nord, Osnabrück were finally promoted back to the 2. Bundesliga in June 2000. Having won the Regionalliga Nord for the second year in a row, Osnabrück met
Union Berlin
1. Fußballclub Union Berlin e. V., commonly known as Union Berlin (), is a professional Football in Germany, German football club based in Berlin.
The club's origins can be traced to 1906, when its predecessor FC Olympia Oberschöneweide was fo ...
in the promotion playoff, winning on penalties thanks to goalkeeper Uwe Brunn, who made three saves in the shootout and scored the decisive penalty. However, the club was immediately relegated back to the third tier. The club won promotion again in 2002–03, but coach
Jürgen Gelsdorf
Jürgen Gelsdorf (born 19 January 1953) is a German football coach and former player who is currently youth teams coordinator at Bayer 04 Leverkusen.
Sporting career As a player
For the 1972/73 season, 19-year-old junior soccer player Jürgen ...
surprisingly left the club after promotion, and the club finished last in the 2. Bundesliga in 2003–04.

After returning to the Regionalliga Nord, former player
Claus-Dieter Wollitz
Claus-Dieter Wollitz (born 19 July 1965) is a German football coach and former player, who is the current director of football and manager of 3. Liga club FC Energie Cottbus.
Managerial career
KFC Uerdingen 05
Wollitz was head coach of KFC U ...
was appointed coach. In his third season, 2006–07, Osnabrück were able to take second place in the league on the final day of the season, securing promotion. Wollitz was able to lead the team to safety in 2007–08, with a victory over
Kickers Offenbach
Offenbacher Fussball-Club Kickers, commonly known as Kickers Offenbach, is a German association football club in Offenbach am Main, Hesse. The club was founded on 27 May 1901 in the Rheinischer Hof restaurant by footballers who had left establis ...
on the final day sending Offenbach down and putting Osnabrück in 12th place, their highest finish since 1988. The game was also the final appearance of
Joe Enochs
Joseph Andrew Enochs (born September 1, 1971) is an American soccer coach and former professional player who spent the majority of his career at German club VfL Osnabrück.
He began his professional career with the San Francisco United All Blac ...
, who played more times for Osnabrück than any other player.
The following season, the club was relegated in controversial circumstances. After losing the relegation playoff, it emerged that defender
Marcel Schuon was implicated in a match-fixing scandal, without which the club may have survived. Wollitz left the club, replaced by
Karsten Baumann. Under Baumann, Osnabrück had a very successful season in 2009–10, winning the new
3. Liga
The 3. Liga is a professional association football league and the third division in Germany. In the German football league system, it is positioned between the 2. Bundesliga and the fourth-tier Regionalliga.
The modern 3. Liga was formed for t ...
and reaching the DFB-Pokal quarter finals with wins over Hamburger SV and
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, often known simply as Borussia Dortmund () or by its initialism BVB (), or just Dortmund by International fans, is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is ...
. Again, the club was relegated straight back down to the third tier in 2010–11, losing in the relegation playoff to
Dynamo Dresden
Sportgemeinschaft Dynamo Dresden e.V., commonly known as SG Dynamo Dresden or Dynamo Dresden, is a German association football club based in Dresden, Saxony.Grüne, Hardy (2001). Enzyklopädie des deutschen Ligafußballs 7. Vereinslexikon. Kasse ...
. During these years, the club developed a reputation as a 'Fahrstuhlmannschaft' (in English, a
Yo-yo club
A yo-yo club is a sporting side that is regularly promoted and relegated. The phrase is most typically used in association football in the United Kingdom, especially in reference to promotion to and relegation from the Premier League.
The name ...
).
That relegation began a spell of eight consecutive seasons in the 3. Liga. Claus-Dieter Wollitz returned in 2012, but left the team with one game remaining in the 2012–13 season after criticising the club's management. Osnabrück still finished third, qualifying for the promotion playoff, but lost to Dynamo Dresden again.
After a period of financial difficulty and little sporting success, the club returned to its traditional logo in 2017, while the name of the stadium also changed back from the Osnatel-Arena to the traditional name, Bremer Brücke.
The 2017–18 season saw VfL almost relegated to the fourth tier, finishing 17th in the 3. Liga, with former player
Daniel Thioune
Daniel Moustapha Thioune (born 21 July 1974) is a German professional football manager and former player who is the currently head coach of 2. Bundesliga side Fortuna Düsseldorf.
Thioune spent most of his playing career at VfL Osnabrück, whe ...
taking over as coach during the campaign, replacing Joe Enochs.
In his first full season as coach, Thioune's Osnabrück won the 3. Liga title, winning promotion on the day the club celebrated their 120th anniversary. Back in the 2. Bundesliga, Osnabrück spent much of the season in the top half, and managed victories over big clubs like Hamburger SV and
VfB Stuttgart
Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V. (), commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German professional sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's Association football, football team is currently part of Germany's f ...
, though they ultimately finished 13th.
Thioune left for Hamburg at the end of the campaign, and in the 2020–21 season (played mostly without fans due to the
COVID-19 pandemic
The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...
) the club went through two coaches,
Marco Grote and
Markus Feldhoff. Under Feldhoff, Osnabrück again finished in the relegation playoff spot, losing to
FC Ingolstadt and returning to the 3. Liga.
Honours
*
Gauliga Niedersachsen
The Gauliga Niedersachsen was the highest football league in the Prussian Province of Hanover and the German states of Bremen, Brunswick, Schaumburg-Lippe and Oldenburg from 1933 to 1945. Shortly after the formation of the league, the Nazis reor ...
(I)
** Champions: 1939, 1940
*
Regionalliga Nord
The Regionalliga Nord () is the fourth tier of the German football league system in the states of Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, Bremen and Hamburg. It is one of five leagues at this level, together with the Regionalliga Bayern, Regionalliga N ...
(II)
** Champions:
1969
1969 ( MCMLXIX) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 1969th year of the Common Era (CE) and ''Anno Domini'' (AD) designations, the 969th year of the 2nd millennium, the 69th year of the 20th century, and the ...
,
1970
Events
January
* January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC.
* January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
,
1971 *
The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses (Solar eclipse of February 25, 1971, February 25, Solar eclipse of July 22, 1971, July 22 and Solar eclipse of August 20, 1971, August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 1971 lunar eclip ...
** Runners-up:
1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, ...
,
1973
Events January
* January 1 – The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union.
* January 14 - The 16-0 19 ...
*
Oberliga Nord
The Oberliga Nord was the fourth tier of the German football league system in the north of Germany. It covered the states of Lower Saxony, Bremen, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein. With the introduction of the 3. Liga, the league ceased to exist fr ...
(III)
** Champions: 1985
*
Regionalliga Nord
The Regionalliga Nord () is the fourth tier of the German football league system in the states of Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, Bremen and Hamburg. It is one of five leagues at this level, together with the Regionalliga Bayern, Regionalliga N ...
(III)
** Champions: 1999, 2000
** Runners-up: 1995, 2003
*
3. Liga
The 3. Liga is a professional association football league and the third division in Germany. In the German football league system, it is positioned between the 2. Bundesliga and the fourth-tier Regionalliga.
The modern 3. Liga was formed for t ...
(III)
** Champions:
2009–10,
2018–19
*
German amateur championship
The German amateur football championship was a national football competition in Germany organized by the German Football Association (German: Deutscher Fußball-Bund; DFB) and in existence from 1950 to 1998.
History
Overview
The championship was ...
** Champions: 1995
*
Lower Saxony Cup
The Lower Saxony Cup () is an annual football cup competition, held by the () since 1956. For sponsorship reasons, the official name of the competition is Krombacher-Pokal.[2017
2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly.
Events January
* January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...]
,
2023
Catastrophic natural disasters in 2023 included the Lists of 21st-century earthquakes, 5th-deadliest earthquake of the 21st century 2023 Turkey–Syria earthquakes, striking Turkey and Syria, leaving up to 62,000 people dead; Cyclone Freddy ...
Players
Current squad
Out on loan
Stadium
The club plays at the
Stadion an der Bremer Brücke
Stadion an der Bremer Brücke or ''Bremer Brücke'' is a Stadium, football stadium in the Schinkel (Osnabrück district), Schinkel district of Osnabrück, Germany. It is used mostly for Association football, football matches and is the home stadi ...
, commonly known simply as the Bremer Brücke. The stadium has also gone by the names, "Kampfbahn Bremer Brücke", "Piepenbrock-Stadion an der Bremer Brücke", and "Osnatel-Arena". It returned to the traditional name in 2017.
The stadium was built in 1931 by Rapid Osnabrück, who emerged from VfL and reunited in 1938. It has been the home ground of VfL Osnabrück ever since. It once had a capacity of over 30,000, but now holds just over 16,000.
In recent years, the possibility of the club moving to a new stadium has been suggested due to the limitations of the current ground. The stadium remains very popular with fans and was voted the most atmospheric stadium in the 3. Liga in an online poll.
Fans & club identity
The club colours are purple and white, and the team is often referred to as die Lila-Weißen (The purple & whites). Home kits are usually primarily purple.
When the club celebrated its 120th anniversary in 2019, they wore a one-off black kit, inspired by the club's original colours. In the 2019–20 season, the home shirt was purple and black, combining the original colours with the normal purple.
The club has made statements against racism, wearing a special kit in 2018 with a message against the far right, and a special kit in 2022 with the message "Build Bridges!".
The "VfL Bündnis" alliance between the VfL Museum, Fanprojekt Osnabrück, the Violet Crew ultra group, and the club's fan department was recognised by the
DFB DFB may refer to: Music
* Dem Franchize Boyz, an Atlanta hip hop group
* Dysfunctional Family BBQ, a New York festival
Sport
* DFB-Pokal, a football cup competition in Germany
Organisations
* Furka Steam Railway (), Switzerland
* German Footbal ...
in 2019 and awarded the
Julius Hirsch
Julius Hirsch (7 April 1892 – declared dead 8 May 1945) was a Jewish German Olympian international footballer who was executed at Auschwitz concentration camp during the Holocaust. He helped the Karlsruher FV win the 1910 German football champ ...
Prize for their work in memory of Felix Löwenstein, a Jewish member and supporter of the club who was a victim of the
Nazi regime
Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a totalitarian dictat ...
killed in the
Sandbostel
Sandbostel is a municipality in Lower Saxony (''Niedersachsen'') in northwestern Germany, 43 km north-east of Bremen, 60 km west of Hamburg. It is part of the Samtgemeinde Selsingen. In 2024, it had 799 inhabitants. https://www.statis ...
camp in 1945. The VfL Museum had also advocated for a road next to the stadium to be renamed to the Felix-Löwenstein-Weg, which was done as part of the club's 120th anniversary.
Their main rivals are
SC Preußen Münster
SC Preußen Münster (English: Prussia Münster) is a German sports club based in Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia which is mostly recognised for its Association football, football section. The football team currently plays in the 2. Bundesliga w ...
.
Managerial history
Recent seasons
The recent season-by-season performance of the club:
VfL Osnabrück
Fussball.de. Retrieved 3 December 2015
;Key
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Osnabruck, Vfl
Football clubs in Germany
Football clubs in Lower Saxony
Association football clubs established in 1899
1899 establishments in Germany
Sport in Osnabrück
2. Bundesliga clubs
3. Liga clubs