FC Köln

1. FC Köln

Kolner BC was formed on 6 June 1901 by the group consisting of men in their teens who felt not happy being part of the Gymnastics Club FC Borussia Koln and far more attracted to football. BC was a competitive team of the Zehnerliga West in the years prior to World War I who took the Westdeutsche championship in 1912, and then advanced to the preliminary stages for the nation's finals. Their next most successful result was a defeat in the final of the league in 1920, which they lost 1-3 to Borussia Monchengladbach.

Spielvereinigung 1907 Koln-Sulz was founded in 1907 under the name Sulzer Sportverein and on 1 January 1919, they merged to Fussball Club 1908 Hertha Sulz to create SpVgg. They took home their Westdeutscher award in the year 1928, and they also played in the initial rounds in the final of national football, taking their time at that point. They continued to play as a top team in Gauliga Mittelrhein one of the 16 top divisions that were that were established in 1933 during the restructuring of German football during the Third Reich. The team had generally successful performances throughout the 1930s - with a divisional championship being held in 1939. However, the team fell off in the beginning of the 1940s. After the 1941 season , the Gauliga Mittlerhein split into two divisions which were the Gauliga Koln-Aachen as well as the Gauliga Moselland, which comprised clubs from the occupied Luxembourg. Sulz struggled until they were united with VfL Koln 1899 for the 1943-44 season to form the combined wartime side Kriegspielgemeinschaft VfL 99/Sulz 07 which promptly won the Gauliga Koln-Aachen title by a single point over SG Duren 99 in a close race. The club didn't play the following season as the war took over the region.

Following the merger of these two previous teams (1948) 1. FC Koln began play in the challenging Oberliga West during the 1949-50 season , and in 1954, they had won their first divisional title. In the same year, they fell in the DFB-Pokal final by 1-0 against VfB Stuttgart. Die Geissbocke won their second divisional title in the year 1960, and played in the final of the national championship in the final against Hamburger SV, where they lost 3-2. They then finished top of the Oberliga West for each of the following three seasons. They also reached the final of the national championship both in 1962 as well as 1963. They took victory in the 1962 match 4-1 over 1. FC Nurnberg resulting in entry to the 1962-63 European Cup where they were among the favorites to take home the trophy. In the opening round Koln traveled to Dundee F.C. from Scotland and lost by 1-8 and even though they won the second game back to Germany by 4-0, they were eliminated from the tournament. The following year's final of the national championship, they fell 3-1 against Borussia Dortmund.

As of 1963, FC Koln was selected as one of the first 16 teams that would play in the Bundesliga Germany's brand new professional soccer league. Koln kept their winning streak going and became the first Bundesliga champion during the league's first season in 1963-64. Then, as German winners, Koln entered the 1964-65 European Cup where it met England's Liverpool in the quarter-finals. After two draws that were 0-0, the third game took place that ended in a deadlock with the score being with a score of 2-2. Since the penalty shootout had not yet been implemented to decide an outcome that was tied, Koln went out of the contest after the toss of one coin. In a bizarre way, there was a requirement for another coin toss due to the first time , the coin was stuck vertically into the ground. Koln also became the first Bundesliga team to play the first Brazilian player after Zeze was signed for a then record club cost that was DM 150,000. In the domestic league, Koln recorded a second-place finishing in the season 1964-65 Bundesliga season, and also was the first to win the DFB-Pokal between 1967 and 1968.

In the early 1970s Koln was able to reach three DFB-Pokal finals over the course of four seasons, losing all threetimes, against Kickers Offenbach in 1970, Bayern Munich in 1971 and Borussia Monchengladbach in 1973. Koln also secured a second-place Bundesliga finishing in 1973 and then reached a third DFB-Pokal final that year in the 1977 final, where they defeated Hertha BSC on two legs to take home the trophy for the second consecutive time.

Between 1977 and 1978, FC Koln enjoyed its most successful season. It won the Bundesliga title, the third overall national title and also retaining the DFB-Pokal. This is what makes Koln one of just four clubs to have been able to win the double title in the Bundesliga period.

Koln lost another DFB-Pokal final game in 1980, but then won the contest for the four-time in the year 1983. The club played to its debut European final, but lost 5-3 in aggregate against Real Madrid in the UEFA Cup Final. Two second-place Bundesliga finishings in 1988-89 and 1989-1990 and a DFB-Pokal final defeat in 1991 was the final chapter of an era of glory for FC Koln.

In recent times the team's performance has been uneven. The FC has the reputation of having the longest goals in Bundesliga history. In 2002, fans were forced to endure 1034 agonizing minutes (equivalent to 11-and-a-half matches) before Thomas Cichon was able to score in the the net once more. In the first years of the Bundesliga 1. FC Koln was the most successful club in West Germany in terms of the number of points they scored. In the beginning of the 1990s However the performance of the club plummeted in 1998 and it was dropped at first. Since 2000, the club has been an "yo-yo team" and has been moving between the second and first divisions. It was relegated to the Bundesliga at the close of the 2004-05 campaign as 2. Bundesliga champions following being dismissed in the previous season. There was not much optimism about returning to top of the league since they were picked in the German soccer magazine Kicker to be among the teams most likely to be knocked out.

This prediction was realized in the end when Koln defeated Hamburger SV 1-0 in the third-to-last game during the campaign. Koln ended the season in second-last spot and was knocked out after the club conceded a league-low of 70 goals. The club's top goal-scorer was Lukas Podolski , who scored 12 goals. He joined Bayern Munich after the end of the season. He also played with Germany's national team at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. Germany national team in the 2006 FIFA World Cup.

In the latter half of 2006, the former manager Christoph Daum was convinced to once more take over the reins of 2. Bundesliga club. He succeeded in bringing Koln back to Bundesliga in the year 2008. After an impressive Bundesliga season in 2008-09, Daum quit Koln to join Fenerbahce, his previous club Fenerbahce. Koln's former star striker Lukas Theopolski returned to Koln during the 2009-2010 season.

Following a depressing performance during the 2010-11 season with only one win from its first nine Bundesliga games, Koln replaced coach Zvonimir Soldo in the 2010-11 season with Frank Schaefer. Schaefer was initially responsible for the under-23 team from Koln and decided following the season that he'd prefer to spend quality time with his children rather than being a coach in Bundesliga. The former Norwegian international and current Copenhagen Coach Stale Solbakken replaced him. After scoring only eight points during the first 13 games in the second quarter of the season Schaefer along with ex- Koln teammate Dirk Lottner replaced Solbakken. The club however, was delegated at the close of the season. It finished 17th with EUR33m debt as well as EUR11m zero equity.

In April 2012, Koln's members elected a new board directors. Werner Spinner as president, Markus Ritterbach for marketing, and Toni Schumacher for sport. In the 2012-13 season under the new coach Holger Stanislawski Koln placed fifth on the second. Bundesliga but missed the chance of promotion to the top division.

In 2012, the board appointed Jorg Jakobs as director for football. He was elevated in 2014 to the position of sporting director and chief scout, and director of the academy. In January 2013, Alexander Wehrle joined as managing director of FC Koln ltd. Wehrle was working as an assistant to VfB Stuttgart president Erwin Staudt particularly for the reconstruction of the stadium. In the summer of 2013 Peter Stoger and Manfred Schmid were appointed as coaches as well as Jorg Schmadtke was named general manager. 2013-14 Koln placed second in the 2. Bundesliga and was promoted to the highest division. This was followed by 12th position in 2014-15, a 9th in 2015-16 and fifth spot in 2016-17. Twenty-five years since the club's last appearance in international soccer, to date, they have qualified to play in the Europa League. After restructuring and paying off debt, equity went to EUR11m negative, to EUR20m positive. The turnover grew by EUR56m in 2012/13 and more than EUR120m in 2016/17.

Following the club's return to the European stage, things quickly changed. The team had a disappointing beginning in 2017's Bundesliga season, scoring just three points from its initial 16 matches. In the same period this club's Europa League campaign ended after the group stage. This slowed down the team and caused an resignation from Jorg Schmadtke, and the dismissal of Stoger in December 2017. He became the replacement for Stefan Ruthenbeck who was appointed as the interim manager. Despite a better performance in the second quarter of the season however, the team came last and were sent to the 2. Bundesliga at the close of the season.

The 2018-19 season was in the rearview mirror, Markus Anfang was appointed manager, with the goal to bring the club back to the top tier. Although the club was in the top spot in the league throughout the season, the manager was fired after an unbeaten streak in April of 2019. The following week and under the guidance of Andre Pawlak at the helm the team was promoted by winning 0-4 against Greuther Furth. On May 13, 2019 the club announced Jahn Regensburg coach Achim Beierlorzer would take over its vacant head coach position starting the next season. Beierlorzer was given the position for 2021. Following a poor beginning to the 2019-20 season that included an 3-2 loss in the cup to 1. FC Saarbrucken, the club took the decision to end Beierlorzer's deal on November 9, 2019. Director of sports Armin Veh who had a few days prior had made it clear that he was not extending his deal with the team was also removed from his post. On the 18th of November the the former HSV Manager Markus Gisdol was appointed to the head coaching position at the club as well as Horst Heldt was promoted to the sporting director. Both signed contracts through 2021. After avoiding relegation at final game of the season Gisdol's contract was extended to 2023.

The club was in a new relegation situation in the season 2020-21. On April 11, 2021 after losing to the relegation Rival Mainz 05, Gisdol was removed from his post as the head coach. The following day it was announced Friedhelm Funkel would assume the head coaching role until the close in the current season. On the 11th of May it was announced that SC Paderborn manager Steffen Baumgart was to take over from Funkel as the head coach from the start in the season 2021-22. Funkel's team faced Holstein Kiel in the relegation playoffs. After losing at home 0-1 the team scored an away win of 1-5 that allowed the club to maintain its spot within the Bundesliga.

The team plays their home matches at the Mungersdorfer Stadion which is also known by the RheinEnergie Stadion for sponsorship reasons. The stadium has a capacity of 50,000. The average attendance during this season of 2015-16 was 48,676. The stadium's sponsorship is a result of a contract that is signed with local energy provider RheinEnergie AG. But, the majority of fans refer to the stadium as "Mungersdorfer Stadion" which is named in honor of the town of Mungersdorf in which it is situated.

The club owns the Geissbockheim training centre, currently known as RheinEnergieSportpark for sponsorship, located in Sulz which is a municipal part of Koln in the southwest of the city. The center is the home of the Franz-Kremer-Stadion, which is the home of 1. FC Koln II.

As per detail below.

Bundesliga

• Champions: 1963–64, 1977–78
• Runners-up: 1964–65, 1972–73, 1981–82, 1988–89, 1989–90

German football championship

• Winners: 1961–62
• Runners-up: 1959–60, 1962–63

DFB-Pokal

• Winners: 1967–68, 1976–77, 1977–78, 1982–83
• Runners-up: 1953–54, 1969–70, 1970–71, 1972–73, 1979–80, 1990–91

2. Bundesliga

• Winners: 1999–2000, 2004–05, 2013–14, 2018–19
• Runners-up: 2002–03

Oberliga West

• Winners: 1953–54, 1959–60, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63
• Runners-up: 1952–53, 1957–58, 1958–59

• 1977–78: Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal

• German amateur champions: 1981

German Under 19 championship

• Champions: 1970–71
• Runners-up: 1973–74, 1982–83, 1991–92

Under 19 Bundesliga Division West

• Champions: 2007–08
• Runners-up: 2003–04, 2009–10, 2013–14, 2014–15

Under 19 Juniors DFB-Pokal

• Champions: 2012–13
• Runners-up: 1990–91, 1993–94

German Under 17 championship

• Champions: 1989–90, 2010–11, 2018–19

Under 17 Bundesliga Division West

• Champions: 2010–11, 2011–12, 2018–19
• Runners-up: 2008–09

FC Köln records and statistics

Koln's kits are manufactured for them by Hummel International, who pay the club EUR20m over the course of five years.

The main rivals of the club are Borussia Monchengladbach Bayer Leverkusen, and Fortuna Dusseldorf All of them are from the same region of the Rhine-Ruhr close to the Rhine. 

Detail of the players as below mentioned.

As of 2 September 2022

No, Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  GER Timo Horn (vice-captain) 2 DF  GER Benno Schmitz 3 DF  DEN Kristian Pedersen 4 DF  GER Timo Hübers 5 DF  CRO Nikola Soldo 6 MF  GER Eric Martel 7 MF  AUT Dejan Ljubičić 8 MF  GER Denis Huseinbasic 9 FW  SWE Sebastian Andersson 11 MF  AUT Florian Kainz 13 FW  GER Mark Uth 14 DF  GER Jonas Hector (captain) 15 DF  GER Luca Kilian 17 MF  GER Kingsley Schindler 18 MF  SVK Ondrej Duda 20 GK  GER Marvin Schwäbe 21 FW  GER Steffen Tigges 23 FW  ARM Sargis Adamyan 24 DF  GER Julian Chabot (on loan from Sampdoria) 25 MF  GER Tim Lemperle 28 MF  TUN Ellyes Skhiri 29 FW  GER Jan Thielmann 33 FW  GER Florian Dietz 37 MF  GER Linton Maina 40 GK  GER Jonas Urbig 42 MF  GRE Dimitrios Limnios 44 GK  GER Matthias Köbbing 47 MF  LUX Mathias Olesen 48 DF  GER Georg Strauch

Fussball Club Koln 01/07 e. V. II, also known in the form of 1. FC Koln II, is an German football club based in Cologne. It is the reserve team of the German association football team 1. FC Koln.

The team has been selected for the opening round of DFB-Pokal The German Cup, seven times and has made it to the second round three times. The team currently is in the fourth division in German Football, the Regionalliga West.

As of 1 July 2021

Manager	Steffen Baumgart
Assistant manager	Andre Pawlak
Assistant manager	René Wagner
First-team coach	Kevin McKenna
Goalkeeping coach	Uwe Gospodarek
Fitness coach	Max Weuthen
Fitness coach	Leif Frach

The women's squad was promoted into the Bundesliga in the year 2015. The team was immediately relegated in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga when the 2016-17 season concluded, but they managed to be promoted at the end of May 2017, to join the Bundesliga.