Sv Darmstadt 98

The club was founded on 22 May 1898 as FC Olympia Darmstadt. Early in 1919, the association was briefly known as Rasen-Sportverein Olympia before merging with Darmstädter Sport Club 1905 on 11 November that year to become Sportverein Darmstadt 98. Merger partner SC was the product of a 1905 union between Viktoria 1900 Darmstadt and Germania 1903 Darmstadt. The footballers are today part of a sports club which also offers its over 13,500 members basketball, hiking, futsal, judo, and table tennis.

Darmstadt 98

Full name	Sportverein Darmstadt 1898 e.V.
Nickname(s)	Die Lilien (The Lilies)
Founded	22 May 1898; 125 years ago (1898-05-22)
Ground	Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor
Capacity	17,810[citation needed]
President	Klaus Rüdiger Fritsch
Manager	Torsten Lieberknecht
League	Bundesliga
2022–23	2. Bundesliga, 2nd of 18 (promoted)
Website	Club website
Home colours Away colours Third colours
Current season

The football department competed in the Bundesliga for the 2015–16 and 2016–17 seasons after a 33-year run in lower leagues. In 2023, Darmstadt 98 is part of the Bundesliga again.

Early history

 

Olympia played as a lower table side in the Westkreisliga between 1909 and 1913. In the late 20s and early 30s the club played as SV Darmstadt in the Kreisliga Odenwald and Bezirksliga Main-Hessen, Gruppe Hesse, but struggled to stay in top flight competition. In 1933, German football was reorganized under the Third Reich into sixteen premier divisions known as Gauligen. Darmstadt was not able to break into upper league play until 1941 when they joined the Gauliga Hessen-Nassau, Gruppe 2. Their stay was short-lived and they were relegated after their second season of play at that level. By 1944–45 the division had collapsed in the face of the advance of Allied armies into Germany.

 

Darmstadt enjoyed a long run as a second division team through the 50s and then again from the time of the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963 on into the 70s. However, they were never better than a lower to mid-table side until a breakthrough happened in 1973 with a Regionalliga Süd championship and participation in the promotion rounds for the Bundesliga, where they finished a distant second to Rot-Weiss Essen.

From the Bundesliga to insolvency

A side with limited resources, Darmstadt eventually managed two seasons in the Bundesliga (1978–79 and 1981–82). They narrowly missed a third turn in the top league in 1988 when they lost in a lengthy relegation-promotion play-off to Waldhof Mannheim in a penalty shoot-out of the third match between the two clubs. In the following years, Darmstadt 98 escaped relegation to the Amateur Oberliga Hessen (III) in 1991 when Essen was refused a 2. Bundesliga licence for financial reasons. However, by 1997, SV had themselves become victims of financial mismanagement, slipping to the third and fourth divisions.

The team's most recent successes include wins in the Hessen Pokal (Hessen Cup) in 1999, 2001, 2006, 2007 and 2008, as well as three consecutive Possmann-Hessen Cup wins from 2000 to 2002. In the DFB-Pokal, Darmstadt advanced as far as the third round in 1989 and 2001, and to the quarter-finals in 1986. In 2004, the club won the Oberliga Hessen (IV) championship under manager and former player Bruno Labbadia, and were promoted to the Regionalliga Süd (III).

Financial problems limited their options and they were relegated to the Oberliga Hessen (IV) at the end of the 2006–07 season. The club's stated aim was to reach the new 3. Liga within five years. However, on 6 March 2008, Darmstadt entered insolvency proceedings, with debts of around €1.1 million making the future of the club uncertain. After the 2007–08 Oberliga Hessen Championship, Darmstadt played in the Regionalliga Süd. Darmstadt took various measures to avert bankruptcy, for example a friendly benefit match against Bayern Munich, donations etc. In addition, the former management of the club (e.g. former president, former tax advisor) made vital financial contributions which secured the club's future.

Rise to the Bundesliga

After winning the 2010–11 Regionalliga Süd in dramatic fashion, Darmstadt were promoted to the 3. Liga. In 2012, Dirk Schuster was appointed as head coach, and he signed Darmstadt's future captain, Aytaç Sulu. In the 2012–13 season, the club was initially relegated but their fiercest rivals Kickers Offenbach were refused a 3. Liga licence due to going into administration and were relegated to the Regionalliga instead. Darmstadt 98 took Offenbach's place.

In 2013–14, having finished third in league and thus gaining entry into the promotion-relegation play-offs, Darmstadt defeated Arminia Bielefeld in the second leg through away goals after losing 1–3 in the first leg at home to secure promotion to 2. Bundesliga for the first time in 21 years in dramatic circumstances.

In the following 2. Bundesliga season, Darmstadt secured the second-place position in the league and therefore promotion to the Bundesliga after a 33-year asence. In their final league match, against FC St. Pauli, the club won 1–0 at home through a 70th minute free-kick by Tobias Kempe. This was a second consecutive promotion for the team, led again by coach Schuster and captain Sulu.

Darmstadt reached the Round of 16 of the 2015–16 DFB Pokal. On 8 March 2016, long-term fan Jonathan Heimes died of cancer and, posthumously, Darmstadt's stadium was renamed as "Jonathan-Heimes-Stadion am Böllenfalltor" for the 2016–17 season. Darmstadt finished the 2015–16 season in 14th position, mainly due to a positive away record.

Coach Dirk Schuster announced his decision to join FC Augsburg, and Norbert Meier was appointed as head coach for the 2016–17 season. After being defeated in the second round of the 2016–17 DFB Pokal and only scoring 8 points in 12 games, Maier was sacked on 5 December 2016. On 27 December 2016, former Bundesliga player and Werder Bremen assistant manager Torsten Frings was presented as new head coach. However, the team was incapable of securing the next season in the Bundesliga after a 0–1 defeat to Bayern Munich in the 32nd matchday of the season, and was relegated to the 2. Bundesliga.

After a poor start to the 2017–18-second Bundesliga season, Torsten Frings was removed from his position, and, on 11 December 2017, the vacant manager's position was again filled by Dirk Schuster, who returned to the Darmstadt club for his second spell as manager. He finished 10th in the league.

In the 2018–19 2. Bundesliga season, Dimitrios Grammozis replaced Schuster after 23 points out of 22 games, going on to finish 10th. In the following season, the club finished 5th. After the season, Markus Anfang took over as head coach.

In the 2022–23 2. Bundesliga season, Darmstardt secured automatic promotion to the Bundesliga by beating 1. FC Magdeburg 1–0 at home.

The club's honours:

The recent season-by-season performance of the club:

• With the introduction of the Regionalligas in 1994 and the 3. Liga in 2008 as the new third tier, below the 2. Bundesliga, all leagues below dropped one tier.

Current squad

As of 1 February 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK   GER Marcel Schuhen (3rd captain) 3 DF   SWE Thomas Isherwood 4 DF   GER Christoph Zimmermann 5 DF   CRO Matej Maglica 6 MF   GER Marvin Mehlem 7 MF   GER Braydon Manu 8 MF   GER Fabian Schnellhardt 9 FW   SCO Fraser Hornby 11 MF   GER Tobias Kempe (vice-captain) 13 GK   GER Morten Behrens 14 DF   AUT Christoph Klarer 15 MF   GER Fabian Nürnberger 16 MF   GER Andreas Müller 17 MF   GER Julian Justvan (on loan from Hoffenheim) 18 MF   AUT Mathias Honsak 19 DF   AUT Emir Karić

No. Pos. Nation Player 20 DF   GER Jannik Müller 22 FW   GER Aaron Seydel 23 MF   ALB Klaus Gjasula 24 FW   GER Luca Pfeiffer (on loan from Stuttgart) 25 FW   PHI Gerrit Holtmann (on loan from Bochum) 26 DF   GER Matthias Bader 27 FW   GER Tim Skarke (on loan from Union Berlin) 28 MF   CRO Bartol Franjić (on loan from Wolfsburg) 29 FW   SWE Oscar Vilhelmsson 30 GK   GER Alexander Brunst 32 DF   GER Fabian Holland (captain) 38 DF   GER Clemens Riedel 40 FW   GER Sebastian Polter (on loan from Schalke 04) 42 FW   GER Fabio Torsiello 45 GK   GER Max Wendt

Out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 10 FW   SUI Filip Stojilković (at 1. FC Kaiserslautern until 30 June 2024) — MF   SLE John Peter Sesay (at Union Titus Pétange until 30 June 2024) — FW   GER Henry Crosthwaite (at Hallescher FC until 30 June 2024)

As of 14 September 2020

Position	Name
Manager	Torsten Lieberknecht
Assistant manager	Florian Junge   Kai Peter Schmitz
Goalkeeping coach	Dimo Wache   Uwe Zimmermann
Fitness coach	Kai-Peter Schmitz
Head physiotherapist	Dirk Schmitt
Club doctors	Dr. med. Michael Weingart
	Dr. med. Alexander Lesch
	Dr. med. Ingo Schwinnen
	Dr. med. Philip Jessen
Team officials	Michael Stegmayer
	Matthias Neumann
	Jonas Nietzel
	Sebastian Pommer
	Björn Rein
	Michael Richter
Academy director	Björn Kopper
Academy Coordinator	Tim Kuhl
Under-19s coach	Georg-Martin Leopold
Under-17s coach	Patrick Kurt
Under-16s coach	Burak Yelken

The managers of the club:

Start	End	Manager
1968	1970	Heinz Lucas †
1971	1976	Udo Klug †
1978	1979	Lothar Buchmann
1979	1979	Klaus Schlappner
1979	1980	Jörg Berger
1981	1982	Werner Olk
1982	1983	Manfred Krafft
1983	1984	Timo Zahnleiter
1984	1984	Lothar Kleim
1985	1986	Udo Klug †
1986	1987	Eckhard Krautzun
1987	1988	Klaus Schlappner
1988	1989	Werner Olk
1989	1989	Eckhard Krautzun
1989	1990	Dieter Renner †
1990	1990	Uwe Klimaschefski
1990	1991	Jürgen Sparwasser
1994	1996	Gerhard Kleppinger
1996	1996	Max Reichenberger
1996	1998	Lothar Buchmann
1998	1999	Slavko Petrović
1999	2000	Eckhard Krautzun
2000	2002	Michael Feichtenbeiner
2002	2003	Hans-Werner Moser
2003	2006	Bruno Labbadia
2006	2006	Gino Lettieri
2006	2009	Gerhard Kleppinger
2009	2010	Živojin Juškić
24 March 2010	2 September 2012	Kosta Runjaić
5 September 2012	17 December 2012	Jürgen Seeberger
2012	2016	Dirk Schuster
1 July 2016	5 December 2016	Norbert Meier
5 December 2016	27 December 2016	Ramon Berndroth (interim)
3 January 2017	9 December 2017	Torsten Frings
12 December 2017	18 February 2019	Dirk Schuster
24 February 2019	30 June 2020	Dimitrios Grammozis
1 July 2020	30 June 2021	Markus Anfang
1 July 2021	present	Torsten Lieberknecht