FK Austria Wien facts for kids

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Austria Wien

Full name	Fußballklub Austria Wien AG
Nickname(s)	Die Veilchen (The Violets)
Founded	15 March 1911; 113 years ago (1911-03-15)
Ground	Generali Arena
Ground Capacity	17,565
Chairman	Kurt Gollowitzer
Head coach	Stephan Helm
League	Austrian Bundesliga
2023–24	Austrian Bundesliga, 8th of 12
Home colours Away colours Third colours

Fußballklub Austria Wien AG (German pronunciation: [ˈaʊstri̯aː ˈviːn]), known in English as Austria Vienna, and Austria Wien in German-speaking countries, is an Austrian professional association football club from the capital city of Vienna. It has won the most trophies of any Austrian club from the top flight, with 24 Austrian Bundesliga titles and 27 Austrian Cup titles. Austria is one of only two teams that have never been relegated from the Austrian top flight. With 27 victories in the Austrian Cup and six in the Austrian Supercup, Austria Wien is also the most successful club in each of those tournaments. The club reached the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final in 1978, and the semi-finals of the European Cup the season after. The club plays at the Franz Horr Stadium, known as the Generali Arena since a 2010 naming rights deal with an Italian insurance company.

History

Historical chart of Austria Wien league performance

Foundation to World War II

FK Austria Wien has its roots in Wiener Cricketer, established on 20 October 1910 in Vienna. The club was renamed Wiener Amateur-SV in December of that year and adopted the name Fußballklub Austria Wien on 28 November 1926.

The team claimed its first championship title in 1924. Wiener Amateur changed its name to Austria Wien in 1926 as the amateurs became professionals. The club won its second league title that year.

The 1930s, one of Austria Wien's most successful eras, brought two titles (1933 and 1936) in the Mitropa Cup, a tournament for champions in Central Europe. The star of that side was forward Matthias Sindelar, who was voted in 1998 as the greatest Austrian footballer.

The club's success was interrupted by the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany in 1938, with Austria taunted as "Judenklub". While Jewish players and staff at the club were killed or fled the country, Sindelar died under unresolved circumstances on 23 January 1939 of carbon monoxide poisoning in his apartment. He had refused to play for the combined Germany–Austria national team, citing injury (bad knees) and retirement from international matches. The club was part of the top-flight regional Gauliga Ostmark in German competition from 1938 to 1945, but never finished higher than fourth. They participated in the Tschammerpokal (the predecessor to the modern-day DFB-Pokal) in 1938 and 1941. Nazi sports authorities directed that the team change its name to Sportclub Ostmark Wien in an attempt to Germanize it on 12 April 1938, but the club re-adopted its historical identity almost immediately on 14 July 1938.

Post-World War II

Austria Wien won its first league title for 23 years in 1949, and retained it the following year. It later won a fifth title in 1953. The club won three-straight titles in 1961, 1962 and 1963. Forward Ernst Ocwirk, who played in five league title-winning sides in two separate spells at the club, managed the side to 1969 and 1970 Bundesliga titles. Other players of this era included Horst Nemec.

From the 1973–74 season, Wiener AC formed a joint team with FK Austria Wien, which was called FK Austria WAC Wien until 1976–77, when Austria Wien opted to revert to their own club's traditional name. The results of the joint team are part of the Austria Wien football history. From 1977 onwards, Austria Tabakwerke took over the sponsorship and Austria was competed under the new name Austria-Memphis.

The 1970s saw the beginning of another successful era, despite no league title between 1970 and 1976 as an aging squad was rebuilt. Eight league titles in eleven seasons from 1975–76 to 1985–86 reasserted its dominance. After winning the 1977 Austrian Cup, Austria Wien reached the 1978 European Cup Winners' Cup final, which they lost 4–0 to Belgian club Anderlecht. The following season, the club reached the semi-finals of the European Cup, losing 1–0 on aggregate to Swedish team Malmö FF. In 1982–83, Austria Wien reached the semi-finals of the Cup Winners' Cup, losing 5–3 on aggregate to Real Madrid.

Players at Austria Wien in this era included Herbert "Schneckerl" Prohaska, Felix Gasselich, Thomas Parits, Walter Schachner, Gerhard Steinkogler, Toni Polster, Peter Stöger, Ivica Vastić and Tibor Nyilasi.

Recent history

Team photo for the 2010–2011 season

At the start of the 1990s, Austria Wien enjoyed its most recent period of sustained success: three-straight Bundesliga titles from 1991 to 1993; three Austrian Cup titles in 1990, 1992 and 1994; and four Austrian Supercup titles in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994. However, the club declined in the late 1990s due to financial problems which forced key players to be sold.

Austria Wien was taken over by Austro–Canadian billionaire Frank Stronach's Magna auto-parts consortium in 1999. Following deals with the Memphis cigarette company, the club was renamed FK Austria Memphis Magna. Stronach's investment in players, with a budget three times larger than the average in the league, saw a first Bundesliga title for ten years in 2002–03. Despite this, head coach Walter Schachner was fired. Although his replacement Christoph Daum could not retain the league title, he won the Austrian Cup.

In 2004, Memphis was dropped from the club's name. Austria Wien reached the UEFA Cup quarter-final in 2004–05, where they were eliminated by Parma. On 21 November 2005, Frank Stonach withdrew from the club. Consequently, several players (including top scorer Roland Linz, Vladimír Janočko, Joey Didulica, Libor Sionko, Filip Šebo and Sigurd Rushfeldt) were sold to other teams the following summer. The 2005–06 season nonetheless concluded with a Bundesliga and Cup double.

The loss of key players and a much lower budget for the 2006–07 season saw the club suffer. Despite losing 4–1 on aggregate to Benfica in the preliminary round of the UEFA Champions League, the team managed to qualify (against Legia Warsaw winning 2–1 on aggregate) for the group phase of the UEFA Cup. Former player and coach Thomas Parits became general manager. After the side lost three days later 4–0 away to Red Bull Salzburg, Partis terminated coaches Peter Stöger and Frank Schinkels. Georg Zellhofer replaced them. The season saw a sixth-place finish in the Bundesliga despite being in last place at Christmas. However, the club also won the Cup that year. The side improved the following season, finishing in third in the league.

Austria Wien players on the pitch against Red Bull Salzburg, December 2013

The summer of 2008 brought notable changes. Twelve players left the club, including Sanel Kuljić and Yüksel Sariyar, who joined Frank Stronach's newly founded team FC Magna in Austria's second division. The Betriebsführervertrag ("operating contract") with Stronach's Magna company expired, letting the club reorganize. On 1 July 2008, the original name FK Austria Wien was reinstated, without a sponsor's name included for the first time in 30 years. The club also bought Chinese international Sun Xiang, the first Chinese player to play in the Bundesliga. In the 2012–13 season, Austria Wien won its 24th league title, ahead of holders Red Bull Salzburg, but lost the Austrian Cup final 1–0 to third-tier club FC Pasching.

In August 2013, Austria Wien qualified to the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time after defeating Dinamo Zagreb in the play-offs round. They were drawn against Porto, Atlético Madrid and Zenit Saint Petersburg, all of which have won European trophies in the 21st century. Austria finished last in the group after a loss to Porto at home (0–1), a draw against Zenit in Saint Petersburg (0–0), two losses against Atlético and an away draw against Porto, which eventually put the Portuguese side to the third place in the group. A consolation came when Austria defeated Zenit 4–1 at Ernst-Happel-Stadion.

Stadium

Franz Horr Stadium

Austria Wien plays its home games at the Franz Horr Stadium, which has had a capacity of 17,000 since 2008, when a new two-tiered East Stand opened and renovations were made to the West Stand. The stadium was renamed the Generali Arena in a naming-rights deal with Italian insurer Generali announced at the end of 2010.

The stadium was originally built in 1925 for Slovan Vienna, a Czech immigrants' club, and was largely destroyed by the Allies in World War II. Austria Wien moved into the ground in 1973, playing its first match there on 26 August. The stadium was subsequently named for Franz Horr, chairman of the Viennese FA, following his death. The stadium was expanded with new or renovated stands in 1982, 1986, 1998 and, most recently, 2008.

Rivalries

A 2010 Wien derby match between Austria Vienna and Rapid Vienna.

Austria Wien contests the Vienna derby with Rapid Wien. The two clubs are two of the most supported and successful in the country, and are the only Austrian clubs to have never been relegated. They are two of the most culturally and socially significant clubs, both historically representing wider divisions in Viennese society. Both teams originate from Hietzing, the 13th district in the west of the city, but have since moved into different districts. Austria Wien is seen as a middle-class club, and before World War II, as part of the coffeehouse culture associated with the capital's intelligentsia. Rapid traditionally holds the support of the city's working class. The two clubs first met in a league championship match on 8 September 1911, a 4–1 victory for Rapid. The fixture is the most-played derby in European football after the Old Firm match in Glasgow and the Edinburgh derby in Edinburgh, both in Scotland.

Honours

Domestic competitions

• Austrian Bundesliga (24)

Champions: 1923–24, 1925–26, 1948–49, 1949–50, 1952–53, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1985–86, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 2002–03, 2005–06, 2012–13

• Austrian Cup (27)

Champions: 1920–21, 1923–24, 1924–25, 1925–26, 1932–33, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1959–60, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1966–67, 1970–71, 1973–74, 1976–77, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1985–86, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1993–94, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09

• Austrian Supercup (6)

Winners: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 2003, 2004

• Wiener Cup (2)

Winners: 1948, 1949

European competitions

• Mitropa Cup (2)

Champions: 1933, 1936

• Jeunesse et des Etudiants de Jeux Sportif (1)

Champions: 1959

• European Cup Winners' Cup

Runners-up: 1978

Intercontinental competitions

• Copa Rio

Semi-finals (2): 1951, 1952

European record

Season	Competition	Round	Country	Club	Home	Away
1960–61	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	Quarter-finals		Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–0	0–5
1961–62	European Cup	1R		Steaua București	2–0	0–0
		2R		Benfica	1–1	1–5
1962–63	European Cup	1R		HIFK	5–3	2–0
		2R		Stade Reims	3–2	0–5
1963–64	European Cup	1R		Górnik Zabrze	1–0, 1–2	0–1
1967–68	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R		Steaua București	0–2	1–2
1969–70	European Cup	1R		Dynamo Kyiv	1–2	1–3
1970–71	European Cup	Qualification		Levski Sofia	3–0	1–3
		1R		Atlético Madrid	1–2	0–2
1971–72	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	Qualification		B 1909	2–0	2–4
		1R		Dinamo Tirana	1–0	1–1
		2R		Torino	0–0	0–1
1972–73	UEFA Cup	1R		Beroe Stara Zagora	1–3	0–7
1974–75	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R		Waregem	4–1	1–2
		2R		Real Madrid	2–2	0–3
1976–77	European Cup	1R		Borussia Mönchengladbach	1–0	0–3
1977–78	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R		Cardiff City	1–0	0–0
		2R		MFK Košice	0–0	1–1
		Quarter-finals		Hajduk Split	1–1	1–1 (p 3-0)
		Semi-finals		Dynamo Moscow	2–1 (p 5-4)	1–2
		Final		Anderlecht	0–4
1978–79	European Cup	1R		Vllaznia	4–1	0–2
		2R		Lillestrøm	4–1	0–0
		Quarter-finals		Dynamo Dresden	3–1	0–1
		Semi-finals		Malmö FF	0–0	0–1
1979–80	European Cup	1R		Vejle	1–1	2–3
1980–81	European Cup	1R		Aberdeen	0–0	0–1
1981–82	European Cup	1R		Partizani	3–1	0–1
		2R		Dynamo Kyiv	0–1	1–1
1982–83	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R		Panathinaikos	2–0	1–2
		2R		Galatasaray	0–1	4–2
		Quarter-finals		Barcelona	0–0	1–1
		Semi-finals		Real Madrid	2–2	1–3
1983–84	UEFA Cup	1R		Aris Bonnevoie	10–0	5–0
		2R		Stade Lavallois	2–0	3–3
		3R		Internazionale	2–1	1–1
		Quarter-finals		Tottenham Hotspur	2–2	0–2
1984–85	European Cup	1R		Valletta	4–0	4–0
		2R		Dynamo Berlin	2–1	3–3
		Quarter-finals		Liverpool	1–1	1–4
1985–86	European Cup	1R		Dynamo Berlin	2–1	2–0
		2R		Bayern Munich	3–3	2–4
1986–87	European Cup	1R		Avenir Beggen	3–0	3–0
		2R		Bayern Munich	1–1	0–2
1987–88	UEFA Cup	1R		Bayer Leverkusen	0–0	1–5
1988–89	UEFA Cup	1R		Žalgiris	5–2	0–2
		2R		Hearts	0–1	0–0
1989–90	UEFA Cup	1R		Ajax	1–0	3–0
		2R		Werder Bremen	2–0	0–5
1990–91	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R		Eintracht Schwerin	0–0	2–0
		2R		Juventus	0–4	0–4
1991–92	European Cup	1R		Arsenal	1–0	1–6
1992–93	UEFA Champions League	1R		CSKA Sofia	3–1	2–3
		2R		Club Brugge	3–1	0–2
1993–94	UEFA Champions League	1R		Rosenborg	4–1	1–3
		2R		Barcelona	1–2	0–3
1994–95	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R		Maribor	3–0	1–1
		2R		Chelsea	1–1	0–0
1995–96	UEFA Cup	Qualification		Kapaz Ganja	5–1	4–0
		1R		Dinamo Minsk	1–2	0–1
1996	UEFA Intertoto Cup	Group 3, 1st game		Maribor		0–3
		Group 3, 2nd game		Keflavík	6–0
		Group 3, 3rd game		Copenhagen		1–2
		Group 3, 4th game		Örebro	2–3
1997	UEFA Intertoto Cup	Group 9, 1st game		MŠK Žilina		1–3
		Group 9, 2nd game		Rapid București	1–1
		Group 9, 3rd game		Lyon		0–2
		Group 9, 4th game		Odra Wodzisław	1–5
1998	UEFA Intertoto Cup	1R		Ruch Chorzów	0–1	2–2
1999	UEFA Intertoto Cup	3R		Sint-Truiden	1–2	2–0
		4R		Rennes	2–2	0–2
2000	UEFA Intertoto Cup	2R		Nea Salamina Famagusta	3–0	0–1
		3R		Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț	3–0	2–2
		4R		Udinese	0–1	0–2
2002–03	UEFA Cup	1R		Shakhtar Donetsk	5–1	0–1
		2R		Porto	0–1	0–2
2003–04	UEFA Champions League	3QR		Marseille	0–1	0–0
2003–04	UEFA Cup	1R		Borussia Dortmund	1–2	0–1
2004–05	UEFA Cup	2QR		Illichivets Mariupol	3–0	0–0
		1R		Legia Warsaw	1–0	3–1
		Group C		Real Zaragoza	1–0
				Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk		0–1
				Club Brugge	1–1
				Utrecht		2–1
		3R		Athletic Bilbao	0–0	2–1
		4R		Real Zaragoza	1–1	2–2
		Quarter-finals		Parma	1–1	0–0
2005–06	UEFA Cup	2QR		MŠK Žilina	2–2	2–1
		1R		Viking	2–1	0–1
2006–07	UEFA Champions League	3QR		Benfica	1–1	0–3
2006–07	UEFA Cup	1R		Legia Warsaw	1–0	1–1
		Group F		Zulte-Waregem	1–4
				Ajax		0–3
				Sparta Prague	0–1
				Espanyol		0–1
2007–08	UEFA Cup	2QR		Jablonec	4–3	1–1
		1R		Vålerenga	2–0	2–2
		Group H		Bordeaux	1–2
				Helsingborgs IF		0–3
				Panionios	0–1
				Galatasaray		0–0
2008–09	UEFA Cup	1QR		Tobol	2–0	0–1
		2QR		WIT Georgia	2–0	not played
		1R		Lech Poznań	2–1	2–4 (AET)
2009–10	UEFA Europa League	3QR		Vojvodina	1–1	4–2
		Play-off		Metalurh Donetsk	2–2	3–2 (AET)
		Group L		Athletic Bilbao	0–3	0–3
				Nacional	1–1	1–5
				Werder Bremen	2–2	0–2
2010–11	UEFA Europa League	2QR		Široki Brijeg	2–2	1–0
		3QR		Ruch Chorzów	3–1	3–0
		Play-off		Aris	1–1	0–1
2011–12	UEFA Europa League	2QR		Rudar Pljevlja	2–0	3–0
		3QR		Olimpija Ljubljana	3–2	1–1
		Play-off		Gaz Metan Mediaș	3–1	0–1
		Group G		Metalist Kharkiv	1–2	1–4
				AZ	2–2	2–2
				Malmö FF	2–0	2–1
2013–14	UEFA Champions League	3QR		FH	1–0	0–0
		Play-off		Dinamo Zagreb	2–3	2–0
		Group G		Porto	0–1	1–1
				Atlético Madrid	0–3	0–4
				Zenit Saint Petersburg	4–1	0–0
2016–17	UEFA Europa League	2QR		Kukësi	1–0	4–1
		3QR		Spartak Trnava	0–1	1–0 (5–4p)
		Play-off		Rosenborg	2–1	2–1
		Group E		Astra Giurgiu	1–2	3–2
				Viktoria Plzeň	0–0	2–3
				Roma	2–4	3–3
2017–18	UEFA Europa League	3QR		AEL Limassol	0–0	2–1
		Play-off		Osijek	0–1	2–1
		Group D		Milan	1–5	1–5
				AEK Athens	0–0	2–2
				Rijeka	1–3	4–1
2019–20	UEFA Europa League	3QR		Apollon Limassol	1–2	1–3
2021–22	UEFA Europa Conference League	2QR		Breiðablik	1–1	1–2
2022–23	UEFA Europa League	Play-off		Fenerbahçe	0–2	1–4
	UEFA Europa Conference League	Group C		Villarreal	0–1	0–5
				Hapoel Be'er Sheva	0–0	0–4
				Lech Poznań	1–1	1–4
2023–24	UEFA Europa Conference League	2QR		Borac Banja Luka	1–0	2–1
		3QR		Legia Warsaw	3–5	2–1
2024–25	UEFA Conference League	2QR		Ilves	4−3	1−2 (4–5p)

Current squad

No. Position Player 1 GK Samuel Şahin-Radlinger 2 DF Luca Pazourek 3 DF Lucas Galvão 4 DF Ziad El Sheiwi 5 MF Abubakr Barry 6 MF Philipp Maybach 9 FW Muharem Husković 11 FW Nik Prelec (on loan from Cagliari) 13 GK Lukas Wedl 15 DF Aleksandar Dragović 17 FW Andreas Gruber 18 DF Matteo Pérez Vinlöf (on loan from Bayern Munich) 19 DF Marvin Potzmann 20 MF Sanel Šaljić 21 DF Hakim Guenouche 22 MF Florian Wustinger 23 FW Konstantin Aleksa

No. Position Player 24 DF Tin Plavotić 26 MF Reinhold Ranftl 28 DF Philipp Wiesinger 29 FW Marko Raguž 30 MF Manfred Fischer 36 FW Dominik Fitz 37 MF Moritz Wels 40 DF Matteo Meisl 46 DF Johannes Handl 47 FW Abdoulaye Kanté 60 DF Dejan Radonjić 66 DF Marvin Martins 70 FW Cristiano (on loan from São Bento) 77 FW Maurice Malone (on loan from Basel) 99 GK Mirko Kos DF Florian Kopp FW Lukas Haubenwaller

Out on loan

No. Position Player GK Sandali Condé (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025) GK Kenan Jusic (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025) DF David Ewemade (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025) DF Aleksa Ilić (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025) MF Osman Abdi (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025)

No. Position Player MF Dario Kreiker (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025) MF Timo Schmelzer (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025) MF Rocco Sutterlüty (at Stripfing until 30 June 2025) FW Romeo Vučić (at Grazer AK until 30 June 2025)

Club officials

Position	Staff
President	Kurt Gollowitzer
Board Member	Sebastian Prödl
Sporting Director	Manuel Ortlechner
Manager	Stephan Helm
Assistant Manager	Ahmet Koc
Goalkeeper Coach	Udo Siebenhandl
Fitness Coach	Christoph Glatzer
Athletic Coach	Paiam Yazdanpanah
Head of Scouting/Video Analyst	Lorenz Kutscha-Lissberg
Chief Scout	Gerhard Hitzel
Scout	Siegfried Aigner Andreas Ogris Maximilian Koppensteiner
Director of youth department	René Glatzer
Sports Scientist	Christian Puchinger
Team Doctor	Dr. Gabriel Halat Dr. Roman Ostermann Dr. Marcus Hofbauer Dr. Gudrun Sadik
Physiotherapist	Roberto Baumgartner Richard Horinka
Sportstherapist	Christian Hold Markus Stoyer
Team Manager	Christoph Lehenbauer

Coaching history

See also

In Spanish: FK Austria Viena para niños

• The Football Club Social Alliance