Rot-Weiss Essen facts for kids
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| Full name | Rot-Weiss Essen e. V. | ||
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| Nickname(s) | RWE | ||
| Founded | 1 February 1907 | ||
| Ground | Stadion an der Hafenstraße | ||
| Capacity | 20,650 | ||
| Chairman | Marcus Uhlig | ||
| Manager | Christoph Dabrowski | ||
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Rot-Weiss Essen is a famous German football club from the city of Essen. They play their games at the Stadion an der Hafenstraße. This team has won some big titles, like the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) in 1953 and the German championship in 1955. Winning the championship even let them play in the very first European Cup!
Contents
History of Rot-Weiss Essen Football Club
How the Club Started: Early Years
The club started on February 1, 1907. It was first called SV Vogelheim. This happened when two smaller clubs, SC Preussen and Deutsche Eiche, joined together. In 1910, Vogelheim teamed up with Turnerbund Bergeborbeck to play football.
Later, in 1913, the football players left to form their own club. They named it Spiel- und Sportverein Emscher-Vogelheim. After World War I, the name changed again to Spiel und Sport 1912. Finally, in 1923, this team joined Turnerbund Bergeborbeck to create the club we know today: Rot-Weiss Essen.
Reaching the Top League: The Gauliga Era
In 1938, RWE made it to the top level of German football. This was the Gauliga Niederrhein. Germany had 16 main divisions back then. In 1941, they almost won their division title, missing it by just one point! During World War II, they sometimes played with other clubs. For example, in 1943, they played as KSG SC Rot-Weiß Essen/BV 06 Altenessen.
Golden Years: Winning Championships
Rot-Weiss Essen returned to the top division, the Oberliga West, in 1948. They had many great seasons. They won the division in 1952 and 1955. They also finished second in 1949 and 1954, and third in 1950 and 1953.
The best time for the club was in the mid-1950s.
- In 1953, they won the DFB-Pokal (German Cup). They beat Alemannia Aachen 2–1 in the final.
- In 1955, they became national champions! They won against 1. FC Kaiserslautern 4–3.
Because they won the championship, Rot-Weiss Essen became the first German team to play in the European Cup the next season.
The team stayed strong for the rest of the 1950s. But in 1961, they were moved down from the Oberliga West. For most of the 1960s, they played in the second division. They did play in the top league, the Bundesliga, for one season in 1966–67. They returned to the Bundesliga for two seasons in 1969–70. Then, they played there for four more seasons starting in 1973–74.
Challenges and Comebacks: Financial Struggles
From 1978 until the end of the 1900s, Rot-Weiss Essen mostly played in the second or third divisions. They even spent one season in the fourth division in 1998–99. During this time, the club had many money problems. They were not allowed to play in certain leagues in 1984, 1991, and 1994. This meant they were moved down from the 2. Bundesliga each time.
But there were good moments too:
- In 1992, they won the German amateur championship.
- In 1994, they reached the DFB-Pokal final, but lost 3–1 to SV Werder Bremen.
RWE went back to the Regionalliga Nord (third division) in 1999. But the next season, they dropped to the Oberliga (fourth division). In 2004, they moved up to the 2. Bundesliga again. However, they finished 17th and were moved down once more.
In November 2005, the famous football player Pelé became an honorary member of the club.
The team got back into the 2. Bundesliga in 2006 after winning the Regionalliga Nord. But they just missed staying up in the 2006–07 season. They lost their last important match 3–0 to MSV Duisburg.
After the new 3. Liga started in 2008, Rot-Weiss became a fourth division team. They even dropped to the fifth division in 2010 because of money issues. But they won the fifth-level NRW-Liga in 2010–11. This brought them back to the Regionalliga West for the 2011–12 season.
Home Grounds: Where RWE Plays
Until 2012, Rot-Weiss Essen played at the Georg-Melches-Stadion. This stadium could hold 15,000 people. It was named after a former club president. In 1956, it was the first stadium in West Germany to have floodlights for night games.
Since August 2012, RWE has played in the new Stadion Essen. This stadium can hold 20,000 fans. The stadium's name is linked to the company RWE AG.
Rot-Weiss Essen Supporters and Rivalries
Team Rivalries
Rot-Weiss Essen has local rivalries with Fortuna Düsseldorf, Rot-Weiß Oberhausen, and Wuppertaler SV. These rivalries are strong when the teams play in the same league.
The club's biggest rivalry is with MSV Duisburg. They also have a big rivalry with FC Schalke 04, which is from nearby Gelsenkirchen. This match is called the Ruhrderby.
In the past, games against Schwarz-Weiß Essen were huge events. More than 30,000 fans would sometimes watch these matches. However, this rivalry is not as important now because Schwarz-Weiß Essen is not as strong. This rivalry was mostly about different parts of the city. Rot-Weiss Essen was seen as the club from the working-class north, and Schwarz-Weiß Essen from the wealthier south.
Friendships Between Fans
The fans of RWE have a strong friendship with the fans of SV Werder Bremen. There is also a friendship with Borussia Dortmund, though there have been some small disagreements since 2018.
Club Achievements: Honours
Here are some of the big wins and titles for Rot-Weiss Essen:
League Titles
- German Championship
- Champions: 1955
- German amateur championship
- Champions: 1992
- Oberliga West
- Champions: 1952, 1955
- Regionalliga West (Second Division)
- Champions: 1973
- Regionalliga Nord (Third Division)
- Champions: 2004, 2006
- Oberliga Nordrhein (Fourth Division)
- Champions: 1985, 1986, 1993, 1999
- Regionalliga West (Fourth Division)
- Champions: 2022
- NRW-Liga (Fifth Division)
- Champions: 2011
Cup Wins
- DFB-Pokal
- Winners: 1952–53
- Lower Rhine Cup (Regional Cup)
- Winners: (11 times) 1995, 2002, 2004, 2008, 2011, 2012, 2015, 2016, 2020, 2023, 2024
Current Team Players
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Famous Players of Rot-Weiss Essen
Past Coaches of Rot-Weiss Essen
- Elek Schwartz (1955–1957)
- Fritz Pliska (1965–1967)
- Erich Ribbeck (1967–1968)
- Herbert Burdenski (1969–1971)
- Janos Bedl (1971–1972)
- Horst Witzler (1973)
- Ivica Horvath (1975–1976)
- Diethelm Ferner (1978–1979)
- Rolf Schafstall (1979–1981)
- Rolf Bock (1982–1983)
- Janos Bedl (1983–1984)
- Siegfried Melzig (1984)
- Horst Hrubesch (1986–1987)
- Peter Neururer (1987)
- Horst Franz (1987–1988)
- Siegfried Melzig (1988)
- Hans-Werner Moors (1989–1991)
- Jürgen Röber (1991–1993)
- Wolfgang Frank (1994–1995)
- Rudi Gores (1995–1997)
- Klaus Berge (1998–1999)
- Fritz Fuchs (1999)
- Klaus Berge (1999–2001)
- Harry Pleß (2001–2003)
- Holger Fach (2003)
- Jürgen Gelsdorf (2003–2005)
- Uwe Neuhaus (2005–2006)
- Lorenz-Günther Köstner (2006–2007)
- Heiko Bonan (2007–2008)
- Michael Kulm (2008–2009)
- Ralf Aussem (2009)
- Ernst Middendorp (2009)
- Ralf Aussem (2009–2010)
- Uwe Erkenbrecher (2009–2010)
- Waldemar Wrobel (2010–2014)
- Marc Fascher (2014–2015)
- Jürgen Lucas (2015)
- Markus Reiter (2015)
- Jan Siewert (2015–2016)
- Sven Demandt (2016–2017)
- Argirios Giannikis (2017–2018)
See also
In Spanish: Rot-Weiss Essen para niños
