VfR Mannheim facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
VfR Mannheim

Full name	Verein für Rasenspiele e.V. Mannheim
Nickname(s)	Blau-Weiss-Rot
Founded	1896
Ground	Rhein-Neckar-Stadion
Ground Capacity	8,000
Chairman	Boris Scheuermann
Manager	Serkan Zubari (Sportvorstand)
League	Oberliga Baden-Württemberg
2023–24	9th
Home colours Away colours

VfR Mannheim is a German football club from the city of Mannheim, located in Baden-Württemberg. The club was formed in 1911 when three older football teams – Mannheimer FG 1896, Mannheimer FG 1897 Union, and FC Viktoria 1897 Mannheim – joined together. VfR Mannheim is famous for winning the national German football championship in 1949. Today, they play in the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg, which is a regional league.

Club History

Early Days and Founding Members

Before VfR Mannheim was created, its older teams like FG Mannheim, Mannheimer FG Union, and Viktoria Mannheim were very important. They were among the clubs that helped start the German Football Association (DFB) in 1900. These teams played in a league called the VSFV (Federation of South German Football Clubs). After they all merged in 1911 to form VfR Mannheim, the club continued to play in regional leagues during the 1910s and 1920s.

VfR Mannheim became champions of the Kreisliga Odenwald in 1922. They also won the Bezirksliga Rhein in 1925. After winning the Bezirksliga, they even played in the national playoffs. However, they were knocked out in the early rounds. For several years in the late 1920s and early 1930s, the team usually finished in the middle of their league, the Bezirksliga Rhein-Saar.

Success in the 1930s and 1940s

In 1933, German football was reorganized into 16 top leagues. VfR Mannheim started playing in the Gauliga Baden. The club did very well in the years leading up to and during World War II. They won their division titles in 1935, 1938, 1939, 1943, and 1944. Even with these league wins, they found it hard to win the national championship. Their best result was reaching the quarterfinals in 1943, where they lost a close game 2–3.

In 1944, VfR Mannheim won their division again. Playing football became very difficult during the war. The national playoffs were almost canceled, and VfR was first declared champions. But this decision was changed, and the playoffs happened. Mannheim only made it to the round of 16 before being eliminated.

Winning the National Championship in 1949

Historical chart of VfR Mannheim league performance

After World War II, VfR Mannheim played in the top league called the Oberliga Süd. For a while, their results were not special. But in 1949, something amazing happened! They finished second in their division, which was a great achievement. Then, in the national championship playoffs, they surprised everyone.

First, they beat Hamburger SV 5–0 in the first game. Next, they defeated Kickers Offenbach 2–1, even though Offenbach had finished much higher than them in their league. In the final game, VfR Mannheim played against Borussia Dortmund. In front of 90,000 fans, Mannheim came from behind to win 3–2 in overtime! This made them the national champions of Germany.

Between 1903 and 1944, German champions received a trophy called the Viktoria trophy. This trophy disappeared after the war. In 1949, a new trophy called the Meisterschale was created. VfR Mannheim was the first team to receive the Meisterschale, even though 1. FC Nürnberg had been the first postwar champions in 1948. Today, the Meisterschale is given to the winners of the Bundesliga, Germany's top league. It has the names of all national championship teams since 1903 written on it. The original Viktoria trophy was later found and is now kept by the German Football Association.

In 1950, VfR Mannheim played Dortmund again in the playoffs and won. However, they were then knocked out in the next round. After this, the club slowly became less well-known.

Moving Down from the Top Leagues

In 1963, Germany started a new professional league called the Bundesliga. VfR Mannheim played in the second-tier league, the Regionalliga Süd. After ten years, they dropped down to the third division, the Amateurliga Nordbaden.

The club faced financial problems over the years. They were offered chances to merge with another local club, SV Waldhof Mannheim, in 1998 and 2003, but they said no. In 2003, they even lost their license to play in their league and had to drop down to the Verbandsliga Nordbaden (which was then the fifth tier). However, the very next season, they played well enough to win their division and get promoted back to the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg.

In 2009, the club was relegated again. It took them two seasons to recover, but they returned to the Oberliga in 2011. In their first season back, they finished second in the league. In the 2014–15 season, they finished near the bottom and were relegated to the Verbandsliga once more. As of the 2023–24 season, they are playing in the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg.

Club Achievements

Here are some of the main achievements of VfR Mannheim:

League Titles

• German football championship
  • Champions: 1949
• Southern German championship
  • Champions: 1925

Regional Titles

• Westkreis-Liga (Top league at the time)
  • Champions: 1910, 1911, 1913, 1914
• Kreisliga Odenwald (Top league at the time)
  • Champions: 1922
• Bezirksliga Rhein (Top league at the time)
  • Champions: 1925, 1926
• Gauliga Baden (Top league at the time)
  • Champions: 1935, 1938, 1939, 1943, 1944
• Amateurliga Nordbaden (Third tier)
  • Champions: 1973, 1976
• Verbandsliga Nordbaden (Fifth tier)
  • Champions: 2004

Cup Wins

• Southern German Cup
  • Winners: 1959
• North Baden Cup
  • Winners: 1972, 1997, 2001

Other Sports

• The club also has a baseball team that won the German championship in 1965, 1966, and 1970.

Recent Managers

Here are some of the recent managers who have led the club:

Recent Seasons

This table shows how the club has performed in recent football seasons:

• When new leagues like the Regionalliga (in 1994) and the 3. Liga (in 2008) were created as higher tiers, all the leagues below them dropped down one level.

See also

In Spanish: VfR Mannheim para niños