SC Fortuna Köln

Football club infobox
clubname = SC Fortuna Köln


fullname = Sport Club Fortuna Köln e.V.
nickname =
founded = 1948
ground = Bezirkssportanlage Köln-Süd
capacity = 12,000
chairman = Klaus Ulonska
manager = Matthias Mink
league = Oberliga Nordrhein-Westfalen (V)
season = 2007-08
position = Verbandsliga Mittelrhein (V), 2nd (promoted)
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leftarm1=ff0000|body1=ff0000|rightarm1=ff0000|shorts1=ff0000|socks1=ff0000
pattern_la2=|pattern_b2=|pattern_ra2=
leftarm2=FFFFFF|body2=FFFFFF|rightarm2=FFFFFF|shorts2=ffffFF|socks2=FFffff

SC Fortuna Köln is a German football club playing in the city of Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia.

History

" play in 1943-44 before the division collapsed as war overtook the region. In 1976, "SV 1927 Köln" was joined by "FC Alter Markt Köln" and the combined club took on its current name.

Through most of the last four decades "Fortuna" has played as a second division side. Highlights of the club's history include promotion to the Bundesliga for the 1974 season and an impressive run through the 1983 German Cup. The team took out "Freiburg" in the first round and eked out a win on penalties over "SSV Ulm 1846" in their next match. They then eliminated three first division sides in a row: first "Eintracht Braunschweig" and "Borussia Mönchengladbach", before crushing "Borussia Dortmund" 5:0 in their semi-final match. This put them into the final against hometown rivals "1.FC Köln", the first time the Cup final had come down to a local derby. Although they outplayed their opposition, "Fortuna"'s magic had run out and they lost 0:1 on a late goal.

In 1986, the side came close to a return to the Bundesliga, but was beaten by "Dortmund" in the promotion round. Each team had won their home match in a two game series, which forced a third contest under the rules in effect at the time. Instead of advancing on the strength of away goals, "Fortuna" was crushed 0:8 by "Borussia". A handful of seasons later the club avoided relegation to third tier football at the end of the 1991-92 schedule only when division rival "Blau-Weiß 90 Berlin" was denied a licence.

One of the key features of "Fortuna"'s history was the presidency of deep-pocketed Jean Löring. Beginning in 1967, the millionaire's support of the club helped them to continue to field competitive sides for much longer than they might otherwise have. In 1982, he even helped out in another way: trained as an electrician, he personally fixed the floodlights when they failed during a match against "SV Darmstadt 98" so the game could go on. Löring, who had been an Oberliga player himself with Alemannia Aachen in his younger years, was ousted as president in 2000 and the club soon deteriorated. In 2005 the club failed financially and was forced to withdraw from league play. Until 2008, the "SCF" played in the fifth division Verbandsliga Mittelrhein, gaining promotion with a second place finish to the new Oberliga Nordrhein-Westfalen.

Despite insolvency, the club was able to salvage its youth department, one of the largest in Germany with over 500 players on 25 teams, through a fundraising campaign that included a benefit game against "1.FC Köln".

Recent chairman Klaus Ulonska once competed in the 1962 European Championships in Athletics, co-winning the 4x100 m Relay.

Team trivia

"SC Fortuna Köln" is distinguished as the team having spent the most years in the second division (26) and sits atop Germany's all-time second division rankings table.

Famous former Players

*flagicon|GER Wolfgang Fahrian
*flagicon|ENG Tony Woodcock
*flagicon|Ireland Noel Campbell
*flagicon|GER Thomas Brdarić
*flagicon|PER Julio Baylon
*flagicon|GER Hans-Jürgen Gede
*flagicon|IRN Ali Mousavi
*flagicon|SWE Daniel Majstorović
*flagicon|GER Dirk Lottner
*flagicon|GHA Charles Akonnor
*flagicon|USSR Viktor Pasulko

External links

* [http://www.fortuna-koeln.de Official team site]
* [http://www.abseits-soccer.com/clubs/forkoeln.html Abseits Guide to German Soccer]
* [http://www.eufo.de eufo.de] European football club profiles