SK Sturm Graz

Sportklub Sturm Graz, commonly known as Sturm Graz, is a professional football club based in Graz, Austria. The club competes in the Austrian Football Bundesliga, the top tier of Austrian football. Founded in 1909, Sturm Graz has a rich history and is one of the most successful clubs in the country. The team plays its home matches at the Merkur Arena, which they share with their city rivals Grazer AK.

Sturm Graz has won the Austrian championship five times, with titles in 1998, 1999, 2011, 2024, and 2025. They have also made multiple appearances in the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, showcasing their competitiveness on the European stage. The club's colors are black and white, and their matches against Grazer AK are fiercely contested local derbies. [edit]

SK Sturm Graz was founded on May 1, 1909, making it one of the oldest football clubs in Austria. The club's early decades were marked by regional success, but it was not until the late 1990s that Sturm Graz broke through on the national stage. Under the guidance of coach Ivica Osim, the club secured its first Austrian championship in 1998, followed by a second consecutive title in 1999. Those teams featured players like Ivica Vastić and Hannes Reinmayr, and they also enjoyed memorable runs in European competitions, including a famous victory over Manchester United in the 1999-2000 Champions League group stage.

After a period of rebuilding, Sturm Graz returned to the summit of Austrian football by winning the league in 2011. The club then experienced a quieter spell, but a resurgence under coach Christian Ilzer brought back-to-back titles in 2024 and 2025. The 2024 championship was particularly notable as it ended a 13-year wait for a league crown. The club has also been a regular participant in European competitions, often reaching the group stages of the Europa League and occasionally qualifying for the Champions League.

In the 2026-27 season, Sturm Graz demonstrated its continued ambition by competing in the Champions League qualifying rounds. The team defeated Heart of Midlothian 2-0 away in the second qualifying round, setting up a third-round tie against Turkish side Fenerbahçe. The first leg in Istanbul ended in a narrow defeat, but the return leg at the Merkur Arena promised to be a tense affair. Domestically, the club drew 1-1 with WSG Tirol in the opening Bundesliga match, while the women's team went top of the ÖFB Frauen Bundesliga after an eight-goal thriller in their first game of the season. [edit]