SV Werder Bremen

On February 4, 1899, sixteen young men gathered in a Bremen restaurant called Union and founded FV Werder Bremen. The name "Werder" refers to the river peninsula where the club's first training ground was located. Within a few years, the team established itself in regional football, and after World War II, the renamed SV Werder Bremen became a founding member of the Bundesliga in 1963.

The club plays at the Weserstadion, a 42,100-capacity stadium on the banks of the Weser River that has been home since 1909. Renovated multiple times, most recently in 2011, the stadium features a distinctive green-and-white facade and an East Curve, the Ostkurve, where the most passionate fan groups create choreographies and generate noise. Werder's supporters are known for their loyalty and for keeping ticket prices among the most affordable in German top-flight football.

Werder Bremen has won four German championships and six DFB-Pokal titles. The 2003-04 season remains the club's crowning achievement: coached by Thomas Schaaf and led by Brazilian striker Ailton, the team won the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal double, playing an attacking brand of football that drew praise across Europe. On the continental stage, the club captured the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1992, beating AS Monaco 2-0 in Lisbon, and reached the UEFA Cup final in 2009, losing to Shakhtar Donetsk.[edit]

Werder Bremen's first major title came in 1961, a DFB-Pokal victory, before the club joined the newly formed Bundesliga in 1963. The first league championship arrived in 1965, just two years after the league's creation. The 1980s brought a second title in 1988, with a team built around the leadership of midfielder Miroslav Votava and striker Karl-Heinz Riedle. Under coach Otto Rehhagel, the club also won the DFB-Pokal in 1991 and the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1992.

The most dominant period in club history came under Thomas Schaaf, a former Werder player who managed the team from 1999 to 2013. Schaaf's sides won the Bundesliga in 2004, completing the double with the DFB-Pokal, and added another cup in 2009. After Schaaf's departure, the club experienced a gradual decline, culminating in relegation to the 2. Bundesliga in 2021 for the first time in 41 years. Ole Werner took over in November 2021 and immediately secured promotion back to the top flight, finishing second in the second division. Since returning to the Bundesliga, Werder has stabilized, finishing 13th in 2022-23 and 9th in 2023-24.[edit]