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MIDDLESBROUGH v VfB STUTTGART - VfB STUTTGART HISTORY
Club origins
VfB Stuttgart is a club with a long tradition and a proud - and also not so proud - past. VfB stands for 'Verein für Bewegungsspiele', which roughly means 'Athletic Games Association'. The Stuttgarter FV 93, the forerunner of the current club, began life in 1893, with rugby originally the most played sport. In 1909, the club came second in the German Rugby Championship.
Dark days of the Nazi era
However, football began to gain in popularity amongst club members and in that same year it joined the South German Football Association. In 1912, the club merged with another local club, formally creating VfB Stuttgart 1893 e. V.. The club's early years brought little success. It was not until it associated itself all too closely with the Nazi regime in the early 1930s that it began to enjoy significant success. Playing then at the Adolf Hitler Arena, built for the German Gymnastics Festival of 1933, the club twice won the regional championship, took home the South German Cup and also reached the German Championship Final for the first time in that pre-war period.
German Champions
In the Second World War a lot of the club's sporting facilities were destroyed and many of its members were killed. However, by 1950 it had recovered sufficiently to become German Champions, beating Kickers Offenbach 2-1 in the final. The club became German Champions again in 1952, beating 1. FC Saarbrücken in the final, and twice won the German Cup in 1954 and 1959.
Bundesliga founding members
In 1963, VfB Stuttgart became one of the founding members of the Bundesliga, just squeezing out Bayern Munich (who did not join the Bundesliga until 1965). During the first ten years of the Bundesliga, Stuttgart was never one of the 'big' clubs. The best they managed was a couple of fifth places, and in 1975 they were ultimately relegated.
Bundesliga champions
In 1977, Stuttgart were promoted again and finished fourth in their first season back in the top flight, attracting what were then record average attendances of 54,000 (not beaten until the mid-1990s, by Dortmund). Three thirds and a second place in this era marked the club's arrival as a major new force in German football, crowned in 1984 with their third German Championship.
The Daum and Löw years
In 1992, managed by Christoph Daum, the club won the Bundesliga title again, clinching it with an 86th minute goal on the very last day of the season. In 1997, managed by Joachim Löw (now assistant national team coach alongside another former Stuttgart employee, Jürgen Klinsmann), the club won the German Cup, and a year later reached the final of the European Cup Winners Cup, losing narrowly to Chelsea 1-0.
Champions League
With relegation threatening, Felix Magath became the new manager in 2001. He kept the club up and, with no cash to spend, relied heavily on a new generation of young players such as Kevin Kuryani, Timo Hildebrand and Alexander Hleb.
Giovanni Trapattoni
In 2003, Magath's youngsters surprisingly came runners-up to Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga, qualifying for the Champions League, where they even beat Manchester United 2-1.
Sammer out - Trapattoni in
In 2004, Felix Magath moved to Bayern Munich and former player Matthias Sammer took over. With the club dropping from third to fifth place on the final day, the next season was seen as disappointing and Sammer left, with the colourful Giovanni Trapattoni taking over.
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A BIG THANKS TO JON DARCH FOR THIS INFORMATION
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