Good to Know
Across five decades in the Bundesliga, 1. FC
Across five decades in the Bundesliga, 1.
Köln repeatedly made headlines through power struggles in the boardroom. Kölsch backroom dealing, intrigue and power games at their best are part of the club’s DNA - a kind of footballing Westeros with a Game of Thrones attitude.
No president remained in office longer than the
No president remained in office longer than the “boss”, Franz Kremer, who ran the club for twenty years from 1948 until his sudden death in 1967 - the most successful period in club history to this day.
“boss”, Franz Kremer, who ran the club for twenty years from 1948 until his sudden death in 1967 - the most successful period in club history to this day. That is common knowledge in Köln fan circles and in German football more broadly. Less well known is that Kremer, whose line was “Do you want to become German champions with me?”, made a decisive involuntary contribution to the rise of the club’s greatest Rhineland rival, Borussia Mönchengladbach.
Because after the club’s founding, there was another
Because after the club’s founding, there was another alpha male at FC besides Kremer, one who was never particularly keen to subordinate himself: Hennes Weisweiler.
alpha male at FC besides Kremer, one who was never particularly keen to subordinate himself: Hennes Weisweiler. Born in Lechenich, Weisweiler had already played for predecessor club KBC in the late 1930s. After the war he coached VfB Lechenich, before Franz Kremer brought him back to Cologne.
As a coach, Weisweiler established 1. FC Köln as a top side in the Oberliga West with fifth places in 1950 and 1952 and fourth in 1951, even if qualification for the German championship still eluded them. He first left FC from 1952 to 1955, coaching Rheydter SV and spending a year as assistant to Sepp Herberger. Kremer brought him back in 1955. Weisweiler wanted to rely on young local players and let them play his kind of football.
Despite financially strong backers such as department-store giant Kaufhof and consistently large crowds, he rejected expensive signings and fell out with established players who did not fit his concept - above all 34-year-old star Tschik Čajkovski, whose defensive effort irritated him deeply.
At the same time, Kremer, the boss, wanted
At the same time, Kremer, the boss, wanted to interfere all the time.
to interfere all the time. Convinced of his own infallibility, he insisted on having a say in building and selecting the team. Weisweiler could not implement his concept and initially moved across the Rhine, to Viktoria Köln.
When he failed there to break the dominance of 1. FC Köln, he took over at then Regionalliga side Borussia Mönchengladbach on 27 April 1964. The rest is history. In eleven years on the Lower Rhine he turned a second-tier side into a European power, crowned by the league titles of 1969/70, 1970/71 and 1974/75, the legendary cup win against 1. FC Köln on 23 June 1973 and the UEFA Cup triumph in 1975.
The last great title won by 1. FC
The last great title won by 1.
Köln came in 1977/78. Under Hennes Weisweiler, the Domstadt club won the Double of league and cup. Every FC fan knows that Borussia Mönchengladbach’s 12-0 demolition of Borussia Dortmund still did not save them from missing out on the title under Udo Lattek. What fewer people know is that without one of Hennes Weisweiler’s greatest defeats, Cologne would never have come to celebrate over Gladbach at all.
After his success on the Lower Rhine, Weisweiler was lured to FC Barcelona on a monthly salary of 40,000 Deutschmark. He wanted to impose his style with Dutch superstars Johan Cruyff and Johan Neeskens. But from the start he clashed with Cruyff. “Weisweiler is not my choice of coach,” the Dutch playmaker said openly.
When Cruyff was responsible for the second goal conceded in Seville on 8 February 1976, Weisweiler substituted him. Cruyff was furious, the fans were too, and Barça president Agostin Montal settled the conflict by extending Cruyff’s contract and granting Weisweiler’s request to terminate his own deal early. The rest is history again: in summer 1976 he took over in Cologne and immediately dismantled ageing FC icon Wolfgang Overath.
With Heinz Flohe as playmaker, he won the Double in 1977/78.
KOE — Financial Stability Score
Köln hat den Abstieg und die Transfersperre überlebt — dank Großstadt-Erlösbasis und disziplinierten PK. Der Weg zurück ist bilanziell solider als bei den meisten Absteigern.
Good to Know — Update 2020–2026
In the 2022/23 season, 1.
In the 2022/23 season, 1. FC Koln played
In the 2022/23 season, 1.
in Europe for the first time since 2017 — in the Conference League. The group stage with Arsenal, PSV Eindhoven and OGC Nice was a festival for the fans, even if the sporting return remained limited.
Steffen Baumgart became a cult coach between 2021
Steffen Baumgart became a cult coach between 2021 and 2023.
and 2023. With his flat cap, emotional style and Rhineland temperament, he won the hearts of the people of Cologne — and turned into a social-media phenomenon.