Borussia Mönchengladbach

FC Borussia (Monchengladbach) was created in 1899 by a group of young footballers from one of the districts in Monchengladbach. In August 1900 the team was officially registered and in 3 years Borussia was accepted to the Rhein-Westphalia Game Union. In 1914 the club bought the sport structure De Kuhl and in 1960, 46 years later, a tremendous Bokelberg stadium was built there. It was not before the end of World War 2 that Borussia began to strengthen and in 1949 the club appeared in the elite division, the premier Western League.

In August 1960 Borussia won the German Cup defeating Karlsruhe in the final. In 1965 the team got to the premier professional German league, which is now called Bundesliga.

Borussia began playing in Bundesliga in 1965 alongside with Bayern Munich. In 1970s these teams had a fierce contention for leadership in the championship.

Borussia Monchengladbach claimed the titles in 1970, 1971, 1975, 1976 and 1977 and finished second in 1974 and 1978. They won the German Cup thrice, in 1960, 1973 and 1995. In 1975 and 1979 they dominated in the UEFA Cup and were runners-up in 1973 and 1980. In 1977 the team played in the UEFA Champions Cup final but lost.

Borussia’s hall of fame is rich in notable names: Marko Marin, Marcel Jansen, Gunter Netzer, Rainer Bonhof, Jupp Heynckes, Uli Stielike, Lothar Matthaus, Oliver Bierhoff, Stefan Effenberg, Sebastian Deisler, Uwe Rahn, Allan Simonsen, Toni Polster, Kasey Keller, Igor Belanov, David Degen, Andrei Voronin, Patrik Andersson, Martin Dahlin, Wesley Sonck, Giovane Elber.

Borussia plays at Borussia Park stadium with capacity of more than 50,000 people. Currently the club is in a period of another revival and after 2011/2012 season qualified for European cups.