FC Erzgebirge Aue

Football club infobox
clubname = FC Erzgebirge Aue


fullname = Fussball Club Erzgebirge Aue e.V.
nickname = Veilchen (Violets)
founded = March 4, 1946
ground = Erzgebirgsstadion, Aue
capacity = 16,350
chairman = flagicon|Germany Uwe Leonhardt
manager = flagicon|Germany Heiko Weber
league = 3rd Liga
season = 2007-08
position = 2. Bundesliga, 16th (relegated)
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leftarm1=AA00FF|body1=AA00FF|rightarm1=AA00FF|shorts1=FFFFFF|socks1=AA00FF
pattern_la2=|pattern_b2=|pattern_ra2=
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The FC Erzgebirge Aue is a German football club based in Aue, Saxony. The former East German side will be a charter member of the 3. Liga in 2008-09 after being relegated from the 2. Bundesliga in 2007-08. The city of Aue has a population of about 18,000 making it one of the smallest cities to ever host a club playing at the second highest level of German football. However, the team attracts supporters from a larger urban area that includes Chemnitz and Zwickau whose own football sides are among Aue's traditional rivals.

History

East Germany's dominant side

The club was founded as "SG Aue" in 1945 and on 1 November 1948 became "BSG Pneumatik Aue" under the sponsorship of the local construction tool works. Changes in sponsorship led to a change in name to "Zentra Wismut Aue " in 1949 and then simply to "SC Wismut Aue" in 1951. [*Grüne, Hardy (2001). Vereinslexikon. Kassel: AGON Sportverlag ISBN 3-89784-147-9]

The club performed well, advancing through third and second tier play to the DDR-Oberliga in 1951. "BSG" finished as national vice-champions in 1953 losing in a final to Dynamo Dresden by a score of 2:3.

In 1954 the East German government decided that the nearby city of Chemnitz – recently renamed Karl Marx Stadt – deserved a quality team and so, while the team was never relocated, it was renamed "SC Wismut Karl Marx Stadt". It was during this time that the club became dominant in East German football. It captured the 1955 East German Cup and followed this up with four national titles in 1955, 1956, 1957, and 1959. It also played for the 1959 East German Cup, but lost 2:3 in a rematch versus Dynamo Berlin after the clubs had drawn 0:0 in the first game. Those successes led to "Aue"'s participation in the European Clubs' Champions Cup in 1958, 1959 and 1961.

With the DDR-Oberliga to the end

In 1963 Karl Marx Stadt got its own team and Aue's squad recovered its identity as "BSG Wismut Aue". The club continued to enjoy modest success by staying up in the top-tier DDR-Oberliga, and although it did not win another championship, it holds the record for the most games played by any team in that league. "Aue" sits 4th on the all-time DDR-Oberliga list and over the course of thirty-eight years played more games (1019 matches) than any other East German side. Just behind them, 6th place Rot-Weiss Erfurt played 1001 matches.

"Aue" also played in the UEFA Cup tournament in 1985 and 1988, going out in the first round against "FC Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk" in their first appearance and in second round against Albanian side "KS Flamurtari Vlorë" in their second. After German reunification in 1990 the club was renamed "FC Wismut Aue" before taking on its current name, "FC Erzgebirge Aue" in 1993. The name “Erzgebirge", Ore Mountains in English, recognizes that the club's home is located in the western part of these mountains.

Play in united Germany

In the combined football leagues of the newly united Germany, "Aue" began play in the NOFV-Oberliga Süd (III). With the establishment of the Regionalliga Nordost (III) in 1994, the club qualified for the new league. The club was moved to the Regionalliga Nord in 2000, and after a surprising league title there in 2003 it advanced to the 2nd Bundesliga where it has so far delivered very respectable mid-table performances.

"Aue" made its first appearance in the DFB-Pokal (German Cup) tournament in 1992 and since 2001 has been a regular participant there. They have only managed to make it into the second round on two occasions.

Wismut Aue II

The second team side of "Wismut Aue" played in the DDR-Liga (II) through the first half of the 1970s and had a single season turn there in 1985-86. They also made more than a half dozen appearances in the early rounds of FDGB Pokal (East German Cup) play between 1968 and 1991.

Recent seasons

External links

* [http://www.fc-erzgebirge.de/ Official team site]
* [http://www.abseits-soccer.com/clubs/aue.html The Abseits Guide to German Soccer]

References