1. FC Union Berlin

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1. FC Union Berlin

Full name

1. FC Union Berlin e. V.

Nickname(s)

Eiserne, Eisern Union (Iron, Iron Union)

Founded

1906/1966

Ground

Alte Försterei
(Capacity 18,100)

Chairman

Dirk Zingler

Manager

Uwe Neuhaus

League

Regionalliga Nord (III)

2006-07

Regionalliga Nord (III), 12th





Home colours





Away colours

1. FC Union Berlin is a football club based in Berlin, Germany. It is one of two sides in the city bearing the name Union that emerged during the Cold War and played in East Germany, while the other played in the west. Today the club competes in the third division Regionalliga Nord after winning the Oberliga Nordost Nord in 2005-06.

1 History
2 Honours
3 Players
- 3.1 Current squad
- 3.2 Notable players
4 External links

[edit] History

[edit] Foundation to WWII

The name 1. FC Union Berlin was used by two football clubs that shared a common origin as SC Olympia 06 Oberschöneweide, founded in 1906 in the Oberschöneweide district of Berlin. The side took on the name SC Union 06 Oberschöneweide in 1910. Union was one of Berlin's premier clubs in the interwar period, regularly winning local championships and competing at the national level, including an appearance in the 1923 German championship final which they lost 0:3 to Hamburger SV.

The club posted one more succes in 1940, when it won the Gauliga Berlin-Brandenburg.

[edit] Post war split

After World War II, occupying Allied authorities ordered the dissolution of all organizations in Germany, including sports and football associations. A new club called SG Oberschöneweide was formed in late 1945 and it played in the city league organized immediately after the war. The team was relegated after a poor season, but was promoted to the newly created Oberliga Berlin (I) in 1947 as SG Union 06 Oberschöneweide and won the division title.

The club finished the 1949-1950 season in second place in Berlin and qualified to take part in the national final rounds. However, escalating Cold War tensions led Soviet authorities to refuse the team permission to travel to take part. Two Union then teams emerged as most players and coaches fled to the west in to create SC Union 06 Berlin which took part in the scheduled playoff match in Kiel against Hamburger SV, losing 0:7.

The players remaining in the east carried on as Union Oberschöneweide while a number of players who had fled to the west to form SC organized a third side called Berliner Ball Club Südost. The western team was a strong side until the construction of the Berlin Wall in 1961, drawing huge crowds to matches in the Olympiastadion. The division of the city led to a change of fortunes for the club which plays today in the lower divisions before meagre crowds.

[edit] Union in the east

The eastern branch of the club went through a number of name changes: Union Oberschöneweide (1950), BSG Motor Oberschöneweide (1951), SC Motor Berlin (1955), TSC Oberschöneweide (1957), TSC Berlin (1963) – finally becoming 1. FC Union Berlin in 1966. They became East Berlin's most popular side and developed a bitter rivalry with Stasi-sponsored BFC Dynamo. However, they only managed a single win in the East German Cup in 1968 when they defeated FC Carl Zeiss Jena 2:1. They lost in their second cup appearance in 1986 to 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig by a score of 1:5.

[edit] Reunification to present

After German reunification in 1990, the team continued to perform well on the field, but almost collapsed financially. They managed to hang on through some tight times and find sponsorship, but only after winning their division in both 1993 and 1994 and each time being denied a license to play in the 2.Bundesliga due to their financial problems. The club had another close brush with financial failure in 1997.

Union again came close to advancing to 2.Bundesliga in 1998-99 and 1999-2000, but were disappointed. They were finally successful in 2000-01, under Bulgarian manager Georgi Vasilev, easily winning the Regionalliga Nord (III) and moving up a division to become the city's most popular side after the Bundesliga's Hertha BSC Berlin. That same year they appeared in the final of the German Cup where they lost 0:2 to FC Schalke 04, and advanced as far as the second round in UEFA Cup before being put out by Bulgarian side PFC Litex Lovech. The club slipped to the Regionalliga Nord (III) in 2004-05 and then to the NOFV-Oberliga Nord (IV) in 2005-06, but has since returned to third division play after capturing the Oberliga title.

[edit] Honours

German vice-champions: 1923
East German Cup winners: 1967/68
East German Cup runners up: 1985/86
German Cup runners up: 2000/01
UEFA Cup: 2001/02, 2nd Round
Gauliga Berlin-Brandenburg (I) champions: 1940
Regionalliga Nordost (III) champions: 2000/01

[edit] Players

[edit] Current squad

As of 21 August 2007.

number– name	date of birth	in team since	transferred from
goalkeeper
01 – Jan Glinker	18 Jan 1984	01 Jun 2003	Union U19s
31 – Michael Hinz	07 May 1987	28 Jun 2005	Union U19s
12 – Eric Niendorf	25 Jul 1988	20 Jun 2007	Union U19s
defender
15 – Daniel Göhlert	25 Sep 1980	01 Jul 2006	Chemnitzer FC
03 – Steven Ruprecht	24 Jun 1987	28 Jun 2005	Union U19s
23 – Tim Ruttke	17 Jul 1988	30 Aug 2006	Union U19s
18 – (team captain) Daniel Schulz	21 Feb 1986	28 Jun 2004	Union U19s
05 – Christian Stuff	11 Aug 1982	01 Jul 2006	1. FC Saarbrücken
midfielder
25 – Adrian Antunović	24 Apr 1989	20 Jun 2007	Union U19s
24 – Michael Bemben	28 Jan 1976	28 Jun 2007	Rot-Weiß Essen
14 – Sebastian Bönig	26 Aug 1981	29 Jan 2005	LR Ahlen
04 – Marco Gebhardt	07 Oct 1972	28 Jun 2007	1. FC Saarbrücken
17 – Torsten Mattuschka	04 Oct 1980	28 Jun 2005	FC Energie Cottbus amateur squad
16 – Christoph Menz	22 Dec 1988	20 Jun 2007	Union U19s
02 – Alexej Spasskov	29 Jan 1980	20 Jun 2007	Holstein Kiel
11 – Guido Spork	01 Jan 1975	23 Jan 2006	SC Paderborn 07
07 – Christian Streit	30 Jun 1984	01 Jul 2006	VfB Lübeck
06 – Ingo Wunderlich	18 Jun 1986	28 Jun 2005	Union U19s
20 – Markus Zschiesche	12 Feb 1982	01 Jul 2006	MSV Neuruppin
striker
22 – Karim Benyamina	18 Dec 1981	28 Jun 2005	SV Babelsberg 03
09 – Tom Martins	10 Jun 1988	30 Aug 2006	Union U19s
19 – Nico Patschinski	08 Nov 1976	01 Jul 2006	LR Ahlen
10 – Tobias Scharlau	15 Dec 1987	20 Jun 2007	Union amateur squad
08 – Macchambes Younga-Mouhani	01 Aug 1974	20 Jun 2007	Rot-Weiß Essen
coach
Uwe Neuhaus	26 Nov 1959	20 Jun 2007	Rot-Weiß Essen
André Hofschneider	10 Jun 1970	20 Jun 2007	FC Augsburg
Holger Bahra	20 Mar 1958	07 Jan 2005	Stahl Hennigsdorf