Dynamo Dresden

Historical chart of Dynamo Dresden league performance

The city of Dresden had played a significant part in German football before and during World War II with local club Dresdner SC earning national championships in 1943 and 1944. After the war the occupying Allied authorities dissolved organizations across the country, including sports and football clubs like SC, as part of the process of denazification. DSC was reestablished in 1946 as SG Friedrichstadt, but with the eastern part of the country, including Dresden, under Soviet control, authorities considered the club to be too bourgeois.[6] After a riot at the final of the 1950 East German championship, the club was dissolved and the remains joined with BSG VVB Tabak Dresden.[2]

The city needed a new, ideologically safe representative in the DDR-Oberliga. BSG VVB Tabak Dresden was planned to take over the place of SG Friedrichstadt in the DDR-Oberliga. However, most players from the former team of SG Friedrichstadt, including player-coach Helmut Schön, did not agree with the move and left Dresden to join Hertha BSC or other clubs under the German football Association (DFB). To save the place in the DDR-Oberliga for Dresden, the place was instead given to SG Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden. SG Deutsche Volkzpolizei Dresden had existed since October 1948 and played in the Stadtliga Dresden at the time.[7] SG Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden was thus able to enter DDR-Oberliga without having to progress through divisions.[8] In order to put together a strong team for SG Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden to the 1950-51 DDR-Oberliga, the 40 best players of the various Volkspolizei teams in East Germany were brought together for a training session in Forst in July 1950. Coaches Fritz Sack and Paul Döring picked out 17 players from 11 different cities who were delegated to Dresden to form the team.[9][10][7][2] SG Volkspolizei Potsdam lost five players to Dresden, including Herbert Schoen, Johannes Matzen and Günter Schröter, and was severely weakened.[8][11] SG Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden quickly established itself as a force in East German football, winning its first cup in 1952.[2]

SG Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden was reformed as Dynamo Dresden on 12 April 1953 and incorporated into the new sports association SV Dynamo.[2] SV Dynamo had been founded on 27 March 1953, from the sports association SV Deutsche Volkspolizei, to which SG Deutche Volkspolizei Dresden was affiliated, and the sports communities of the Stasi. Its president was Erich Mielke, at the time deputy head of the Stasi.[12] The official founding date of Dynamo Dresden has since been 12 April 1953.

Shortly after this the club claimed its first East German title.[2] Hovewer, this success, proved to be the club's undoing. The team of Dynamo Dresden was relocated to Berlin in November 1954 to play for SC Dynamo Berlin in the DDR-Oberliga. [2][13] The remainder of Dynamo Dresden was left to regroup in the second-tier DDR-Liga, taking over the place in the DDR Liga, as well as points and goals, from dissolved SC DHFK Leipzig.[2] Political factors and pressure from Erich Mielke were probably the main reasons behind the relocation of Dynamo Dresden to Berlin.[14][13] The relocation was meant to provide the capital with a competitive team that could rival Hertha BSC, Blau-Weiß 1890 Berlin and Tennis Borussia Berlin, which were still popular in East Berlin and drew football fans to West Berlin.[15][14][13]

Dynamo Dresden were left with a team composed of youth and reserve players, and had dropped to the fourth tier by 1957, playing in the local Bezirksliga.[10][2] Dynamo Dresden began to climb the divisions, though,[2][16] and by 1962 they were back in the DDR-Oberliga,[16] and although this first season ended in relegation, they bounced back immediately.[16] They recovered equally well from another relegation in 1968,[16] and remained in the Oberliga from 1969 until its dissolution in 1991. This relegation came after a fourth-place finish in 1967, which enabled Dynamo's first foray into European football – they entered the 1967–68 Fairs Cup, where they were eliminated by Scottish side Rangers in the first round.[16]

During the 1965–66 season, 11 East German clubs were separated from their parent sports clubs to be designated as Fußballclubs: clubs focused entirely on football, where the country's best talent would be transferred with the object of developing players for the national team. Dynamo Dresden were one of these, although they retained the title of Sportgemeinschaft (SG).[13]

Dynamo face Bayern Munich in the 1973–74 European Cup

The championship-winning squad of 1975–76

During the 1970s, Dynamo established themselves as one of the top teams in East Germany, under the management of Walter Fritzsch. They won five league titles (1971, 1973, 1976, 1977 and 1978),[3] and two cups, (1971 and 1977).[3] They battled with 1. FC Magdeburg for domination of the league, and became the most popular the side in the country, regularly drawing crowds of 25,000, around three times what other clubs were attracting.[13] They also began to establish themselves as a presence in European football – they played in European competition every year during the 1970s, and eliminated some big names – beating FC Porto, Juventus[17] and Benfica on their way to four quarter-final finishes.[18] During this time Dynamo came up against West German opposition for the first time, losing against Bayern Munich 7–6 on aggregate in the last 16 of the 1973–74 European Cup.[17] Dynamo Dresden lost the first leg 4-3 away in Munich and managed a 3-3 draw home at the Dynamo-Stadion. The Stasi had tapped the salon at the Interhotel Newa in Dresden were the Bayern Munich team held their final meeting before the second leg. And a message with information about the line-up of Bayern Munich was quickly sent by motorcycle to the head coach of Dynamo Dresden Walter Fritzsch in preparation for the match.[19] On three occasions they were eliminated by English side Liverpool, twice in the UEFA Cup and once in the European Cup,[18] and each time Liverpool went on to win the competition. In 1973, Hans-Jürgen Kreische was the first Dynamo Dresden player to be named East German Footballer of the Year, and was followed by Hans-Jürgen Dörner in 1977.[20] Kreische was the league's leading goalscorer on four occasions,[21] and was named in East Germany's squad for the 1974 World Cup, along with teammate Siegmar Wätzlich.[22]

History was to repeat itself, though, at the end of the 1970s. Erich Mielke, again jealous that provincial clubs were dominating the league while his beloved BFC Dynamo were starved of success, allegedly began to manipulate the league in favour of the side from the capital.[12][23]

Matthias Sammer lifts the FDGB-Pokal trophy in 1990

East German football had generally been set up in favour of the "Fußballclubs", who were usually delegated the best players, but the authorities had usually kept out of on-pitch matters. This changed in the late-1970s and 80s though, as players and referees were allegedly coerced by the Stasi into helping the cause of BFC Dynamo.[12][23] BFC Dynamo won ten consecutive titles, from 1979 to 1988. Of all clubs, Dynamo Dresden were the most affected by their success, finishing second on six occasions.[5]

However, Dynamo Dresden also had its patrons. According to Hans-Jürgen Dörner, the club was helped to remain a top club by three local politicians. One of them was Hans Modrow, long time SED First secretary in Bezirk Dresden.[24] And another one was Manfred Scheler, the head of the Regional Council, who was active in using his connections to provide players with shortage goods and services, such as a cars and apartments.[24] The club also benefited from support by Stasi Major General Horst Böhm, the Head of the Regional Administration of the Stasi in Dresden, who took involvement in the appointment and dismissal of trainers and the contracts of players.[24][25] According to Hans-Jürgen Dörner, Horst Böhm put local patriotism first in the rivalry with BFC Dynamo. And the rivalry between fans of the two Dynamo clubs even spread to members of Stasi's own units in Dresden.[25]

Dynamo v. VfB Stuttgart in the semi-final of the 1988–89 UEFA Cup

Walter Fritzsch had retired in 1978, and was succeeded by Gerhard Prautzsch,[5] who was in turn followed by former players Klaus Sammer (1983–86), Eduard Geyer (1986–90) and Reinhard Häfner (1990–91).[5] The star players of the 1970 were replaced by a new generation, including Torsten Gütschow, Ulf Kirsten, Matthias Sammer, and Andreas Trautmann, although the club lost three key players in 1981: Gerd Weber, who along with teammates Peter Kotte and Matthias Müller had been offered a lucrative contract with 1. FC Köln, intended to flee to the West while in Udine for national team match against Italy in April 1981.[26] The Stasi somehow got wind of this plan, and in January 1981 the three players were arrested at Schönefeld Airport, from where the national team was about depart for Argentina, and banned for life from the DDR-Oberliga.[26] Weber was sentenced to two years' imprisonment. Kotte and Müller, who had decided to stay in Dresden, were nonetheless punished for their knowledge of Weber's plans.[26][27] Dynamo Dresden managed to win the FDGB-Pokal three times (1982 and 1984, 1985).[3]

During the 1980s, the club continued to be a regular participant in European football, generally earning respectable results.[18] In the 1985–86 Cup Winners' Cup, however, they were on the receiving end of a shocking defeat against Bayer Uerdingen of West Germany: having won the first leg 2–0, they were 3–1 up at half-time in the second leg, when goalkeeper Bernd Jakubowski was injured by Uerdingen's Wolfgang Funkel. Debutant Jens Ramme was introduced, and proceeded to let in six goals, as the team lost 7–3.[28] In addition to this, striker Frank Lippmann took the opportunity of the match in Krefeld to escape to the west.[29] Dynamo recorded their best ever European performance in the 1988–89 UEFA Cup, beating AS Roma on the way to a semi-final defeat against VfB Stuttgart.[28] Their last European campaign was the 1990–91 European Cup, which ended in defeat to eventual winners Red Star Belgrade. Dynamo's fans rioted at the second leg, which resulted in the club being banned from Europe for the following season.[4]

Towards the end of the 1980s, the Stasi's influence over football was waning,[12] and Dynamo Dresden reclaimed the title in 1989, and retained it in 1990, adding a cup win to complete a double.[4] By this point the Berlin Wall had fallen, and many of the top players in East Germany took the opportunity to head west. In the summer of 1990, Dynamo Dresden lost two star players, Ulf Kirsten and Matthias Sammer joining Bayer Leverkusen and VfB Stuttgart respectively. With German reunification looming, many clubs in the East changed their name to shed their Soviet image, and Dynamo Dresden changed from SG to the more traditional 1. FC.[4] The Oberliga also changed name for its final season: the league, now called the NOFV-Oberliga, was used to determine which places the East German clubs would take in the unified German league. Dynamo Dresden finished second, behind Hansa Rostock, thus qualifying for the Bundesliga.[4]

Matthias Maucksch made 118 Bundesliga appearances for Dynamo, more than any other player, and was manager of the club from 2009 to 2011.

Having been among the top clubs in the East, Dynamo found life in the Bundesliga much harder, struggling both financially and on the pitch. They spent four years at this level,[5] during which they were in a near-constant battle against relegation. Their highest placing was 13th in 1993–94, but the following year they succumbed to the drop, finishing in last place,[4] having gone through three managers (Sigfried Held, Horst Hrubesch and Ralf Minge) during the season.[5] To add to this, the club had accumulated debts of more than 10 million DM, and were denied a license to play in the 2. Bundesliga, and had to drop down to the third tier Regionalliga Nordost.[4] Rolf-Jürgen Otto, the club's president was jailed for having embezzled around 3 Million DM from the club.[4]

While many of the stars of the 1980s had moved west, some remained for Dynamo's Bundesliga tenure, including Torsten Gütschow and Hans-Uwe Pilz, while the club was able to attract players from other Eastern clubs, including Olaf Marschall, René Müller and Heiko Scholz. The fall of the wall brought the influx of Dynamo's first foreign players, and the club saw internationals from Australia (Mark Schwarzer), Poland (Piotr Nowak), Russia (Stanislav Cherchesov) and Sweden (Johnny Ekström), among others.

Dynamo sought to regroup in the Regionalliga, and again looked to former players to manage the team, being led by Hans-Jürgen Kreische (1995–96), Udo Schmuck (1996) and Hartmut Schade (1996–1998), but failed to seriously challenge for promotion. In 1998 they finished second in the table, but with 60 points: 32 behind champions Tennis Borussia Berlin. 1999–2000 saw a restructuring of the Regionalliga: the four leagues were to be reduced to two, and Dynamo would have to finish in the top 7 to avoid relegation. Having finished 11th in the previous season they turned to Colin Bell,[4] an English coach who had had some success with youth football in Germany, but he left in March 2000 after poor results and a player revolt.[30] Cor Pot, a Dutchman, was brought in to replace him,[30] and he turned the team around, but it was too late – they finished in eighth place, and were relegated to the fourth-tier Oberliga Nordost-Süd.[30] By this point Dynamo were not even the top team in Dresden: Dresdner SC had returned after reunification, and finished as runners-up in the Regionalliga Nordost in 2000.

Volker Oppitz was a key player in Dynamo's rise from the Oberliga to the 2. Bundesliga

Optimism was high, though, after the way the last season had ended, and the slogan "Wir kommen wieder" (we're coming back), was adopted. However, the Oberliga was now highly competitive with VfB Leipzig, 1. FC Magdeburg and FSV Zwickau also having been relegated, and Dynamo couldn't match the consistency of their main promotion rivals Magdeburg and Leipzig. A 2–1 defeat against Magdeburg in February ended their promotion chances, and Pot resigned.[30] With nothing to play for, Dynamo slumped to fifth place.[30] For the following season Christoph Franke was brought in as manager,[30] and led the club to promotion – they won the league[30] with only two defeats, and beat Hertha BSC's reserve team in a playoff to earn their place in the Regionalliga Nord.[30] Dynamo's youth system was particularly successful during this period, with players including Lars Jungnickel, Silvio Schröter, Maik Wagefeld and Daniel Ziebig going on to play at a higher level.

Dynamo finished a respectable 7th in their first season back in the third tier, and followed that with another promotion,[30] finishing second behind Rot-Weiß Essen. Life in the 2. Bundesliga began brightly, with a 3–1 win against MSV Duisburg, but by the halfway point of their first season they were facing relegation, with only 18 points. They recovered strongly in the second half of the season though, and finished in 8th place, thanks in part to signings such as Ansgar Brinkmann, Joshua Kennedy and Klemen Lavric. The 2005–06 season began in a similar way, as Dynamo climbed to third place with a 2–1 win over 1860 Munich in the Allianz Arena,[30] but this was followed by thirteen matches without a win, resulting in the dismissal of Christoph Franke. Austrian manager Peter Pacult was brought in,[30] with results improving temporarily, but Dynamo ultimately still failed to avoid relegation, finishing 15th.[30]

Dynamo were back in the Regionalliga with the immediate aim of promotion, but despite a successful start, Peter Pacult left the club after six matches for a chance to manage his former club, Rapid Vienna.[30] He was replaced by Norbert Meier,[30] but Dynamo could not keep up their promotion bid, and finished seventh, due in part to poor away form. Another re-organisation of the league structure was looming, and Dynamo knew they'd have to finish in the top-10 to qualify for the new national 3. Liga. A number of former star players returned, including Lars Jungnickel, Marek Penksa and Maik Wagefeld,[30] but results were not consistent, and Meier was sacked, replaced by former coach Eduard Geyer.[30] Dynamo secured qualification on the last day, finishing eighth,[30] but Geyer was dismissed due to disagreements with the board.[30] In 2007, the club reverted to the name SG Dynamo Dresden.[30]

The club turned to Ruud Kaiser, a Dutchman with a good reputation at youth level, as Geyer's replacement.[30] They played in the first ever match of the third Liga, beating Rot-Weiß Erfurt 1–0 with a goal from Halil Savran,[30] but results were not consistent, and they could only finish in mid-table.[30] The 2009–10 season began badly, and Dynamo were in relegation trouble, so Kaiser was sacked and replaced by Matthias Maucksch, a former player who had had some success with the reserve team.[30] Maucksch managed to drag the team safely from relegation, and finished the season in 12th place. Maucksch led the team to contention for a playoff place during the 2010–11 season, but was sacked in April after a run of five games without a win, and was replaced by Ralf Loose.[31] Loose ended the season unbeaten and secured third place, and a playoff against VfL Osnabrück which Dynamo won 4–2 on aggregate to earn promotion to the 2. Bundesliga.[32]

Dynamo Dresden performed well in their first season back in the league. Consistently holding a position in the middle of the standings, the team was never in danger of being relegated. After securing a highly memorable 4–3 victory after being down three goals against Bayer Leverkusen in the first round of the 2011–12 DFB-Pokal season, Dynamo was excluded from the 2012/2013 DFB-Pokal due to fan excesses and abuse of fireworks during the second round match against Borussia Dortmund (0–2) in a first trial. The sentence was later turned into one Game behind closed doors and one away game without own fan support. Virtual tickets were offered to reduce the financial loss, leading to what was purported to be the first sold-out ghost game in history.[33][34] The 2012–13 season started poorly for Dynamo and Ralf Loose was sacked in December 2012 after a 3–0 defeat to VfL Bochum with the team in 15th place.[35] He was replaced by Peter Pacult, returning to the club after more than six years.[36] Dynamo's form improved after Pacult's arrival but the team still finished the league as 16th.[37] Due to this Dynamo had to enter relegation play-offs again after just two seasons, incidentally meeting VfL Osnabrück once more, with their roles now reversed. Dynamo emerged victorious with 2–1 on aggregate and remained in the second tier for the 2013–14 season. Pacult was sacked in August 2013 after a poor start and replaced with Olaf Janßen.[38] Jansen was unable to save the club from the drop to the 3. Liga after they lost 3–2 at home to relegation rivals Arminia Bielefeld to drop into 17th place,[39] ultimately costing Jansen his job.[40] Dynamo had drawn half of their matches, winning just five all season.[41]

Under their new coach Stefan Böger, the club completely overhauled the squad with the intent of returning to the 2. Bundesliga as soon as possible. In August 2014, the team managed to knock Bundesliga giants FC Schalke 04 out of the first round of the DFB-Pokal, beating them with 2–1.[42] The team advanced to the third round after beating VfL Bochum 2–1[43] but were ultimately knocked out by Borussia Dortmund.[44] Böger was sacked in February 2015,[45] with assistant coach Peter Németh taking over for the remainder for the season. The team finished 6th in the 2014–15 season.[46] Under new manager Uwe Neuhaus, Dynamo went on to have a hugely successful season and officially returned to second level competition after a 2–2 draw at an away match against FC Magdeburg on 16 April 2016.[47]

As of 4 February, 2021[56]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player 1 GK  GER Kevin Broll 3 DF  GER Leroy Kwadwo 4 DF  GER Tim Knipping 5 MF  GER Yannick Stark 6 MF  GER Marco Hartmann 7 FW  GRE Panagiotis Vlachodimos 8 MF  DOM Heinz Mörschel 9 FW  GER Pascal Sohm 10 MF  GER Patrick Weihrauch 11 FW  GER Agyemang Diawusie 13 MF  GER Marvin Stefaniak (on loan from Wolfsburg) 14 FW  AUT Philipp Hosiner 15 DF  GER Chris Löwe 16 DF  GER Robin Becker

No. Pos. Nation Player 17 MF  GER Maximilian Großer 19 DF  GER Jonathan Meier (on loan from Mainz 05) 20 MF  GER Julius Kade 22 DF  GER Niklas Kreuzer 23 GK  GER Stefan Kiefer 24 GK  GER Patrick Wiegers 26 DF  GER Sebastian Mai (captain) 28 MF  GER Paul Will 33 MF  GER Christoph Daferner 34 MF  GER Justin Löwe 35 FW  GER Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer 36 MF  GER Max Kulke 37 FW  SVN Luka Štor 39 DF  GER Kevin Ehlers

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player — FW  CZE Vasil Kušej (at FK Ústí nad Labem until 30 June 2021)

• DDR-Oberliga
  • Champions: (8) 1952–53, 1970–71, 1972–73, 1975–76, 1976–77, 1977–78, 1988–89, 1989–90
  • Runners-up: (8) 1951-52[lower-alpha 1], 1978-79, 1979-80, 1981-82 1983-84, 1984-85, 1986-87, 1990-91
• FDGB-Pokal
  • Winners: (7) 1952[lower-alpha 1], 1970–71, 1976–77, 1981–82, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1989–90 (record, shared with 1. FC Magdeburg)
  • Runners-up: (4) 1971-72, 1973-74, 1974-75, 1977-78
• DFV-Supercup
  • Runners-up: 1989
• Deutschland Cup
  • Winners: 1990
• 3. Liga
  • Champions: 2015–16
  • Play-off winners: 2010–11

• Regionalliga Nord (III)
  • Runners-up: 2003–04 (promoted)
• NOFV-Oberliga (IV)
  • Winners: 2002
• Sachsenliga (VI)
  • Winners: 2009[lower-alpha 1]
• Saxony Cup (III-VI)
  • Winners: 2003, 2007, 2009

• East German Junior Championship (de)[lower-alpha 1]
  • Champions (6): 1962, 1972, 1981, 1982, 1985, 1988 (record)
  • Runners-up (4): 1975, 1983, 1984, 1987
• East German Youth Championship (de)[lower-alpha 2]
  • Champions (3): 1983, 1988, 1989
  • Runners-up: 1982, 1990
• East German Junior Cup (Junge Welt-Pokal) (de)[lower-alpha 1]
  • Winners: (4) 1976, 1985, 1986, 1987 (record, shared with 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig)
• East German Youth Cup (Youth FDGB-Pokal) [lower-alpha 2]
  • Winners: 1973, 1989
• U17 NOFV Cup (de)
  • Winners: 2003, 2017
  • Runners-up: 2006

• Indoor-Regio-Cup
  • Winners: 2007

• UEFA Cup
  • Semi-finalists: 1988–89

• DDR-Oberliga and FDGB-Pokal
  • Winners: (3) 1970–71, 1976–77, 1989–90 (record)