The history of East German football is complex, and that of its clubs particularly so. After World War II, the occupying Allies disbanded most German organisations, including sports clubs.
While some clubs were re-formed, others were not, and many that emerged had been renamed, merged with their neighbours, or even split. The instability continued throughout the East German era, with clubs being moved to new towns, and with very frequent name-changes, Soviet-sounding names like Dynamo and Lokomotive replacing more traditional names.
After re-unification, many clubs reverted to their pre-East German names, but some stuck with them, and others have changed back again. This page lists all prominent East German clubs, along with their original name, their present-day name, and a list of name changes and mergers that they underwent.
FC Olympia Oberschöneweide (1906–1906) BTuFC Helgoland (1906-07) BTuFC Union 1892 (1907-09) SC Union Oberschöneweide (1909-45) SG Oberschöneweide (1945–48) SG Union Oberschöneweide (1948–51) BSG Motor Oberschöneweide (1951–55) SC Motor Berlin (1955–57) TSC Oberschöneweide (1957–63) TSC Berlin (1963–66)
SV VP Vorwärts Leipzig (1951–53) SV Vorwärts der HVA Leipzig (1952-52) SV Vorwärts der KVP Leipzig (1952-53) SV Vorwärts der KVP Berlin (1953-53) ZSK Vorwärts der KVP Berlin (1953-54) ZSK Vorwärts Berlin (1954–56) ZASK Vorwärts Berlin (1956-57) ASK Vorwärts Berlin (1957–66)[nb 3] FC Victoria 91 Frankfurt (1991–92) FFC Viktoria 91 (1992–2012)[nb 4]
1. VfR Gera (?–1922) Allgemeinen Turngemeinde Gera (?–1922) SpVgg Gera 04[17] Concordia Gera-Reuß (?–1936)[18] SG Gera-Pforden (1945–49) RFT Gera (?–1950) BSG Mechanik Gera (1950–51)[19] BSG Motor Gera (1951–52) FSV Wismut Gera (1990–93) 1. SV Gera (1993–2007) FV Gera Süd (2007–09)
FC der Firma Carl Zeiss (1903–11) FC Carl Zeiss Jena (1911–17, 1966–) Ernst-Abbe Jena (1946–48) Stadion Jena (1948–49) BSG Carl Zeiss Jena (1949–51) Mechanik Jena (1951) BSG Motor Jena (1951–54) SC Motor Jena (1954–66)
° Football clubs (FC), which were founded 1965-66 as centers of high-level football in the GDR.
°° SG Dynamo Dresden was a sports community with FC status.
^BFC Dynamo originally began as a football department of SC Dynamo Berlin. The team of SC Dynamo Berlin was formed in 1954, when the team of SG Dynamo Dresden and its place the DDR-Oberliga was relocated to East Berlin.
^FC Vorwärts Berlin originally began as a football department of ASK Vorwärts Berlin.
^FFC Viktoria 91 and MSV Eintracht Frankfurt merged in 2012 to become 1. FC Frankfurt.
^When SG Friedrichstadt was dissolved after the 1949-50 DDR-Oberliga season, the playing right in the DDR-Oberliga was given to SV Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden. SV Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden only played in the lower tier Stadtliga Dresden at the time.[9] The team was thus able to enter the DDR-Oberliga without having to progress through divisions.[10] In order to put together a strong team for SV 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.[11][12][9]SV Deutsche Volkspolizei Potsdam lost five players.[10] SV Deutsche Volkspolizei Potsdam was severely weakened by the delegations to Dresden.[13] SV Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden became SG Dynamo Dresden on 12 April 1953.
^SG Friedrichstadt was the successor to Dresdner SC. SG Friedrichstadt was disbanded by the authorities in 1950. The club was considered too bourgeoisie. Many player, including player-coach Helmut Schön, fled to West Germany. Its place in the DDR-Oberliga was given to SV Deutsche Volkspolizei Dresden, which became SG Dynamo Dresden in 1953. A new Dresdner SC was formed in 1991, after German reunification.
^FC Grün-Weiß Leipzig merged with SV Chemie Böhlen (formerly BSG Chemie Böhlen) in 1990, forming FC Sachsen Leipzig.
^TuRa Leipzig was paired with SpVgg 1899 Leipzig to form the war time side KSG Leipzig.
^ZSG Industrie Leipzig was in fact, the result of a merger of five teams: SG Lindenau-Aue, SG Lindenau-Hafen, SG Leipzig-Mitte, SG Böhlitz-Ehrenberg and SG Leipzig-Leutzsch. SG Leipzig-Leutzsch is considered the closest descendant to TuRa 1899 Leipzig.
^BSG Chemie Leipzig was dissolved in 1954, with its players assigned to SC Lokomotive Leipzig. BSG Chemie Leipzig was re-formed in 1963.
^SG Probstheida was joined with the new sports club SC Rotation Leipzig in 1954.
^The two sport clubs SC Lokomotive and SC Rotation were merged in 1963 to form SC Leipzig. The supposedly best football players of the two clubs would play for SC Leipzig. The remainder formed the team of re-established BSG Chemie Leipzig.
^The football department of SC Leipzig was separated from the sports club in 1966 to form football club 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig.
^1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig took the historic name VfB Leipzig after German re-unification, but the club was declared bankrupt in 2004. 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig was re-established by fans in late 2003 and began play in 2004.
^The football team of BSG Empor Lauter in Lauter in the Ore Mountains was relocated Rostock in Bezirk Rostock in 1954. The team and its place in the DDR-Oberliga was transferred to sports club SC Empor Rostock. [27] Then SED First Secretary in Bezirk Rostock Karl Mewis and SED funcionary Harry Tisch were instrumental in the relocation of BSG Empor Lauter to Rostock.[28][27]
^FC Hansa Rostock originally began as a football department of SC Empor Rostock.
^ abMike, Dennis; Grix, Jonathan (2012). Sport under Communism – Behind the East German 'Miracle' (1st ed.). Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan (Macmillan Publishers Limited). p. 136. ISBN978-0-230-22784-2.
^In 1991 PSV Einheit Pankow and VfB Pankow were merged in VfB-Einheit zu Pankow.
^BSG Sachsenring Plauen absorbed SG-Plauen West in 1949 and Zellwolle Plauen in 1950.
^FC Wettin were swallowed up by Riesaer SV in 1917.
^Riesaer SV absorbed SC Riesa-Röderau (formerly Chemie Riesa) in 1998.
^FC Stahl Riesa were declared bankrupt in 2003. The same year, they were re-established by fans as TSV Stahl Riesa.
^ abHesse-Lichtenberger, Ulrich (2003). Tor!: The Story of German Football (3rd ed.). London: WSC Books Ltd. pp. 225–226. ISBN095401345X.
^Mike, Dennis; Grix, Jonathan (2012). Sport under Communism – Behind the East German 'Miracle' (1st ed.). Hampshire: Palgrave Macmillan (Macmillan Publishers Limited). p. 138. ISBN978-0-230-22784-2.
^SG "Hans Wendler" Stendal were formed in 1949 after a merger of Eintracht Stendal with two railway sides, Reichsbahn Stendal and RAW Stendal.
^FSV Lokomotive Altmark Stendal went bankrupt in 2002, but merged with neighbours 1. FC Stendal, forming 1. FC Lokomotive Stendal.
^BSG Sachsenring Zwickau were formed in 1968, from a merger between BSG Motor Zwickau and Aktivist Karl Marx Zwickau.
