FCK Rolling Devils

History

The wheelchair basketball team of 1. FC Kaiserslautern was founded in September 2009 as a part of the club's basketball department. The Rolling Devils entered league play of the German Wheelchair Sports Federation in the season 2010/11 on the level of the third-class Regional League (Central Conference). The team won the Regional Cup and advanced to the quarter finals of the German National Cup. The Devils finished the season with the championship and promotion to the 2nd German Wheelchair Basketball Federal League (Southern Conference).

In the next two seasons the Devils dropped from German Wheelchair Sports Cup in the group stage, but finished as runner-ups in the 2nd Federal League. In 2013 the team participated for the German Wheelchair Sports Federation in International Wheelchair Basketball Federation Euroleague 3 and finished in third place.

In March 2013, FCK Rolling Devils re-established as a separate wheelchair basketball department. In the season 2013/14 the Rolling Devils again advanced to the quarter finals of the German National Cup and in the third attempt won the championship in the 2nd German Federal League thereby gaining promotion to the 1st German Federal League. In the season 2014/15, the Devils made it again to the quarter finals of the German National Cup and finished their first season in the 1st German Federal League on rank 7 and thereby as the best promoted team of the last four seasons.

In July 2015, the spin-off of FCK Rolling Devils as independent club with 1.FC Kaiserslautern acting as name sponsor took place. The wheelchair basketball department at 1.FC Kaiserslautern was suspended at the annual general meeting of the club in December 2015. In the season 2015/16, the Devils again made it to the quarter finals of the German National Cup and finished the season on rank 7.

In August 2016, the club withdrew its first team from the 1st German Federal League for financial and sports reasons and continued league play in the third-class regional league.

National

2nd team

Leaves 2016

Matthias Heimbach, Kai Möller (both BG Baskets Hamburg, ), Mark Beissert (Baskets Rahden, ), Janic Binda (Dinamo Lab Sassari, ), Ryan Wright (Doneck Dolphins Trier, )), Paul Capasso (new team unknown)

Season by season

(green highlighting: promotion, red highlighting: relegation)

Current players

Former players

Notable coaches

Naming

The naming in wheel chair basketball at 1.FC Kaiserslautern is influenced by the club's image from soccer: The team name Rolling Devils traces back to the nickname Red Devils of 1.FC Kaiserslautern's soccer team, the wheel chair basketball team like the club's professional soccer team also has a devil at mascot, and like the Fritz-Walter-Stadion in soccer, the home playing site of FCK Rolling Devils is commonly known as hell (of Kaiserslautern).

Fans

Since 2012, FCK Rolling Devils welcome on average more than 250 spectators at their home games and are thereby one of the most visited wheel chair basketball teams in Germany. Devils fan culture has strong ties to 1.FC Kaiserslautern's club culture in soccer: the unofficial fan club Rolling Devils Supporters overlaps with soccer fan clubs and the fan culture features many elements from soccer fandom.

Media

FCK Rolling Devils host a homepage, one of the most popular Facebook sites in German wheel chair basketball and also their own YouTube channel.

Awards

For their social commitment, FCK Rolling Devils in 2011 received the Stern des Sports (Star of Sports) in bronze from the German Olympic Sports Confederation and in 2013 the Brückenpreis (Bridge award) of the federal state Rhineland-Palatinate.