SpVgg Ansbach

History

The club roots go back to the 1909 formation of a football department within the gymnastics club Turnverein 1860 Ansbach. The team disappeared for a period of three years during World War I but was re-formed in 1917 as the independent club Sportverein 1909 Ansbach by the footballers of TV and 1. FC 1912 Ansbach. A highlight of the club's early years came in 1928 with the capture of the A-Klasse Mittelfranken title and subsequent promotion playoff win over 1. FC Zirndorf that advanced the club to the second tier Kreisliga where they would compete until 1937.

Following World War II most organizations in the country, including sports and football clubs, were dissolved by occupying Allied authorities. The club was re-established in 1945 as Sportverein Ansbach out of the membership of a number of local sports clubs. On 30 November 1948, the association was renamed Turn- und Sportverein Ansbach and, in 1951, the footballers went their own way again as Spielvereinigung 1909 Ansbach.

The team advanced to the fourth tier 2nd Amateurliga Bayern in 1953 for a single season, and after being sent down, promptly returned in 1955. They played at that level until sent down through league restructuring in the early 60s. The club qualified for DFB Pokal (German Cup) play for the first time in 1981 and advanced out of the first round by defeating FSV Pfaffenhofen 1–0. In the next round they were soundly thrashed by second division side Stuttgarter Kickers (0:13). Ansbach returned briefly to fourth tier play in the Landesliga Bayern-Mitte in 1985 and again qualified to participate in the opening round of the DFB Pokal the same year where they were put out 0–3 by SV Waldhof Mannheim.

SpVgg spent eleven seasons in the Landesliga with a fifth place in 1993 as its best result, but was then relegated to the Bezirksoberliga Mittelfranken in 1996. This lasted for only one season, earning promotion straight back and returning to the Landesliga as a much more competitive side.

Ansbach enjoyed their best successes to date in the late 90s as they won promotion first to the Fußball-Bayernliga (IV) in 1999, and two seasons later, to the Regionalliga Süd (III). However, they had a difficult time in the third tier, and after a 12 game winless streak and a next to last place finish, the team was sent down.

The club continued to struggle after being sent down and narrowly missed relegation in each of the next two campaigns. They were finally relegated to the Landesliga Bayern (V) after a 15th place finish in 2004–05. Ansbach promptly rebounded and on the strength of a division title in 2006–07 and won promotion back to the Fußball-Bayernliga (IV) for three seasons, before it was relegated again in 2010.

After only being saved from relegation from the Landesliga in 2012 by a league expansion Ansbach won the Landesliga Bayern-Nordwest in 2014 and earned promotion back to the Bayernliga. After a fifteenth place in 2014–15 the club had to enter the relegation round where it lost to 1. FC Bad Kötzting and was relegated. Ansbach won its Landesliga division in the following season and was promoted back to the Bayernliga.

Honours

The club's honours:

Recent seasons

The recent season-by-season performance of the club:

Stadium

Since 1976 the club has played its home matches at the Sportpark Ansbach which has a capacity of 5,000 (1,000 seats).

DFB Cup appearances

The club has qualified for the first round of the German Cup three times:

American football department

From 1979 to 1981, the club was home to an American football department, the Ansbach Grizzlies. The Grizzlies were a successful team during the early days of the game in Germany, reaching every German Bowl from 1979 to 1986 and winning it in 1981, 1982 and 1985. In 1981, this department however went its own way, separating from the SpVgg.