Oberliga West (1947-63)
Encyclopedia
Oberliga West
Founded
1947
Disbanded
1963
Nation
State
Nordrhein-Westfalen
Relegation To
2nd Oberliga West
2nd Oberliga West
The 2nd Oberliga West was the second-highest level of the German football league system in the west of Germany from 1949 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963. It covered the state of Nordrhein-Westfalen, the most populous state of Germany....

Number of Seasons
16
Replaced by
Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...

Level on Pyramid
Level 1
German football league system
The German football league system, or league pyramid, refers to a series of hierarchically interconnected leagues for association football clubs in Germany that consists of over 2,300 men's divisions, in which all leagues are bound together by the principle of promotion and relegation...

Last Champions 1962-63
1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln is a German association football club based in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 as a merger of the clubs Kölner Ballspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07....



The Oberliga West (Premier league West) was the highest level of the German football league system
German football league system
The German football league system, or league pyramid, refers to a series of hierarchically interconnected leagues for association football clubs in Germany that consists of over 2,300 men's divisions, in which all leagues are bound together by the principle of promotion and relegation...

 in the west of Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

 from 1947 until the formation
Introduction of the Fußball-Bundesliga
The Introduction of the Fußball-Bundesliga was the long-debated step of establishing a top-level association football league in Germany in 1963. The new league, the Fußball-Bundesliga, played its first season in 1963–64 and continues to be the higest league in the country...

 of the Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...

 in 1963. It covered the state of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...

, the most populous state of Germany.

Overview

The league was created in 1947 as the highest level of football in the newly created state of Nordrhein-Westfalen, then part of the British occupation zone
Allied Occupation Zones in Germany
The Allied powers who defeated Nazi Germany in World War II divided the country west of the Oder-Neisse line into four occupation zones for administrative purposes during 1945–49. In the closing weeks of fighting in Europe, US forces had pushed beyond the previously agreed boundaries for the...

. It replaced the various Gauligas
Gauliga
A Gauliga was the highest level of play in German football from 1934-45. The leagues were introduced in 1933, after the Nazi takeover of power by the Sports office of the Third Reich.-Name:...

, which had existed until 1945 in the region:
  • Gauliga Köln-Aachen
  • Gauliga Moselland
  • Gauliga Niederrhein
    Gauliga Niederrhein
    The Gauliga Niederrhein was the highest football league in the northern part of the Prussian Rhine Province from 1933 to 1945. Shortly after the formation of the league, the Nazis reorganised the administrative regions in Germany, and the Gaue Essen and Düsseldorf replaced the Prussian province in...

  • Gauliga Westfalen
    Gauliga Westfalen
    The Gauliga Westphalia was the highest football league in the Prussian province of Westphalia and the small Free State of Lippe from 1933 to 1945...



The league was, together with the Oberliga Nord, the last of the five Oberligas to be formed, the other four being:
  • Oberliga Nord
    Oberliga Nord (1947-63)
    The Oberliga Nord was the highest level of the German football league system in the north of Germany from 1947 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963. It covered the states of Lower Saxony, Bremen, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein.-Overview:...

     (formed in 1947)
  • Oberliga Berlin
    Oberliga Berlin (1945-63)
    The Oberliga Berlin was the highest level of the German football league system in the city of West-Berlin in Germany from 1945 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963. It was by far the smallest of the five Oberligas.-Overview:...

     (formed in 1945, originally with clubs from west and east Berlin)
  • Oberliga Südwest
    Oberliga Südwest (1945-63)
    The Oberliga Südwest was the highest level of the German football league system in the southwest of Germany from 1945 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963. It covered the two states of Rheinland-Pfalz and Saarland.-Overview:...

     (formed in 1945)
  • Oberliga Süd
    Oberliga Süd (1945-63)
    The Oberliga Süd was the highest level of the German football league system in the south of Germany from 1945 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963.It covered the three states of Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and Hessen.-Overview:...

     (formed in 1945)


The Oberliga West was formed from thirteen clubs from the Landesligas Niederrhein, Mittelrhein and Westfalen. The Landesligas remained the second tier of football in the West until 1949, when the 2nd Oberliga West
2nd Oberliga West
The 2nd Oberliga West was the second-highest level of the German football league system in the west of Germany from 1949 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963. It covered the state of Nordrhein-Westfalen, the most populous state of Germany....

 was formed.

With the reintroduction of the German championship in 1948, the winner and runners-up of the Oberliga West went on to the finals tournament with the other Oberliga champions. The Oberliga West, together with the Oberliga Süd, were the strongest of the five Oberligas, winning six German titles each in the Oberliga period from 1948 to 1963.

Founding members of the Oberliga West

  • Borussia Dortmund
    Borussia Dortmund
    Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...

  • Sportfreunde Katernberg
  • STV Horst-Emscher
  • SV Hamborn 07
  • Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
    Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
    Rot-Weiß Oberhausen is a German association football club in Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club was formed as Oberhausener SV in December 1904 out of the merger of Emschertaler SV and the football enthusiasts of Oberhausener TV 1873...

  • FC Schalke 04
    FC Schalke 04
    Fußball-Club Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04, commonly known as simply FC Schalke 04 or Schalke , is a German, association-football club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. Schalke has long been one of the most popular football teams in Germany, even though major...

  • Fortuna Düsseldorf
    Fortuna Düsseldorf
    ' is a German association football club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, currently playing in the second tier of German league football, the 2. Fußball-Bundesliga...

  • SpVgg Erkenschwick
    SpVgg Erkenschwick
    SpVgg Erkenschwick is a German football club based in Oer-Erkenschwick in North Rhine-Westphalia.- History :Founded as Sportverein Erkenschwick in 1916, they joined Emscher-Lippe-Spielverband to form Sportfreunde Erkenschwick in 1918, which in then merged with Turn- und Leichtathletikverein TV...

  • Alemannia Aachen
    Alemannia Aachen
    Alemannia Aachen is a German football club from the western city of Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia. A long term fixture of the country's second division, Alemannia enjoyed a three-year turn in the top flight in the late 1960s and, after a successful 2005–06 campaign, returned to first division play...

  • TSG Vohwinkel
    Wuppertaler SV Borussia
    Wuppertaler SV Borussia is a German association football club located in Wuppertal, North Rhine-Westphalia. The city was founded in 1929 out of the union of a number of smaller towns including Elberfeld, Barmen, Vohwinkel, Cronenberg and Ronsdorf – each with its own football club...

    , (to become Wuppertaler SV)
  • Preußen Dellbrück
    Viktoria Köln
    FC Viktoria Köln 1904 is a German association football club from the city of Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia.- History :Founded in 1904 as FC Germania Kalk it is one of the oldest football clubs in the city. In 1909 Germania merged with FC Kalk to form SV Kalk 04 and in 1911 this club was, in...

    , (to become Viktoria Köln)
  • VfR Köln
    Viktoria Köln
    FC Viktoria Köln 1904 is a German association football club from the city of Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia.- History :Founded in 1904 as FC Germania Kalk it is one of the oldest football clubs in the city. In 1909 Germania merged with FC Kalk to form SV Kalk 04 and in 1911 this club was, in...

    , (to become Viktoria Köln)
  • VfL Witten

Disbanding of the Oberliga

With the introduction of the Bundesliga, five teams from the Oberliga West were admitted to the new Bundesliga. The remaining clubs went to the new Regionalliga West
Regionalliga West (1963-74)
The Regionalliga West was the second-highest level of the German football league system in the west of Germany from 1963 until the formation of the 2nd Bundesliga in 1974...

, one of five new second divisions.

The teams admitted to the Bundesliga were:
  • 1. FC Köln
    1. FC Köln
    1. FC Köln is a German association football club based in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 as a merger of the clubs Kölner Ballspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07....

  • Borussia Dortmund
    Borussia Dortmund
    Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...

  • MSV Duisburg
    MSV Duisburg
    MSV Duisburg is a German association football club based in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. Nicknamed "the Zebras" for their traditional striped jerseys, the club was one of the original members of the Bundesliga when it was formed in 1963.-Early years:...

  • SC Preußen Münster
    SC Preußen Münster
    SC Preußen Münster are a German association football club based in Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia.-History:The club was founded as FC Preussen in 1906 and has its roots in a group formed at the Johann-Conrad-Schlaun Grammar School...

  • FC Schalke 04
    FC Schalke 04
    Fußball-Club Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04, commonly known as simply FC Schalke 04 or Schalke , is a German, association-football club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. Schalke has long been one of the most popular football teams in Germany, even though major...



The following teams from the Oberliga went to the new Regionalliga:
  • Alemannia Aachen
    Alemannia Aachen
    Alemannia Aachen is a German football club from the western city of Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia. A long term fixture of the country's second division, Alemannia enjoyed a three-year turn in the top flight in the late 1960s and, after a successful 2005–06 campaign, returned to first division play...

  • Schwarz-Weiß Essen
  • Viktoria Köln
    Viktoria Köln
    FC Viktoria Köln 1904 is a German association football club from the city of Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia.- History :Founded in 1904 as FC Germania Kalk it is one of the oldest football clubs in the city. In 1909 Germania merged with FC Kalk to form SV Kalk 04 and in 1911 this club was, in...

  • Bayer Leverkusen
    Bayer Leverkusen
    Bayer 04 Leverkusen is a German football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the most well-known department of TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen, a sports club whose members also participate in athletics, gymnastics, basketball and other sports.-Origins and early years:On 27 November...

  • Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
    Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
    Rot-Weiß Oberhausen is a German association football club in Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club was formed as Oberhausener SV in December 1904 out of the merger of Emschertaler SV and the football enthusiasts of Oberhausener TV 1873...

  • Borussia Mönchengladbach
    Borussia Mönchengladbach
    Borussia Mönchengladbach is a German association football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia. The team plays in the Bundesliga and is one of the country's most well-known, well-supported, and successful teams. Borussia Mönchengladbach has over 40,000 members and is the sixth...

  • SV Hamborn 07
  • Fortuna Düsseldorf
    Fortuna Düsseldorf
    ' is a German association football club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, currently playing in the second tier of German league football, the 2. Fußball-Bundesliga...

  • Westfalia Herne
    Westfalia Herne
    SC Westfalia Herne is a German football club based in Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club was founded on 13 June 1904 by the sons of the more well-heeled residents of the city as a rival to the worker-based club SV Sodingen.- History :...

  • Wuppertaler SV
  • TSV Marl-Hüls

Qualifying to the Bundesliga

The qualifying system for the new league was fairly complex. The league placings of the clubs playing in the Oberligen for the last ten seasons were taken into consideration, whereby results from 1952 to 1955 counted once, results from 1955 to 1959 counted double and results from 1959 to 1963 triple. A first place finish was awarded 16 points, a sixteenth place one point. Appearances in the German championship or DFB-Pokal
DFB-Pokal
The DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga...

 finals were also rewarded with points. The five Oberliga champions of the 1962-63 season were granted direct access to the Bundesliga. All up, 46 clubs applied for the 16 available Bundesliga slots.

Following this system, by 11 January 1963, the DFB announced nine fixed clubs for the new league and reduced the clubs eligible for the remaining seven places to 20. Clubs within the same Oberliga that were separated by less than 50 points were considered on equal rank and the 1962-63 placing was used to determined the qualified team.

All Oberliga West clubs except TSV Marl-Hüls applied for Bundesliga membership. Borussia Dortmund, 1. FC Köln and FC Schalke 04 qualified early. Meidericher SV and Preußen Münster qualified even though both clubs had less points than Alemannia Aachen
Alemannia Aachen
Alemannia Aachen is a German football club from the western city of Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia. A long term fixture of the country's second division, Alemannia enjoyed a three-year turn in the top flight in the late 1960s and, after a successful 2005–06 campaign, returned to first division play...

. Aachen finished fifth, Meidericher SV came in fourth and Preußen Münster earned a third place finish in 1962–63.

Points table:
Rank Club Points 1952 to 1963 Place in 1962–63
1 1. FC Köln 1 466 1
2 Borussia Dortmund 1 440 2
3 FC Schalke 04 1 396 6
4 Alemannia Aachen 2 285 5
5 Preußen Münster 2 251 4
6 Meidericher SV 2 250 3
7 Fortuna Düsseldorf 2 225 13
8 Westfalia Herne 2 222 14
9 Viktoria Köln 3 201 8
10 Schwarz-Weiß Essen 2 167 7
11 Rot-Weiß Oberhausen 2 154 10
12 Borussia Mönchengladbach 3 155 11
13 Hamborn 07 3 101 12
14 Bayer Leverkusen 3 88 9
15 Wuppertaler SV 4 52 15
  • Source: DSFS Liga-Chronik , page: B 11, accessed: 4 November 2008
  • Bold denotes club qualified for the new Bundesliga.
  • 1 denotes club was one of the nine selected on 11 January 1963.
  • 2 denotes club was one of the 20 taken into final selection.
  • 3 denotes club was one of the 15 applicants which were removed from final selection.
  • 4 denotes club withdrew Bundesliga application.

Winners and runners-up of the Oberliga West

Season Winner Runner-Up
1947-48 Borussia Dortmund Sportfreunde Katernberg
1948-49 Borussia Dortmund Rot-Weiß Essen
1949-50 Borussia Dortmund Preußen Dellbrück
1950-51 FC Schalke 04 Preußen Münster
1951-52 Rot-Weiß Essen FC Schalke 04
1952-53 Borussia Dortmund 1. FC Köln
1953-54 1. FC Köln Rot-Weiß Essen
1954-55 Rot-Weiß Essen SV Sodingen
1955-56 Borussia Dortmund FC Schalke 04
1956-57 Borussia Dortmund Duisburger SV
1957-58 FC Schalke 04 1. FC Köln
1958-59 Westfalia Herne 1. FC Köln
1959-60 1. FC Köln Westfalia Herne
1960-61 1. FC Köln Borussia Dortmund
1961-62 1. FC Köln FC Schalke 04
1962-63 1. FC Köln Borussia Dortmund


Source:
  • Bold denotes team went on to win German championship.

Placings & overall table of the Oberliga West 1947 to 1963

Club 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 S G GF GA Points
Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...

1 1 1 3 4 1 5 5 1 1 5 5 3 2 8 2 16 506 1243 738 654
1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln
1. FC Köln is a German association football club based in Cologne, North Rhine-Westphalia. It was formed in 1948 as a merger of the clubs Kölner Ballspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07....

5 4 5 2 1 8 7 3 2 2 1 1 1 1 14 463 1097 657 591
FC Schalke 04
FC Schalke 04
Fußball-Club Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04, commonly known as simply FC Schalke 04 or Schalke , is a German, association-football club originally from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. Schalke has long been one of the most popular football teams in Germany, even though major...

6 12 6 1 2 6 3 6 2 4 1 11 4 3 2 6 16 495 1051 753 587
Alemannia Aachen
Alemannia Aachen
Alemannia Aachen is a German football club from the western city of Aachen, North Rhine-Westphalia. A long term fixture of the country's second division, Alemannia enjoyed a three-year turn in the top flight in the late 1960s and, after a successful 2005–06 campaign, returned to first division play...

9 8 12 15 3 5 9 11 3 5 3 10 9 8 11 5 16 469 847 853 484
Rot-Weiß Essen 2 3 6 1 3 2 1 5 8 7 6 6 15 13 399 802 604 470
Preußen Münster 4 8 2 7 7 4 9 12 13 6 7 10 9 7 4 15 451 810 764 466
Fortuna Düsseldorf
Fortuna Düsseldorf
' is a German association football club based in Düsseldorf, North Rhine-Westphalia, currently playing in the second tier of German league football, the 2. Fußball-Bundesliga...

7 11 5 12 9 10 7 6 6 8 3 15 9 13 14 408 763 725 405
MSV Duisburg
MSV Duisburg
MSV Duisburg is a German association football club based in Duisburg, North Rhine-Westphalia. Nicknamed "the Zebras" for their traditional striped jerseys, the club was one of the original members of the Bundesliga when it was formed in 1963.-Early years:...

8 4 11 15 7 4 8 8 11 5 3 11 330 546 517 343
Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
Rot-Weiß Oberhausen
Rot-Weiß Oberhausen is a German association football club in Oberhausen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club was formed as Oberhausener SV in December 1904 out of the merger of Emschertaler SV and the football enthusiasts of Oberhausener TV 1873...

5 5 11 13 11 12 13 4 3 10 10 288 439 468 290
Westfalia Herne
Westfalia Herne
SC Westfalia Herne is a German football club based in Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club was founded on 13 June 1904 by the sons of the more well-heeled residents of the city as a rival to the worker-based club SV Sodingen.- History :...

13 13 11 12 1 2 5 6 14 9 280 481 461 284
Duisburger SV 10 16 4 4 2 10 9 5 13 16 10 303 447 558 276
SV Hamborn 07 4 6 9 7 16 16 16 12 7 12 12 11 319 439 590 264
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Mönchengladbach is a German association football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-Westphalia. The team plays in the Bundesliga and is one of the country's most well-known, well-supported, and successful teams. Borussia Mönchengladbach has over 40,000 members and is the sixth...

14 14 12 14 11 16 13 14 6 13 11 11 331 503 762 263
Preussen Dellbrück * 11 2 8 9 8 13 10 14 12 9 268 425 483 255
Schwarz-Weiß Essen 11 13 6 12 8 15 16 4 7 9 270 463 471 252
SV Sodingen
SV Sodingen
SV Sodingen is a German association football club based in Herne, North Rhine-Westphalia. The team currently plays in the Landesliga, the seventh tier of German football. Although a regional league side today, the club played in the first division Oberliga West through most of the 1950s and into...

11 14 2 9 14 13 15 14 15 9 277 404 479 240
STV Horst-Emscher 3 3 4 10 13 12 16 16 8 230 383 475 202
VfL Bochum
VfL Bochum
Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum, is a German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia.-Founding to World War II:...

8 16 10 14 4 11 16 7 210 331 374 193
Bayer 04 Leverkusen 6 10 7 3 15 9 6 180 298 337 175
Viktoria Köln
Viktoria Köln
FC Viktoria Köln 1904 is a German association football club from the city of Cologne in North Rhine-Westphalia.- History :Founded in 1904 as FC Germania Kalk it is one of the oldest football clubs in the city. In 1909 Germania merged with FC Kalk to form SV Kalk 04 and in 1911 this club was, in...

9 14 7 10 10 8 6 180 366 415 166
SpVgg Erkenschwick
SpVgg Erkenschwick
SpVgg Erkenschwick is a German football club based in Oer-Erkenschwick in North Rhine-Westphalia.- History :Founded as Sportverein Erkenschwick in 1916, they joined Emscher-Lippe-Spielverband to form Sportfreunde Erkenschwick in 1918, which in then merged with Turn- und Leichtathletikverein TV...

8 9 7 11 14 16 6 168 267 343 143
Sportfreunde Katernberg 2 13 12 10 15 5 139 251 308 124
Wuppertaler SV * 10 9 15 15 4 120 173 240 100
Rheydter SV 9 15 15 3 90 150 221 71
TSV Marl-Hüls 12 14 16 3 90 130 212 65
TSG Vohwinkel * 10 7 14 3 78 116 161 63
Rhenania Würselen 10 13 2 54 78 100 47
VfR Köln * 12 1 24 23 43 17
Arminia Bielefeld
Arminia Bielefeld
DSC Arminia Bielefeld is a German sports club from Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia. Arminia offers the sports of football, field hockey, figure skating and cue sports. The club has 11,394 members and the club colours are black, white and blue...

15 1 30 32 72 17
FV Duisburg 08 16 1 30 29 66 14
VfL Witten 13 1 24 30 56 13

Source:
  • Table includes results from the finals rounds of the German championship.
  • Preussen Dellbrück merged with SC Rapid Köln in 1957 to form Viktoria Köln. SC Rapid Köln was itself a merger club, incooperating VfR Köln.
  • SSV Wuppertal and TSG Vohwinkel merged in 1954 to form Wuppertaler SV.

Sources

  • Kicker Almanach, The yearbook on German football from Bundesliga to Oberliga, since 1937, published by the Kicker Sports Magazine
    Kicker (sports magazine)
    kicker Sportmagazin is Germany's leading sports magazine and is focused primarily on football. The magazine was founded in 1920 by German football pioneer Walther Bensemann and is published twice a week, usually Monday and Thursday, in Nuremberg...

  • Die Deutsche Liga-Chronik 1945-2005 History of German football from 1945 to 2005 in tables, publisher: DSFS, published: 2006

External links

Das deutsche Fussball Archiv Historic German league tables Oberliga West at Fussballdaten.de
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK