Hamburg

The club can trace its history back to 1919 when three sports clubs formed to create HSV. The club however, recognizes a previous merger in 1887 as the official date of the club’s formation, as one of the three started that year. This merger was largely due to financial struggles caused by WWI, forcing the three sides to join together in an attempt to survive.

This new club’s first success came in 1923 when they won the National German title. They lost the next year, but secured another title a few years later in 1928. During the reign of the Third Reich, they won 5 league titles in less than 10 years, but did not have national success.

Following WWII, HSV won another league title in 1946 and became the first German club to tour the USA in 1950. The club became a regional superpower and won another German National title in 1960, qualifying them to represent West Germany in the European Cup. They reached the semifinals before being knocked out by Barcelona, and the home crowd of 77,600 is still a record attendance for the club.

When the Bundesliga was formed in the 1960s, HSV was one of the 16 clubs invited to join that inaugural season. They were the only club in the Bundesliga to remain in the top flight from 1963 until they were relegated for the first time in 2018. In 1963 the club won its first DFB Pokal after taking down Borussia Dortmund. The 70s were the clubs Golden Era, as they won their second DFB Pokal and had their first international success, winning the 1976–77 European Cup Winners’ Cup. They also finished 2nd in the league in 1976, their best finish in club history. HSV also signed Kevin Keegan from European champions Liverpool, and Keegan won the Ballon D’or in 1977 and 78. With his success in 1980, it also led to the club’s very first Bundesliga title, a feat they repeated in 1982 and 1983.

In 1983 HSV overcame several disappointing European Cup finishes from the last several years to win their first European Cup against Juventus. Their next taste of success was another DFB-Pokal in 1987, but this would be their last success for quite some time. During the 90s, results became worse and worse, with the club becoming a regular in the bottom half of the table and going through some financial difficulty. In 2003, the club won its first trophy in 16 years when they defeated Borussia Dortmund to win the DFB-Ligapokal. In the years following, HSV made some cup semifinals and had some decent league finishes, but were never able to regain the same type of success.

Unfortunately in 2018, this led to the team’s first relegation to the 2. Bundesliga, marking their first season outside of the Bundesliga since its founding in 1963. They had been, to that point, the only club to play every Bundesliga season as well as the longest-running top-tier team in Germany.

Since then, they have managed to make the promotion playoff several times, but have not been able to seal their promotion back up. They still remain in 2.Bundesliga for the 2024-25 season.

2023-24 SEASON: 4th in 2. Bundesliga, DFB Pokal Round of 16

2024-25 SEASON: 2. Bundesliga (since 2018)

Hamburger SV shares two main rivalries. The first being the ​​Nordderby, which they share with Werder Bremen and the second being the Hamburg derby, which they share with St. Pauli. The Nordderby started in 1927 and since then the two teams have met 156 times, with Werder Bremen holding the lead with 58 wins. The two clubs originate from the two largest cities in the north of Germany which also leads to the rivalry.

The Hamburg derby is slightly older, as the two clubs first played each other in 1919. Hamburger has 70 wins all time, to St. Pauli’s 24. This rivalry goes beyond football and has had many political square offs over the years, making each time they play a hotly contested affair.

The women’s team was founded in 1970 and has played consistently in the Bundesliga, until 2012 when they were relegated. The club currently plays in the 2. Bundesliga and has yet to claim a major trophy.

The club plays its home games at the Volksparkstadion, which replaced the old Volksparkstadion in 2000. The previous stadium had hosted World Cup matches and European Championship matches. A very interesting fact about the stadium is HSV fans can be buried at a dedicated graveyard near the home stadium, covered in turf from the original Hamburg pitch.

TOURS: Available on the club website.

GETTING THERE: It’s out on the edge of town, so take the S-Bahn (metro) from the center, either line S3 or S21. That still leaves about a 15-minute walk.

PUBS and GRUB: Nothing by the stadium.

AROUND TOWN: We were only there for the Euros, but it seems like a fun city. More research is required.