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First Vienna FC

First Vienna FC
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Full nameFirst Vienna Football Club 1894
Nickname(s)Vienna
Founded22 August 1894; 131 years ago (1894-08-22)
GroundHohe Warte Stadium
Capacity5,500
ManagerAlexandar Gizow
League2. Liga
2024–252. Liga, 5th of 16
Current season

First Vienna FC is an Austrian football club based in the Döbling district of Vienna. Established on 22 August 1894, it is the country's oldest team and has played a notable role in the history of the game there. It is familiarly known to Austrians by the English name Vienna.

History

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Foundation and early years

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First Vienna FC was founded on 22 August 1894 in Döbling, making it the oldest football club in Austria.[1] The club’s colours blue and yellow derived from Rothschild racing uniforms, while the triskelion logo was designed by Manx player William Beale.[2] On 15 November 1894, Vienna played its first official match, a 0–4 loss to Vienna Cricket and Football-Club.[3]

The club captured the Challenge Cup in 1899 and 1900, one of the first international tournaments in Central Europe.[4]

Golden era

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Vienna enjoyed major success between the late 1920s and 1930s, winning the Austrian Cup in 1929 and 1930, the Austrian Championship in 1931 and 1933, and the Mitropa Cup in 1931, unbeaten across all matches.[5] The team added another Austrian Cup in 1937.

Gauliga and World War II

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Following the Anschluss in 1938, Vienna played in the Gauliga Ostmark. They won divisional titles in 1942, 1943 and 1944, reaching the German Championship Final in 1942 (losing 0–2 to Schalke 04). In 1943, the club became the Tschammerpokal (German Cup) winner, defeating Luftwaffen-SV Hamburg 3–2 after extra time.[6]

Postwar period

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After Austria regained independence, Vienna claimed the Austrian Championship in 1955, edging Wiener Sport-Club on goal quotient.[7]

Decline and fluctuating fortunes

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From the 1960s, Vienna faced several relegations. They returned to the top flight in 1986, and highlights included two UEFA Cup appearances (1988–89, 1989–90).[8]

Vienna reached the Austrian Cup Final in 1997 (losing 1–2 to Sturm Graz), but financial difficulties deepened. By 2000, the club was relegated to the Regionalliga Ost (third tier). In 2017, after sponsor Care-Energy went bankrupt, the club entered insolvency proceedings, and by court order was demoted to the fifth division.[9]

Revival

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Despite financial setbacks, Vienna began climbing back up: champions of the 2. Landesliga Wien in 2019, they later secured promotion to the Regionalliga Ost (2021) and the Austrian Second League in 2022.[10]

First Vienna FC in Europe

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Season Competition Round Country Club Home Away Aggregate
1988–89 UEFA Cup 1 Denmark Ikast FS 1–0 1–2 2–2 (a)
2 Finland TPS Turku 2–1 0–1 2–2 (a)
1989–90 UEFA Cup 1 Malta Valletta 3–0 4–1 7–1
2 Greece Olympiacos Piraeus 2–2 1–1 3–3 (a)

Current squad

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As of 9 August, 2025[11]

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Austria AUT Bernhard Unger
4 DF Austria AUT Niklas Szerencsi
5 DF Austria AUT Santino Pistrol
6 MF Austria AUT Markus Rusek
7 FW Austria AUT Christoph Monschein
8 MF Austria AUT Bernhard Luxbacher
9 FW Austria AUT Amir Abdijanovic
10 FW Austria AUT Marco Djuricin
14 MF South Korea KOR Seo Jong-min
16 FW Austria AUT Patrick Schmidt
17 DF Austria AUT Benjamin Rosenberger
18 FW Austria AUT Bernhard Zimmermann
19 DF Austria AUT Niklas Alozie
20 MF Austria AUT Felix Nagele
21 MF Ivory Coast CIV Gontie Junior Diomandé
No. Pos. Nation Player
22 DF Austria AUT Osarenren Okungbowa
25 DF Austria AUT Jürgen Bauer
26 GK Austria AUT Moritz Troindl
27 FW Austria AUT Vincent Zeidler
28 MF Austria AUT Kai Stratznig
34 DF Austria AUT Dean Titkov
36 DF Austria AUT Kelechi Nnamdi
37 MF Austria AUT Louis Birkhahn
41 GK Austria AUT Christopher Giuliani
45 FW The Gambia GAM Susso Bamba
59 FW Turkey TUR Yalın Dilek
66 MF Austria AUT David Ungar
77 FW Austria AUT Luca Edelhofer
80 MF Austria AUT Aris Stogiannidis

Notable players

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Honours

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References

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  1. ^ "Milestones". First Vienna FC. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  2. ^ "13 Dinge über die Vienna" (in German). Kicker. 22 August 2024.
  3. ^ "130 Jahre First Vienna FC – ein Blick auf die Geschichte" (in German). Die Nachrichten. 22 August 2024.
  4. ^ "First Vienna FC". Ganz Wien. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  5. ^ "Mitropa Cup 1931". RSSSF. 13 December 1999.
  6. ^ "Club history". First Vienna FC. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  7. ^ "Milestones in First Vienna FC's history". First Vienna FC.
  8. ^ "First Vienna FC". Ganz Wien. Retrieved 25 August 2025.
  9. ^ "Vienna muss Insolvenz anmelden" (in German). ORF. 2 March 2017.
  10. ^ "First Vienna FC steigt in die 2. Liga auf!" (in German). laola1.at. 20 May 2022.
  11. ^ "First Vienna FC–Squad". First Vienna FC. Retrieved 4 March 2025.
  12. ^ "Tournoi de l'Exposition Coloniale (Paris-Vincennes, May-Nov 1931)". Archived from the original on 22 January 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  13. ^ "Tournoi de l'Exposition Coloniale (Paris-Vincennes, May-Nov 1931)". Archived from the original on 22 January 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
  14. ^ "Tournoi de l'Exposition Coloniale (Paris-Vincennes, May-Nov 1931)". Archived from the original on 22 January 2023. Retrieved 2 February 2023.
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48°14′56″N 16°21′35″E / 48.24889°N 16.35972°E / 48.24889; 16.35972