1938–39 FC Basel season

The FC Basel 1938–39 season was the forty-sixth season since the club's foundation on 15 November 1893. FC Basel played their home games in the Landhof in the district Wettstein in Kleinbasel. Emil Junker was the club chairman and it was his third consecutive season as club president. The club had financial and sporting problems over the previous few years and these continued this season.

FC Basel
1938–39 season
ChairmanSwitzerland Emil Junker
First team coachSwitzerland Fernand Jaccard
GroundLandhof, Basel
Nationalliga12th (relegated)
Swiss CupRound 2
Top goalscorerLeague: Eduard Buser (11)
All: Eduard Buser (11)
Highest home attendance5,000 on 16 April 1939
vs Nordstern Basel
and on 19 May 1939
vs Lugano
Lowest home attendance3,000 on 4 September 1938
vs La Chaux-de-Fonds
and on 2 October 1938
vs Biel-Bienne
and on 27 November 1938
vs Grenchen
and on 18 December 1938
vs Grasshopper Club
Average home league attendance3,681

Overview

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According to statements in the 75th anniversary book written years later by author Jules Düblin (ex-player and ex-club chairman) the club had problems with the Swiss Football Association (SFA). The club was also having financial problems and these problems continued this season. The club suffered under the results of this confrontation with the SFA. These were mainly due to the transfer of the player Numa Monnard, who at the start of the season returned to his former club Cantonal Neuchatel.[1]

Fernand Jaccard who had been Basel's player-manager the previous season, continued for the club in the same position this season. Basel played a total of 29 matches in their 1938–39 season. 22 of these matches were in the Nationalliga, two in the Swiss Cup and five were friendly matches. Of these five friendlies two were played at home in the Landhof and the other three were also in Switzerland. Two friendly games were won, two drawn and one ended in a defeat.

12 teams contested the 1938–39 Nationalliga championship, which was played as a round-robin, one team to be relegated. Despite the fact that the players were well prepared for the season, as Düblin wrote in his summary, sportingly the season was very bad. Despite two victories over the two top clubs that season, Grasshopper Club and Grenchen, one catastrophic game followed the other. Of the 22 domestic league games only five ended with a win, 12 were defeats. The team ended in last position, two points behind Biel-Bienne and the Young Boys. Basel was relegated for the first time in the club history into the newly reorganized 1.Liga.[2]

In the first principal round of the Swiss Cup Basel were drawn at home against lower tier local rivals Concordia Basel and won 3–2. In the second round Basel were also drawn at home against a lower-tier team, but Brühl St. Gallen proved to be a strong competitor and Basel were defeated 1–3. and were thrown out of the competition.[3]

Players

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The following is the list of the Basel first team squad during the season 1938–39. The list includes players that were in the squad the day the season started on 24 July 1938 but subsequently left the club after that date.

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
GK   SUI Eugène de Kalbermatten
GK   SUI Fritz Glaser
GK   SUI Kurt Imhof
DF   SUI Henri Bernard
DF   SUI Robert Büchi
DF   SUI Louis Favre
DF   SUI Ernst Grauer
MF   SUI Ernst Hufschmid
DF   SUI Heinrich Diethelm
DF   SUI Heinz Elsässer
MF   SUI August Ibach
MF   SUI Fernand Jaccard
No. Pos. Nation Player
MF   SUI Albert Mohler
MF   FRG Franz Sattler
MF   SUI Fritz Schmidlin (I)
MF   SUI Guglielmo Spadini
MF   SUI Eduard Zuber
FW   SUI ? Bossoni
FW   SUI Eduard Buser
FW   SUI Maurice Dubosson
FW   SUI Eduard Irniger
FW   SUI Alex Mathys
FW   SUI Othmar Saner
FW   SUI René Schaller
FW   SUI Walter Zürrer
Players who left the squad

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
DF   GER Emil Hummel
MF   SUI Caspar Monigatti
No. Pos. Nation Player
FW   SUI Numa Monnard
FW   SUI Alfons Weber (II)

Results

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Legend

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  Win   Draw   Loss   Postponed

Friendly matches

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Pre-season

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24 July 1938 Pre-season Basel   4–1   Biel-Bienne Im Teichboden Oftringen
Buser   (1:0)
Ibach   (2:0)
Schaller   (3:1)
Spadini   (4:1)
Summary   (2:1) Attendance: 300
1 August 1938 Pre-season Basel   5–2   La Chaux-de-Fonds Landhof, Basel
17:30 Spadini   (2x)
Monigatti   (1x)
Ibach   (1x)
Buser   (1x)
Summary   (2x) Bösch Attendance: 1,000
Referee:   H. Neumann Basel
21 August 1938 Pre-season Basel   2–2   Freiburger FC Landhof, Basel
17:00 Buser   (1:1)
Ibach   (2:1)
Summary   (0:1) Beha
  (2:2) Beha
Attendance: 1,000
Referee:   Karl Wunderlin Basel
28 August 1938 Pre-season Young Boys   4–4   Basel Wankdorf Stadium, Bern
Bickel   (2x)
Sydler   (1x)
Lukacs   (1x)
Summary   (2x) Schmidlin (I)
  (1x) Spadini
  (1x) Ibach
Attendance: 1,800
Referee:   Gerber Bern

Mid-season

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6 November 1938 Mid-season La Chaux-de-Fonds   1–0   Basel Stade Charrière, La Chaux-de-Fonds
15:00 Trachsel   80' (1:0) Summary Attendance: 2,000
Referee:   Sandoz La Chaux-de-Fonds

Nationalliga

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League matches

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4 September 1938 Round 1 Basel 2–2 La Chaux-de-Fonds Landhof, Basel
15:00 Zuber   (1x)
Grauer   (1x)
Summary   (1x) Messerli
  (1x) Schweizer
Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Grassi Balerna
11 September 1938 Round 2 Grasshopper Club 4–0 Basel Hardturm, Zürich
15:00 Bickel   28' (1:0)
Fauguel   61' (2:0)
Rupf   73' (3:0)
Bickel   75' (4:0)
Summary Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Scherz Bern
25 September 1938 Round 3 Basel 4–1 Luzern Landhof, Basel
15:00 Buser   (4x) Summary   (1x) Semp Attendance: 3,500
Referee:   Spengler Olten
2 October 1936 Round 4 Basel 0–0 Biel-Bienne Landhof, Basel
15:00 Summary Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Gerber Bern
9 October 1938 Round 5 Servette 2–1 Basel Charmilles Stadium, Geneva
Aeby   7' (1:0)
Trello   88' (2:1)
Summary   73' (1:1) Jaccard Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Jaggi Bern
26 October 1938 Round 6 Basel 0–0 Young Boys Landhof, Basel
15:00 Summary Attendance: 4,500
Referee:   Allemann Biel/Bienne
23 October 1938 Round 9 Nordstern Basel 4–1 Basel Stadion Rankhof, Basel
15:00 Burkhardt   (2x)
Büche   (1x)
Forelli   (1x)
Summary   (1x) Ibach Attendance: 6,000
Referee:   Spengler Olten
30 October 1938 Round 7 Lugano 1–0 Basel Campo Marzio, Lugano
Forni   18' (1:0) Summary Attendance: 2,000
Referee:   Scherz Bern
13 November 1938 Round 8 Basel 0–1 Young Fellows Zürich Landhof, Basel
14:30 Summary   (0:1) Häfeli Attendance: 3,500
Referee:   Lutz Geneva
27 November 1938 Round 10 Basel 2–0 Grenchen Landhof, Basel
14:30 Grauer   4' (1:0)
Dubosson   (2:0)
Summary Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Spengler Olten
4 December 1938 Round 11 Lausanne-Sport 2–0 Basel Olympique de la Pontaise, Lausanne
14:30 Rochat   20' (1:0)
Spagnoli   40' (2:0)
Summary Attendance: 2,000
Referee:   Scherz Bern
11 December 1938 Round 12 La Chaux-de-Fonds 2–0 Basel Stade Charrière, La Chaux-de-Fonds
14:30 Volentik   (1:0)
Wagner   30' (2:0)
Summary Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Gerber Bern
18 December 1938 Round 13 Basel 3–1 Grasshopper Club Landhof, Basel
14:30 Buser   (2x)
Ibach   (1x)
Summary   (1x) Nausch Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Grassi Balerna
22 January 1939 Round 15 Biel-Bienne 4–1 Basel Gurzelen Stadion, Biel/Bienne
Frangi   (1:0)
Frangi   (2:0)
Weber   60' (3:0)
Tineli   85' (4:1)
Summary   75' (3:1) Spadini Attendance: 2,000
Referee:   Wittwer Geneva
19 February 1939 Round 14 Luzern 4–3 Basel Stadion Allmend, Luzern
Karcher   21' (1:1)
  34' (o.g. 2:2)
Karcher   37' (3:2)
Gloor   74' (4:2)
Summary   17' (0:1) Buser
  25' (1:2) Buser
  85' (4:3) Sattler
Attendance: 3,000
Referee:   Wittwer Geneva
26 February 1939 Round 16 Basel 0–1 Servette Landhof, Basel
15:00 Summary   63' (0:1) Walaschek Attendance: 3,500
Referee:   Scherz Bern
12 March 1939 Round 17 Young Boys 1–1 Basel Wankdorf Stadium, Bern
Halblinker   20'
Fish   82' (1:1)
Summary   80' (0:1) Ibach
  85' Schmidlin (I)
Attendance: 3,500
Referee:   Spengler Olten
19 March 1939 Round 18 Basel PP Lugano Landhof, Basel
[ Summary]
26 March 1935 Round 19 Young Fellows Zürich 1–1 Basel Letzigrund, Zürich
20:00 Kielholz   56' (1:1) Summary   49' (o.g. 0:1) Maag Attendance: 2,500
Referee:   Gerber Bern
15 April 1935 Round 20 Basel 0–1 Nordstern Basel Landhof, Basel
15:00 Summary   (0:1) Büche Attendance: 5,000
Referee:   Lutz Geneva
23 April 1939 Round 21 Grenchen 3–2 Basel Stadion Brühl, Grenchen
  (o.g. 1:1)
Artimovicz   (2:2)
Artimovicz   (3:2)
Summary   (0:1) Ibach
  (1:2) Buser
Attendance: 2,000
Referee:   Grassi Balerna
30 April 1939 Round 22 Basel 1–0 Lausanne-Sport Landhof, Basel
15:00 Mathys   77' (1:0) Summary Attendance: 3,500
Referee:   Jaggi Bern
18 May 1939 Round 18 Basel 7–0 Lugano Landhof, Basel
14:45 Ibach   (2x)
Buser   (2x)
Schmidlin (I)   (1x)
Mathys   (1x)
Bernard   (1x)
Summary Attendance: 5,000
Referee:   Wittwer Geneva

League table

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Pos Team Pld W D L GF GA GD Pts Qualification
1 Grasshopper Club 22 12 7 3 34 20 +14 31 Swiss Champions
2 Grenchen 22 10 7 5 38 30 +8 27
3 Lugano 22 11 5 6 29 23 +6 27
4 Servette 22 11 4 7 43 28 +15 26
5 Nordstern Basel 22 8 7 7 29 24 +5 23
6 Lausanne-Sport 22 8 6 8 34 28 +6 22 Swiss Cup winners
7 La Chaux-de-Fonds 22 9 4 9 29 41 −12 22
8 Luzern 22 7 5 10 42 45 −3 19
9 Young Fellows Zürich 22 6 6 10 29 31 −2 18
10 Young Boys 22 4 9 9 22 35 −13 17
11 Biel-Bienne 22 4 9 9 22 39 −17 17
12 Basel 22 5 5 12 29 36 −7 15 Relegated
Source: rsssf.com

Swiss Cup

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8 January 1939 1st principal round Basel 3–2 Concordia Basel Landhof, Basel
14:30 Sattler   30' (1:1)
Ibach   48' (2:1)
Ibach   60' (3:1)
Summary   12' (0:1) Martignoli
  76' (3:2) Rufer
Attendance: 3,500
Referee:   Hans Wüthrich Bern
29 January 1939 Round 2 Basel 1–3 SC Brühl St. Gallen Landhof, Basel
14:30 Schmidlin (I)   (1x) Summary   (2x) Spengler
  (1x) Joris
Attendance: 2,500
Referee:   Grassi Balerna

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Zindel, Josef (2018), 1939 Erste Abstieg, Friedrich Reinhardt Verlag, Basel
  2. ^ Erik Garin. "Switzerland 1938-1939". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. Retrieved 2019-11-16.
  3. ^ Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. "Bilanz Saison 1938/39". Verein "Basler Fussballarchiv”. Retrieved 2019-11-16.

Sources

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