Kreisliga Württemberg

The Kreisliga Württemberg (English: District league Württemberg) was the highest association football league in the German state of Württemberg from 1919 to 1923. The league was disbanded with the introduction of the Bezirksliga Württemberg-Baden in 1923.

Kreisliga Württemberg
Map of Germany in 1925
Founded1919
Folded1923
Replaced byBezirksliga Württemberg-Baden
Country Germany
State
Level on pyramidLevel 1
Last championsStuttgarter Kickers
(1922–23)

Overview

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Predecessor

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From 1907, four regional leagues were formed within the structure of the Southern German football championship, in a move to improve the organisation of football in Southern Germany, these being:

In 1908, a first Südkreis-Liga (English: Southern District League) was established, consisting of ten clubs and playing a home-and-away season.[1] With the outbreak of the First World War, league football came to a halt and, during the war, games were only played on a limited level.

Post-First World War

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With the collapse of the German Empire in 1918, no Württemberg championship was played in 1918-19 but football returned to a more organised system in 1919.

Southern Germany, now without the Alsace region, which had to be returned to France, was sub-divided into ten Kreisligas, these being:

The Südkreis-Liga was split into three regional competitions, Württemberg, Odenwald and Südwest, each with ten clubs.[2] The three league winners advanced to the Southern championship. This system applied for the 1919-20 and 1920-21 season.[3]

In 1921-22, the Kreisliga Württemberg was split into two groups of eight, increasing the number of tier-one clubs in Württemberg to 16. The two league winners then played a final to determine the Württemberg champion, which in turn advanced to a Baden-Württemberg championship final against the Südwest champion. The Odenwald champion was not part of this series but rather played a Rhine championship.[4] This "watering down" of Württemberg football lasted for only one season, in 1922-23, the number of top clubs was reduced to eight clubs in a single division, with a Baden-Württemberg final against the Südwest champion once more.[5]

In 1923, a league reform which was decided upon in Darmstadt, Hesse, established the Southern German Bezirksligas which were to replace the Kreisligas.[6] The best four teams each from the Südwest and Württemberg were admitted to the new Bezirksliga Württemberg-Baden. The four clubs from Württemberg were:

National success

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The clubs from the Kreisliga Württemberg were not particularly successful in this era and none managed to qualify for the German championship.

Baden-Württemberg championship

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Played in 1922 and 1923, these were the finals:

  • 1922:
    • Württemberg final: Sportfreunde Stuttgart - Stuttgarter Kickers 1-0 / 3-2
    • Baden-Württemberg final: Sportfreunde Stuttgart - Karlsruher FV 1-0 / 1-1
  • 1923:

Southern German championship

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Qualified teams and their success:

  • 1920:
    • SC Stuttgart, Group stage
  • 1921:
    • Stuttgarter Kickers, Group stage
  • 1922:
    • Sportfreunde Stuttgart, Semi-finals
  • 1923:
    • Stuttgarter Kickers, not qualified

Winners and runners-up of the Kreisliga Württemberg

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Season Champions Runner-Up
1919-20 SC Stuttgart Stuttgarter Kickers
1920–21 Stuttgarter Kickers SV Feuerbach
1921–22 Sportfreunde Stuttgart Stuttgarter Kickers
1922–23 Stuttgarter Kickers SV Feuerbach

Placings in the Kreisliga Württemberg 1919-23

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Club 1920 1921 1922 1923
SC Stuttgart 1 3 4 5
Stuttgarter Kickers 2 1 1 1
Sportfreunde Stuttgart 3 4 1 3
SV Feuerbach 4 2 4 2
VfB Stuttgart 5 5 2 6
VfR Heilbronn 6 6 2 4
FV Ulm 94 7 8 3 8
FV Zuffenhausen 8 9 8
Spgg. Tübingen 9 6
FV Kornwestheim 10
Spgg. Cannstatt 7 6
Union Böckingen 10 7
TB Ulm 5
Pfeil Gaisburg 7
Eintracht Stuttgart 3 7
Normannia Gmünd 5
VfL Stuttgart 8

References

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  1. ^ Verband Süddeutscher Fussball Vereine 1909 Archived July 19, 2011, at the Wayback Machine (in German), accessed: 22 March 2009
  2. ^ Süddeutschlands Fussball in Tabellenform 1897 - 1988, (in German) author: Ludolf Hyll, page: 62, accessed: 22 March 2009
  3. ^ Süddeutschlands Fussball in Tabellenform 1897 - 1988, (in German) author: Ludolf Hyll, page: 65, accessed: 22 March 2009
  4. ^ Süddeutschlands Fussball in Tabellenform 1897 - 1988, (in German) author: Ludolf Hyll, page: 70, accessed: 22 March 2009
  5. ^ Süddeutschlands Fussball in Tabellenform 1897 - 1988, (in German) author: Ludolf Hyll, page: 73, accessed: 22 March 2009
  6. ^ History of the Offenburger Fußballverein Archived March 6, 2009, at the Wayback Machine (in German) Page 5, accessed: 14 December 2008

Sources

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  • Fussball-Jahrbuch Deutschland (in German) (8 vol.), Tables and results of the German tier-one leagues 1919-33, publisher: DSFS
  • Kicker Almanach, (in German) The yearbook on German football from Bundesliga to Oberliga, since 1937, published by the Kicker Sports Magazine
  • Süddeutschlands Fussballgeschichte in Tabellenform 1897-1988 (in German) History of Southern German football in tables, publisher & author: Ludolf Hyll
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