A cold winter evening in 1903. In a small inn in Fürth, a group of young men sit close together. On the table lie handwritten notes, an inkwell, a few coins, and a large dose of enthusiasm. They discuss things animatedly, laugh, and make plans. Finally, they agree: It's time to give football a home in Fürth.
History was made that evening. The provisional board confirmed its work, adopted official statutes, and thus laid the foundation for the „Spielvereinigung des Turnvereins Fürth“ (Fürth Gymnastics Club Sports Association).
With just 28 members and two active teams, the Fürth club embarked on its new adventure. Despite modest resources, the ingenuity and solidarity of the club’s founders were evident from the start. To boost the club’s finances, they held a Christmas tree raffle – an extremely popular method at the turn of the century for raising money for sporting or cultural activities.
From these humble beginnings, a traditional football club developed over the years – the Spielvereinigung des Turnvereins Fürth, which later became known far beyond the city limits as SpVgg Greuther Fürth. Today, Greuther Fürth is an established team in the 2. Bundesliga (Second Division of the German Football Association).
Currently, Fürth sits in 14th place in the Second Division table with 13 points.
| Top Scorers | Top Assists |
| Noel Futkeu – 6 Goals | Felix Klaus – 5 Assists |
| Felix Klaus – 5 Goals | Branimir Hrgota – 3 Assists |
| Marco John – 2 Goals | Felix Higl – 2 Assists |
| Branimir Hrgota – 1 Goal | Mathias Olesen – 1 Assist |
| Jannik Dehm – 1 Goal | Jomaine Consbruch – 1 Assist |
Thomas Kleine
Head coach at SpVgg Greuther FürthFinal stages! As the last quarter of an hour of a match approaches, Fürth really turn it up a notch. Half of their season goals have been scored from the 75th minute onwards – nine out of a total of 18. Only Elversberg (11) have found the net more often in this period. The Cloverleaf’s last three goals even came after the start of the 90th minute. Fürth’s Jannik Dehm scored the decisive goal for the home victory against Preußen Münster shortly before the international break in the 5th minute of stoppage time.
The applause at Sportpark Ronhof slowly dies down as Branimir Hrgota retrieves the ball from the net in the first minute of stoppage time. No wild cheers, no excessive celebrations – just a quiet smile, a quick glance at the stands. Yet it is a moment of historic significance: the captain’s 45th second-division goal for SpVgg Greuther Fürth. A goal that is more than just a consolation goal in the 1-3 defeat against Karlsruher SC in October of this year. It is the moment a 45-year-old record falls – that of Klaus Heinlein.
And Heinlein is standing less than fifty meters away, leaning slightly forward and clapping. „It’s not so bad, quite the opposite,“ the 71-year-old tells Kleeblatt Magazine with a laugh. „I’m happy when someone scores a lot of goals for SpVgg.“ Words so typical of the down-to-earth Fürth native, who himself once made history and was the club’s all-time leading scorer in the second division for many years. Until Branimir Hrgota overtook him.
Branimir Hrgota. He’s been wearing the green and white jersey since 2019 and has long since made his mark: 56 goals in the 2. Bundesliga, plus nine goals in Fürth’s two Bundesliga seasons. Had Fürth not secured promotion to the Bundesliga in 2021, Heinlein’s second-division record would likely have fallen even sooner. But now, after 45 years, the time has come. Two players, two eras – connected by goals, passion, and the Ronhof stadium.
A record that unites. Hrgota, born in 1993 in Jönköping, Sweden, to Bosnian parents, began his football journey in the youth ranks of the small clubs IK Tord and Jönköpings Södra IF, where he stood out as a slight but technically brilliant youngster. His talent didn’t go unnoticed in Germany either: in 2012, Borussia Mönchengladbach brought him to the Bundesliga. After three years in the Lower Rhine region – with goals in the league and in the Europa League – he moved to Eintracht Frankfurt.
In 2019, he moved to Fürth – a move that revitalised his career. He quickly became captain, a key player, and the team’s emotional leader. He scored his first goal for the Cloverleaf on the fifth matchday of the 2019/20 season: in the fourth minute, he put Fürth ahead 1-0 against Arminia Bielefeld. The match ended 2-2 – the beginning of a special connection between Hrgota and the club.
Darmstadt 98 lost to Hannover 96 while playing with ten men and must continue to wait for their first win of this second division season. Read our analysis to find out what positives remain and why Darmstadt 98 had factored in setbacks on their chosen path.
Around the time of the home game against Hannover 96 on Sunday (August 30th), the Jonathan Heimes Square was officially inaugurated. Before kickoff, club president Markus Pfitzner and Martin Heimes, father of Jonathan Heimes, who died of cancer about ten years ago, gave speeches highlighting "Johnny's" importance and his commitment to people with cancer.
The Lilien Team Marathon is not just about athletic performance and the shared experience around the Böllenfalltor stadium – but also about making a difference together.
The SV Darmstadt 98 U21 team drew 2-2 (0-1) against SV Unter-Flockenbach. After a heated home game, the young Lilies had to settle for a frustrating, but ultimately deserved, draw. In this extremely balanced league, Patrick Kurt's team continues to grow week by week, gaining valuable experience.
An emotional match with many controversial moments unfolded on Sunday afternoon at the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor. Ultimately, Darmstadt suffered their first home defeat of the young season. We've compiled the post-match reactions for you.
Tried everything, but to no avail: SV 98 came up short in their home game against Hannover 96. The final score was 1-0 (0-0) to the visitors, whilst the Lilies had to play with ten men after Vukotic was sent off in the 20th minute.
Home game against Hannover! On matchday 3, Darmstadt 98 will host the ambitious Lower Saxons at the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor. Florian Kohfeldt has made three changes to his starting lineup compared to the victory in Jena. Hiroki Akiyama replaces the suspended Kai Klefisch, while Nicolas Verkooijen (making his first start) and Yosuke Furukawa start in place of Carlo Sickinger and Manolo Merx.
Weekend, Lilies fever! On Sunday (August 30th/1:30pm), the Lilies have their third matchday on the schedule. Hannover 96, the club from the Lower Saxon capital, will be visiting the Bölle. What do the two head coaches have to say before kickoff? Who will be refereeing the match? And where can you watch the game? As usual, we've compiled all the important information about the match against Hannover in our "Matchday Guide"
One day before their home game against Hannover 96, Darmstadt 98 have announced another new signing. William Mikelbrencis will now wear the SV 98 jersey. The 22-year-old Frenchman was under contract with Hamburger SV until June 30th.
In the press conference before the second home game of the still young season, our head coach spoke about, among other things, our team's attacking play and the past week. As usual, you can find the most important statements before the match against Hannover 96 (August 30th/1:30pm) here for you.
A second-division team on the Berlin Mount Olympus: Hannover 96 achieved something unique in 1992. On May 23, the Lower Saxony club defeated Borussia Mönchengladbach in the DFB Cup final, securing another major title in the club's history 38 years after their German championship win in 1954. Hannover became the first and, to this day, only "true" second-division team to win the DFB Cup, causing one of the biggest upsets in the competition's history.
