Eintracht Frankfurt (women)

Eintracht Frankfurt
Founded1973; 51 years ago (1973), as SG Praunheim[1]
GroundStadion am Brentanobad
Capacity5,200
PresidentMathias Beck
Sporting directorKatharina Kiel
Head coachNiko Arnautis
LeagueFrauen-Bundesliga
2023–243rd of 12
Websitehttps://frauen.eintracht.de/
Current season

Eintracht Frankfurt is a German women's association football club based in Frankfurt. Its first team currently plays in the German top flight, Frauen-Bundesliga. From 1998 to 2020, the club was known as 1. FFC Frankfurt.

Eintracht have won seven German women's football championships, nine Frauen DFB-Pokals, and four UEFA Women's Champions League titles (trailing only Lyon). Eintracht play at the Stadion am Brentanobad, and their biggest rivals are 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam.

History

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The club has its origin as SG Praunheim. At Praunheim a women's football department was established in 1973.[1] The club had no showings at national championship or cup tournaments, but managed qualification for the Bundesliga at its inception in 1990 nonetheless. In the early 1990s Praunheim achieved mid-table results with a tendency for slight improvements from season to season.

The foundation for the club's later success was laid in the 1993–94 season when former captain Monika Staab as coach and head of the women's football division and Siegfried Dietrich as manager and investor developed a professional concept to lead the club to lasting success – the first such concept in German women's football.[1] Thus the club qualified for the playoffs for the German football championship for the first time in 1995–96, losing the final 0–1 to TSV Siegen.[2] In the following seasons they managed to stay amongst the top clubs in German football, but won no titles. Also during that time they were always put behind by local rival FSV Frankfurt.

Former logo as 1. FFC Frankfurt (1999–2020)

On 1 January 1999, the women's department left Praunheim to form 1. FFC Frankfurt.[1] The club had success immediately winning the cup and the championship in their first season. In 1999–2000 they won their second cup, but lost the championship to FCR Duisburg. From 2000 to 2003 the club won three consecutive doubles while also rising to the pinnacle of European football with a victory in the UEFA Women's Cup's inaugural season in 2002. During these years a club from Potsdam had begun to challenge the club's supremacy. Thus in 2003–04 Turbine Potsdam won a double of their own, leaving the club without a title after winning ten titles in five years.

The scoreboard during the 2008 UEFA Women's Cup final

In the following seasons both clubs retained their dominance in German football, but European success was elusive as Umeå from Sweden won two consecutive titles in the UEFA Women's Cup, also brushing away the club 8–0 on aggregate in the 2004 final. After Turbine had won its own UEFA Women's Cup title in 2005 both clubs met in the 2006 UEFA Women's Cup final. Thanks to a 4–0 victory at Potsdam in the first leg, the club was able to claim their second European title. The final was attended by a record crowd of 13,100 and even German chancellor Angela Merkel was amongst the spectators.[1]

Having conceded the preceding three cup finals to Potsdam, the club won another double in 2006–07, but lost in the quarter-finals of the UEFA Women's Cup to Norwegian Kolbotn. They won their second treble in the 2007–08, thus becoming the first and as yet only club to win the UEFA Women's Cup three times. The second leg of the final against Umeå was attended by 27,640, a new record attendance for a women's club football game in Europe.[1]

The club's performance dropped considerably in the 2008–09 season. A fourth-place finish in the league was the club's worst performance since a uniform Bundesliga was put into place. Also they did not reach the cup final for the first time since 1998, losing in the second round to Bayern Munich, thus marking their worst cup performance since 1991–92. In the UEFA Women's Cup, they were eliminated by FCR 2001 Duisburg in the quarter-finals.

In 2019, the club announced a proposed merger with the men's football club Eintracht Frankfurt.[3] The merger was confirmed in June 2020 and, starting from 1 July 2020, the club would now compete as the women's football department of Eintracht Frankfurt. In addition to the first team, the department would include up to five women's teams competing at various levels of women's football.[4]

Historical league performance of Eintracht Frankfurt

Stadium

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Eintracht plays their homegames in the Stadion am Brentanobad, a stadium in the Rödelheim district of Frankfurt they share with the men's team of Rot-Weiss Frankfurt. Stadion am Brentobad is owned by the city of Frankfurt and has a capacity of 5,200 with 1,100 of those being roofed seats. In recent seasons Eintracht had the highest attendance average in the Bundesliga with more than 1,000 spectators on average.[citation needed]

On a few occasions, Eintracht has held their homegames at the Commerzbank-Arena, home stadium of the men's football department. The 2006 UEFA Women's Cup final between the club and Potsdam in 2006 was attended by 13,100 spectators, which remains a record for European club football matches.[1]

Rivalries

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Frankfurt against Potsdam in May 2008

A rivalry developed between the club and former East German women's champions 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam early in the 2000s as that club began its own ascent to the Bundesliga. That rivalry spilled over into the DFB Pokal and the European Cup when Potsdam qualified by taking the national title from Frankfurt and succeeded them as European champions.

Aside from the sporting and east–west rivalry, the two clubs have different team-building philosophies. Frankfurt, prefers buying local and foreign players, while Potsdam, focuses on the development of young players within its own club-system. The defection of Petra Wimbersky and Karolin Thomas from Potsdam to Frankfurt inflamed the rivalry, as the two clubs had abided by an unwritten agreement not to poach each other's players without first consulting the German Football Association.

Due to the lack of hooliganism in the women's game, this rivalry has developed healthy competition within the Bundesliga and has strongly contributed to the success of the women's national team. There were fears of a potential Old Firm-style duopoly problem, as these two clubs were the wealthiest in the women's game and there was a concern that the league's competitiveness could be hindered if they become too dominant. New competitors arrived on the scene with the rise of the women's departments of VfL Wolfsburg and FC Bayern München to seemingly resolve this issue, but by the end of the 2010s these two teams had replaced Frankfurt and Potsdam as the dominant pair in the country.

Players

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First-team squad

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As of 26 July 2024[5]

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

No. Pos. Nation Player
1 GK Germany GER Stina Johannes
4 DF Germany GER Sophia Kleinherne
5 MF Denmark DEN Pernille Sanvig
6 MF Germany GER Elisa Senß
7 FW Slovenia SVN Lara Prašnikar
8 MF Germany GER Lisanne Gräwe
10 FW Germany GER Laura Freigang
11 DF Germany GER Nina Lührßen
12 GK Germany GER Lina Altenburg
14 FW Switzerland SUI Géraldine Reuteler
15 FW Japan JPN Remina Chiba
17 MF Germany GER Pia-Sophie Wolter
No. Pos. Nation Player
19 FW Germany GER Nicole Anyomi
20 MF Germany GER İlayda Açıkgöz
21 GK Germany GER Lea Paulick
22 DF Switzerland SUI Nadine Riesen
23 DF Germany GER Sara Doorsoun
24 DF Germany GER Anna Aehling
25 DF Germany GER Jella Veit
27 MF Germany GER Sophie Nachtigall
28 MF Austria AUT Barbara Dunst
29 DF Germany GER Dilara Açıkgöz
30 FW Germany GER Carlotta Wamser
31 MF Poland POL Tanja Pawollek (captain)

Out on loan

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

No. Pos. Nation Player

Former players

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Reserves and youth teams

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The entire women's football department operates five teams at the top five levels of German women's football league system respectively.[4] Besides the first team, the reserves team, Eintracht II, compete in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga. There are three additional youth teams for development.[6]

Prior to the merger between 1. FFC Frankfurt and Eintracht Frankfurt on 1 July 2020, Eintracht had an existing women's football section of three teams (two senior and one youth), with its first team competing in the third-tier Regionalliga Süd. It was founded in 2014, began play in the sixth-tier Bezirksliga, and won the Regionalliga Süd in 2018 and the Hessenliga in 2012 and 2017.[7] Those two senior teams became youth teams after the merger,[6] and all three teams continue to play in the third to fifth tiers respectively.[8]

Honours

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The UEFA Women's Cup in the hands of the players

Record in UEFA competitions

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All results (away, home and aggregate) list the club's goal tally first.

Competition Round Club Away Home Aggregate
2001–02 Second qualifying round Spain Levante Valencia 1–0
Moldova Codru Chișinău 5–0
Armenia College Yerevan 18–0
Quarter-final Denmark Odense 3–0 f 2–1 5–1
Semi-final France Toulouse 2–1 f 0–0 2–1
Final Sweden Umeå 2–0
2002–03 Second qualifying round Serbia Mašinac Niš (Host) 2–0
Croatia Osijek 8–0
Republic of Ireland Shamrock Rovers 7–1
Quarter-final Finland HJK Helsinki 2–0 f 8–0 10–0
Semi-final Sweden Umeå 1–1 f 1–1 a.e.t. (6–7p) 2–2
2003–04 Second qualifying round Portugal Sintra 4–0
Austria Neulengbach 7–1
Spain Athletic Bilbao (Host) 8–1
Quarter-final England Fulham 4–1 3–1 f 7–2
Semi-final Sweden Rosengård Malmö 0–0 f 4–1 4–1
Final Sweden Umeå 0–3 f 0–5 0–8
2005–06 Second qualifying round Switzerland Luzern (Host) 4–0
Czech Republic Sparta Prague 1–1
Azerbaijan Gömrükçü Baku 11–1
Quarter-final England Arsenal 1–1 f 3–1 4–2
Semi-final France Montpellier 3–2 0–1 f 3–3 (agr)
Final Germany Turbine Potsdam 4–0 f 3–2 7–2
2006–07 Second qualifying round Belarus Universitet Vitebsk 5–0
Iceland Breiðablik Kópavogur 5–0
Finland HJK Helsinki (Host) 2–0
Quarter-final Norway Kolbotn 1–2 f 3–2 4–4 (agr)
2007–08 Second qualifying round Iceland Valur Reykjavík 3–1
England Everton 2–1
Belgium Rapide Wezemaal (Host) 1–1
Quarter-final Russia Rossiyanka Khimki 0–0 f 2–1 2–1
Semi-final Italy Verona 3–0 4–2 f 7–2
Final Sweden Umeå 1–1 f 3–2 4–3
2008–09 Second qualifying round Russia Zvezda Perm 0–1
Norway Røa Oslo (Host) 3–1
Scotland Glasgow City 3–1
Quarter-final Germany Duisburg 0–2 1–3 f 1–5
2011–12 Round of 32 Norway Stabæk Bærum 0–1 f 4–1 4–2
Round of 16 France Paris Saint-Germain 1–2 3–0 f 4–2
Quarter-final Sweden Rosengård Malmö 0–1 f 3–0 3–1
Semi-final England Arsenal 2–1 f 2–0 4–1
Final France Olympique Lyon 0–2
2014–15 Round of 32 Kazakhstan Kazygurt Shymkent 2–2 f 4–0 6–2
Round of 16 Italy Torres Sassari 4–0 5–0 f 9–0
Quarter-final England Bristol City 5–0 f 7–0 12–0
Semi-final Denmark Brøndby 6–0 7–0 f 13–0
Final France Paris Saint-Germain 2–1
2015–16 Round of 32 Belgium Standard Liège 2–0 f 6–0 8–0
Round of 16 Norway Lillestrøm 2–0 f 0–2 a.e.t. (5–4p) 2–2
Quarter-final Sweden Rosengård Malmö 1–0 f 0–1 a.e.t. (5–4p) 1–1
Semi-final Germany Wolfsburg 0–4 f 1–0 1–4
2022–23 Qualifying round 1 SF Denmark Fortuna Hjørring 2–0
Qualifying round 1 F Netherlands Ajax 1–2
2023–24 Qualifying round 1 SF Czech Republic Slovácko 1–0
Qualifying round 1 F Italy Juventus 1–1 a.e.t. (5–4p)
Qualifying round 2 Czech Republic Sparta Prague 5–0 f 3–0 8–0
Group stage Spain Barcelona 0–2 1–3 f 3rd
Portugal Benfica 0–1 f 1–1
Sweden Rosengård 2–1 f 5–0
2024–25 Qualifying round 1 SF Portugal Sporting CP 0–2
Qualifying round 1 3rd Belarus FC Minsk 6–0

f First leg.

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g "Die Erfolgsstory des 1. FFC Frankfurt" (in German). 1. FFC Frankfurt. 2008. Archived from the original on 7 November 2007. Retrieved 15 July 2009.
  2. ^ "West Germany (women) 1995/96". Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation. 15 January 2005. Archived from the original on 11 June 2009. Retrieved 16 July 2009.
  3. ^ "Eintracht und FFC Fusion: Eine Chance für beide". fr.de (in German). 12 December 2019. Retrieved 12 December 2019.
  4. ^ a b "Start einer neuen Ära". Eintracht Frankfurt. 16 June 2020. Retrieved 16 June 2020.
  5. ^ "Kader 2024/25". Eintracht Frankfurt. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  6. ^ a b "Trikottausch". Eintracht Frankfurt. 1 July 2020. Retrieved 2 July 2020.
  7. ^ "Chronik – Eintracht Frankfurt – Frauen-Bundesliga 21/22 – FuPa".
  8. ^ "Dietrich: «Hotspot für den weiblichen Leistungsfußball»". Die Welt. 18 May 2020.
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