Karlsruher SC

Karlsruher SC is a German association football club, based in Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg. KSC rose out of the consolidation of a number of predecessor clubs. They have played in the Bundesliga, but were relegated to the 2. Bundesliga in 1998 and in 2009. In 2012, they were relegated to the 3. Liga through play-offs, and in 2013, they were promoted back to the 2. Bundesliga.

History

A succession of mergers

The most successful of these ancestral clubs was Karlsruher Fussball Club Phönix, formed on 6 June 1894 by dissatisfied members of the gymnastics club Karlsruher Turngemeinde. They quickly became a strong regional side, playing in the Südkreis-Liga, and captured the national title in 1909, defeating defending champions Viktoria 89 Berlin 4–2 in the championship final that season. In 1912, Phönix merged with KFC Alemannia, established in 1897, to create KFC Phönix (Phönix Alemannia).

It was as Phönix Karlsruhe that the club joined the Gauliga Baden, one of sixteen top-flight divisions created in the re-organization of German football under the Third Reich. They slipped from the first division for a single season in 1936, but returned to compete as a mediocre side over the next several years. In the 1943–44 season, Karlsruhe played with Germania Durlach as the combined wartime side named KSG (Kriegssportgemeinschaft) Phönix/Germania Karlsruhe. After World War II in 1946, Phönix re-emerged to compete in the newly formed first division Oberliga Süd, finishing 15th in their first season there. The club was relegated the following season.