FK Austria Wien

Austria Wien
Full name	Fußballklub Austria Wien AG
Nickname(s)	Die Veilchen (The Violets)
Founded	15 March 1911; 113 years ago
Ground	Generali Arena
Capacity	17,565
Chairman	Kurt Gollowitzer
Head coach	Stephan Helm
League	Austrian Bundesliga
2023–24	Austrian Bundesliga, 8th of 12
Website	Club website
	Current season

Fußballklub Austria Wien AG (German pronunciation: [ˈaʊstri̯aː ˈviːn]), known in English as Austria Vienna, and Austria Wien in German-speaking countries, is an Austrian professional association football club from the capital city of Vienna. It has won the most trophies of any Austrian club from the top flight, with 24 Austrian Bundesliga titles and 27 Austrian Cup titles. Austria is one of only two teams that have never been relegated from the Austrian top flight. With 27 victories in the Austrian Cup and six in the Austrian Supercup, Austria Wien is also the most successful club in each of those tournaments. The club reached the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup final in 1978, and the semi-finals of the European Cup the season after. The club plays at the Franz Horr Stadium, known as the Generali Arena since a 2010 naming rights deal with an Italian insurance company.

History

Historical chart of Austria Wien league performance

Foundation to World War II

FK Austria Wien has its roots in Wiener Cricketer, established on 20 October 1910 in Vienna. The club was renamed Wiener Amateur-SV in December of that year and adopted the name Fußballklub Austria Wien on 28 November 1926.

The team claimed its first championship title in 1924. Wiener Amateur changed its name to Austria Wien in 1926 as the amateurs became professionals. The club won its second league title that year.

The 1930s, one of Austria Wien's most successful eras, brought two titles (1933 and 1936) in the Mitropa Cup, a tournament for champions in Central Europe. The star of that side was forward Matthias Sindelar, who was voted in 1998 as the greatest Austrian footballer.^[1]

The club's success was interrupted by the annexation of Austria by Nazi Germany in 1938, with Austria taunted as "Judenklub".^[2] While Jewish players and staff at the club were killed or fled the country, Sindelar died under unresolved circumstances on 23 January 1939 of carbon monoxide poisoning in his apartment. He had refused to play for the combined Germany–Austria national team, citing injury (bad knees) and retirement from international matches. The club was part of the top-flight regional Gauliga Ostmark in German competition from 1938 to 1945, but never finished higher than fourth. They participated in the Tschammerpokal (the predecessor to the modern-day DFB-Pokal) in 1938 and 1941. Nazi sports authorities directed that the team change its name to Sportclub Ostmark Wien in an attempt to Germanize it on 12 April 1938, but the club re-adopted its historical identity almost immediately on 14 July 1938.

Post-World War II

Austria Wien won its first league title for 23 years in 1949, and retained it the following year. It later won a fifth title in 1953. The club won three-straight titles in 1961, 1962 and 1963. Forward Ernst Ocwirk, who played in five league title-winning sides in two separate spells at the club, managed the side to 1969 and 1970 Bundesliga titles. Other players of this era included Horst Nemec.

From the 1973–74 season, Wiener AC formed a joint team with FK Austria Wien, which was called FK Austria WAC Wien until 1976–77, when Austria Wien opted to revert to their own club's traditional name. The results of the joint team are part of the Austria Wien football history. From 1977 onwards, Austria Tabakwerke took over the sponsorship and Austria was competed under the new name Austria-Memphis.^[3]

The 1970s saw the beginning of another successful era, despite no league title between 1970 and 1976 as an aging squad was rebuilt. Eight league titles in eleven seasons from 1975–76 to 1985–86 reasserted its dominance. After winning the 1977 Austrian Cup, Austria Wien reached the 1978 European Cup Winners' Cup final, which they lost 4–0 to Belgian club Anderlecht. The following season, the club reached the semi-finals of the European Cup, losing 1–0 on aggregate to Swedish team Malmö FF.^[4] In 1982–83, Austria Wien reached the semi-finals of the Cup Winners' Cup, losing 5–3 on aggregate to Real Madrid.^[5]

Players at Austria Wien in this era included Herbert "Schneckerl" Prohaska, Felix Gasselich, Thomas Parits, Walter Schachner, Gerhard Steinkogler, Toni Polster, Peter Stöger, Ivica Vastić and Tibor Nyilasi.

Recent history

At the start of the 1990s, Austria Wien enjoyed its most recent period of sustained success: three-straight Bundesliga titles from 1991 to 1993; three Austrian Cup titles in 1990, 1992 and 1994; and four Austrian Supercup titles in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994. However, the club declined in the late 1990s due to financial problems which forced key players to be sold.

Austria Wien was taken over by Austro–Canadian billionaire Frank Stronach's Magna auto-parts consortium in 1999. Following deals with the Memphis cigarette company, the club was renamed FK Austria Memphis Magna. Stronach's investment in players, with a budget three times larger than the average in the league, saw a first Bundesliga title for ten years in 2002–03. Despite this, head coach Walter Schachner was fired. Although his replacement Christoph Daum could not retain the league title, he won the Austrian Cup.

In 2004, Memphis was dropped from the club's name. Austria Wien reached the UEFA Cup quarter-final in 2004–05, where they were eliminated by Parma. On 21 November 2005, Frank Stonach withdrew from the club. Consequently, several players (including top scorer Roland Linz, Vladimír Janočko, Joey Didulica, Libor Sionko, Filip Šebo and Sigurd Rushfeldt) were sold to other teams the following summer. The 2005–06 season nonetheless concluded with a Bundesliga and Cup double.

The loss of key players and a much lower budget for the 2006–07 season saw the club suffer. Despite losing 4–1 on aggregate to Benfica in the preliminary round of the UEFA Champions League, the team managed to qualify (against Legia Warsaw winning 2–1 on aggregate) for the group phase of the UEFA Cup. Former player and coach Thomas Parits became general manager. After the side lost three days later 4–0 away to Red Bull Salzburg, Partis terminated coaches Peter Stöger and Frank Schinkels. Georg Zellhofer replaced them. The season saw a sixth-place finish in the Bundesliga despite being in last place at Christmas. However, the club also won the Cup that year. The side improved the following season, finishing in third in the league.

Austria Wien players on the pitch against Red Bull Salzburg, December 2013

The summer of 2008 brought notable changes. Twelve players left the club, including Sanel Kuljić and Yüksel Sariyar, who joined Frank Stronach's newly founded team FC Magna in Austria's second division. The Betriebsführervertrag ("operating contract") with Stronach's Magna company expired, letting the club reorganize. On 1 July 2008, the original name FK Austria Wien was reinstated, without a sponsor's name included for the first time in 30 years. The club also bought Chinese international Sun Xiang, the first Chinese player to play in the Bundesliga. In the 2012–13 season, Austria Wien won its 24th league title, ahead of holders Red Bull Salzburg, but lost the Austrian Cup final 1–0 to third-tier club FC Pasching.^[6]

In August 2013, Austria Wien qualified to the UEFA Champions League group stage for the first time after defeating Dinamo Zagreb in the play-offs round.^[7] They were drawn against Porto, Atlético Madrid and Zenit Saint Petersburg, all of which have won European trophies in the 21st century. Austria finished last in the group after a loss to Porto at home (0–1), a draw against Zenit in Saint Petersburg (0–0), two losses against Atlético and an away draw against Porto, which eventually put the Portuguese side to the third place in the group. A consolation came when Austria defeated Zenit 4–1 at Ernst-Happel-Stadion.

Stadium

Austria Wien plays its home games at the Franz Horr Stadium, which has had a capacity of 17,000^[8] since 2008, when a new two-tiered East Stand opened and renovations were made to the West Stand. The stadium was renamed the Generali Arena in a naming-rights deal with Italian insurer Generali announced at the end of 2010.^[9]

The stadium was originally built in 1925 for Slovan Vienna, a Czech immigrants' club, and was largely destroyed by the Allies in World War II. Austria Wien moved into the ground in 1973, playing its first match there on 26 August. The stadium was subsequently named for Franz Horr, chairman of the Viennese FA, following his death. The stadium was expanded with new or renovated stands in 1982, 1986, 1998 and, most recently, 2008.^[10]

Rivalries

A 2010 Wien derby match between Austria Vienna and Rapid Vienna.

Austria Wien contests the Vienna derby with Rapid Wien. The two clubs are two of the most supported and successful in the country, and are the only Austrian clubs to have never been relegated. They are two of the most culturally and socially significant clubs, both historically representing wider divisions in Viennese society. Both teams originate from Hietzing, the 13th district in the west of the city, but have since moved into different districts. Austria Wien is seen as a middle-class club, and before World War II, as part of the coffeehouse culture associated with the capital's intelligentsia.^[11] Rapid traditionally holds the support of the city's working class. The two clubs first met in a league championship match on 8 September 1911, a 4–1 victory for Rapid.^[12] The fixture is the most-played derby in European football after the Old Firm match in Glasgow and the Edinburgh derby in Edinburgh, both in Scotland.

Honours

Domestic competitions

Austrian Bundesliga (24)

Champions: 1923–24, 1925–26, 1948–49, 1949–50, 1952–53, 1960–61, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1968–69, 1969–70, 1975–76, 1977–78, 1978–79, 1979–80, 1980–81, 1983–84, 1984–85, 1985–86, 1990–91, 1991–92, 1992–93, 2002–03, 2005–06, 2012–13

Austrian Cup (27)

Champions: 1920–21, 1923–24, 1924–25, 1925–26, 1932–33, 1934–35, 1935–36, 1947–48, 1948–49, 1959–60, 1961–62, 1962–63, 1966–67, 1970–71, 1973–74, 1976–77, 1979–80, 1981–82, 1985–86, 1989–90, 1991–92, 1993–94, 2002–03, 2004–05, 2005–06, 2006–07, 2008–09

Austrian Supercup (6)

Winners: 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 2003, 2004

Wiener Cup (2)

Winners: 1948, 1949

European competitions

Mitropa Cup (2)

Champions: 1933, 1936

Jeunesse et des Etudiants de Jeux Sportif (1)

Champions: 1959

European Cup Winners' Cup

Runners-up: 1978

Intercontinental competitions

Copa Rio

Semi-finals (2): 1951, 1952

European record

Season	Competition	Round	Club	Home	Away
1960–61	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	Quarter-finals	Wolverhampton Wanderers	2–0	0–5
1961–62	European Cup	1R	Steaua București	2–0	0–0
		2R	Benfica	1–1	1–5
1962–63	European Cup	1R	HIFK	5–3	2–0
		2R	Stade Reims	3–2	0–5
1963–64	European Cup	1R	Górnik Zabrze	1–0, 1–2	0–1
1967–68	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Steaua București	0–2	1–2
1969–70	European Cup	1R	Dynamo Kyiv	1–2	1–3
1970–71	European Cup	Qualification	Levski Sofia	3–0	1–3
		1R	Atlético Madrid	1–2	0–2
1971–72	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	Qualification	B 1909	2–0	2–4
		1R	Dinamo Tirana	1–0	1–1
		2R	Torino	0–0	0–1
1972–73	UEFA Cup	1R	Beroe Stara Zagora	1–3	0–7
1974–75	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Waregem	4–1	1–2
		2R	Real Madrid	2–2	0–3
1976–77	European Cup	1R	Borussia Mönchengladbach	1–0	0–3
1977–78	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Cardiff City	1–0	0–0
		2R	MFK Košice	0–0	1–1
		Quarter-finals	Hajduk Split	1–1	1–1 (p 3-0)
		Semi-finals	Dynamo Moscow	2–1 (p 5-4)	1–2
		Final	Anderlecht	0–4
1978–79	European Cup	1R	Vllaznia	4–1	0–2
		2R	Lillestrøm	4–1	0–0
		Quarter-finals	Dynamo Dresden	3–1	0–1
		Semi-finals	Malmö FF	0–0	0–1
1979–80	European Cup	1R	Vejle	1–1	2–3
1980–81	European Cup	1R	Aberdeen	0–0	0–1
1981–82	European Cup	1R	Partizani	3–1	0–1
		2R	Dynamo Kyiv	0–1	1–1
1982–83	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Panathinaikos	2–0	1–2
		2R	Galatasaray	0–1	4–2
		Quarter-finals	Barcelona	0–0	1–1
		Semi-finals	Real Madrid	2–2	1–3
1983–84	UEFA Cup	1R	Aris Bonnevoie	10–0	5–0
		2R	Stade Lavallois	2–0	3–3
		3R	Internazionale	2–1	1–1
		Quarter-finals	Tottenham Hotspur	2–2	0–2
1984–85	European Cup	1R	Valletta	4–0	4–0
		2R	Dynamo Berlin	2–1	3–3
		Quarter-finals	Liverpool	1–1	1–4
1985–86	European Cup	1R	Dynamo Berlin	2–1	2–0
		2R	Bayern Munich	3–3	2–4
1986–87	European Cup	1R	Avenir Beggen	3–0	3–0
		2R	Bayern Munich	1–1	0–2
1987–88	UEFA Cup	1R	Bayer Leverkusen	0–0	1–5
1988–89	UEFA Cup	1R	Žalgiris	5–2	0–2
		2R	Hearts	0–1	0–0
1989–90	UEFA Cup	1R	Ajax	1–0	3–0
		2R	Werder Bremen	2–0	0–5
1990–91	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Eintracht Schwerin	0–0	2–0
		2R	Juventus	0–4	0–4
1991–92	European Cup	1R	Arsenal	1–0	1–6
1992–93	UEFA Champions League	1R	CSKA Sofia	3–1	2–3
		2R	Club Brugge	3–1	0–2
1993–94	UEFA Champions League	1R	Rosenborg	4–1	1–3
		2R	Barcelona	1–2	0–3
1994–95	UEFA Cup Winners' Cup	1R	Maribor	3–0	1–1
		2R	Chelsea	1–1	0–0
1995–96	UEFA Cup	Qualification	Kapaz Ganja	5–1	4–0
		1R	Dinamo Minsk	1–2	0–1
1996	UEFA Intertoto Cup	Group 3, 1st game	Maribor		0–3
		Group 3, 2nd game	Keflavík	6–0
		Group 3, 3rd game	Copenhagen		1–2
		Group 3, 4th game	Örebro	2–3
1997	UEFA Intertoto Cup	Group 9, 1st game	MŠK Žilina		1–3
		Group 9, 2nd game	Rapid București	1–1
		Group 9, 3rd game	Lyon		0–2
		Group 9, 4th game	Odra Wodzisław	1–5
1998	UEFA Intertoto Cup	1R	Ruch Chorzów	0–1	2–2
1999	UEFA Intertoto Cup	3R	Sint-Truiden	1–2	2–0
		4R	Rennes	2–2	0–2
2000	UEFA Intertoto Cup	2R	Nea Salamina Famagusta	3–0	0–1
		3R	Ceahlăul Piatra Neamț	3–0	2–2
		4R	Udinese	0–1	0–2
2002–03	UEFA Cup	1R	Shakhtar Donetsk	5–1	0–1
		2R	Porto	0–1	0–2
2003–04	UEFA Champions League	3QR	Marseille	0–1	0–0
2003–04	UEFA Cup	1R	Borussia Dortmund	1–2	0–1
2004–05	UEFA Cup	2QR	Illichivets Mariupol	3–0	0–0
		1R	Legia Warsaw	1–0	3–1
		Group C	Real Zaragoza	1–0
			Dnipro Dnipropetrovsk		0–1
			Club Brugge	1–1
			Utrecht		2–1
		3R	Athletic Bilbao	0–0	2–1
		4R	Real Zaragoza	1–1	2–2
		Quarter-finals	Parma	1–1	0–0
2005–06	UEFA Cup	2QR	MŠK Žilina	2–2	2–1
2005–06	UEFA Cup	1R	Viking	2–1	0–1
2006–07	UEFA Champions League	3QR	Benfica	1–1	0–3
2006–07	UEFA Cup	1R	Legia Warsaw	1–0	1–1
		Group F	Zulte-Waregem	1–4
			Ajax		0–3
			Sparta Prague	0–1
			Espanyol		0–1
2007–08	UEFA Cup	2QR	Jablonec	4–3	1–1
		1R	Vålerenga	2–0	2–2
		Group H	Bordeaux	1–2
			Helsingborgs IF		0–3
			Panionios	0–1
			Galatasaray		0–0
2008–09	UEFA Cup	1QR	Tobol	2–0	0–1
		2QR	WIT Georgia	2–0	not played
		1R	Lech Poznań	2–1	2–4 (AET)
2009–10	UEFA Europa League	3QR	Vojvodina	1–1	4–2
		Play-off	Metalurh Donetsk	2–2	3–2 (AET)
		Group L	Athletic Bilbao	0–3	0–3
			Nacional	1–1	1–5
			Werder Bremen	2–2	0–2
2010–11	UEFA Europa League	2QR	Široki Brijeg	2–2	1–0
		3QR	Ruch Chorzów	3–1	3–0
		Play-off	Aris	1–1	0–1
2011–12	UEFA Europa League	2QR	Rudar Pljevlja	2–0	3–0
		3QR	Olimpija Ljubljana	3–2	1–1
		Play-off	Gaz Metan Mediaș	3–1	0–1
		Group G	Metalist Kharkiv	1–2	1–4
			AZ	2–2	2–2
			Malmö FF	2–0	2–1
2013–14	UEFA Champions League	3QR	FH	1–0	0–0
		Play-off	Dinamo Zagreb	2–3	2–0
		Group G	Porto	0–1	1–1
			Atlético Madrid	0–3	0–4
			Zenit Saint Petersburg	4–1	0–0
2016–17	UEFA Europa League	2QR	Kukësi	1–0	4–1
		3QR	Spartak Trnava	0–1	1–0 (5–4p)
		Play-off	Rosenborg	2–1	2–1
		Group E	Astra Giurgiu	1–2	3–2
			Viktoria Plzeň	0–0	2–3
			Roma	2–4	3–3
2017–18	UEFA Europa League	3QR	AEL Limassol	0–0	2–1
		Play-off	Osijek	0–1	2–1
		Group D	Milan	1–5	1–5
			AEK Athens	0–0	2–2
			Rijeka	1–3	4–1
2019–20	UEFA Europa League	3QR	Apollon Limassol	1–2	1–3
2021–22	UEFA Europa Conference League	2QR	Breiðablik	1–1	1–2
2022–23	UEFA Europa League	Play-off	Fenerbahçe	0–2	1–4
	UEFA Europa Conference League	Group C	Villarreal	0–1	0–5
			Hapoel Be'er Sheva	0–0	0–4
			Lech Poznań	1–1	1–4
2023–24	UEFA Europa Conference League	2QR	Borac Banja Luka	1–0	2–1
2023–24	UEFA Europa Conference League	3QR	Legia Warsaw	3–5	2–1
2024–25	UEFA Conference League	2QR	Ilves	4−3	1−2 (4–5p)

Current squad

As of 8 August 2024^[13]

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	AUT	Samuel Şahin-Radlinger
2	DF	AUT	Luca Pazourek
3	DF	BRA	Lucas Galvão
4	DF	AUT	Ziad El Sheiwi
5	MF	GAM	Abubakr Barry
9	FW	AUT	Muharem Husković
11	FW	SVN	Nik Prelec (on loan from Cagliari)
13	GK	AUT	Lukas Wedl
15	DF	AUT	Aleksandar Dragović
17	FW	AUT	Andreas Gruber
18	DF	SWE	Matteo Pérez Vinlöf (on loan from Bayern Munich)
19	DF	AUT	Marvin Potzmann
20	MF	AUT	Sanel Šaljić
21	DF	FRA	Hakim Guenouche
22	MF	AUT	Florian Wustinger
24	DF	CRO	Tin Plavotić


No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
26	MF	AUT	Reinhold Ranftl
29	FW	AUT	Marko Raguž
30	MF	AUT	Manfred Fischer
36	FW	AUT	Dominik Fitz
37	MF	AUT	Moritz Wels
40	DF	AUT	Matteo Meisl
46	DF	AUT	Johannes Handl
47	FW	CIV	Abdoulaye Kante
60	DF	AUT	Dejan Radonjić
66	DF	LUX	Marvin Martins
70	FW	BRA	Cristiano Amaral (on loan from São Bento)
77	FW	GER	Maurice Malone (on loan from Basel)
99	GK	AUT	Mirko Kos
—	FW	AUT	Lukas Haubenwaller
—	GK	AUT	Sandali Conde
—	DF	AUT	Florian Kopp

Out on loan