MSV Duisburg

Early years

The club was founded in 1902 as Meidericher Spielverein, in Meiderich, which later became part of Duisburg. In 1905, they fused with the club Sportclub Viktoria Meiderich.

In 1910, MSV played in the West German A-Klasse for the first time, and in 1914, won promotion to the 'Zehnerliga' (top level of the West German championship) for the first time, after winning every game in the 13/14 season, scoring 113 goals and conceding only 12.

In 1929, they won the first Niederrhein championship and were runner up in the West German championship, qualifying for the national championship for the first time. They won the Niederrhein championship again in 1931 and 1932, and appeared in the 1931 German championship again after finishing third in the West German championship. The club would not qualify for either the German championship or the West German championship again.

Meiderich became city champions in 1946, and in 1949 were placed in the new West German second division. The club earned promotion to the top-flight Oberliga West in 1951, and though they were relegated in 1955, they would return immediately and participate in the Oberliga West until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963.

Early years of the Bundesliga (1960s)

The club was surprisingly chosen to be a member of the new national league, the Bundesliga, for the inaugural 1963–64 season. Despite not being a big name or coming from a big city, Meiderich were chosen as they were the strongest club from the populous Lower Rhine region; this decision was controversial, and Alemannia Aachen challenged the decision in court.

The club signed young coach Rudi Gutendorf for the first Bundesliga season, replacing the highly-regarded Willi Multhaup. He convinced the board to sign World Cup-winner Helmut Rahn, and developed a tactical system later compared to Dutch total football, whereby every player contributed in both attack and defence. Gutendorf's team shocked the Bundesliga by finishing second, six points behind champions 1. FC Köln, and conceding the fewest goals in the league. This remains the club's highest ever league finish.

In 1966, they finished with a club record 70 goals scored in the league, including the Bundesliga's biggest ever away win, 9-0 against Tasmania Berlin. They also reached the DFB-Pokal final, losing to Bayern Munich. This was the last season played under the old name of Meidericher SV, as the club renamed itself MSV Duisburg in 1967, having received financial support from the city of Duisburg.

European campaigns and relegation to the Oberliga (1970s, 1980s)

In 1976, MSV Duisburg reached the DFB-Pokal final for the second time, but lost to Eintracht Frankfurt. They then made their first appearance in the UEFA Cup, losing in the second round to Levski-Spartak Sofia on away goals. This season was also notable for the performances of defender and captain Bernard Dietz, who played every minute of the league season and was voted by Sport Bild as one of the league's best players. Dietz would achieve this three more times, being named the Bundesliga's best outfield player in 1978, and captaining Germany to victory at UEFA Euro 1980 while still at Duisburg.

Duisburg finished 9th in 1976–77, their first top-half finish since 1970–71, and then 6th in the 1977–78 Bundesliga, qualifying for the 1978–79 UEFA Cup. The club eliminated Lech Poznań, Carl Zeiss Jena, RC Strasbourg and Budapest Honvéd to reach the semi-final, where they were beaten by Borussia Mönchengladbach. Despite their success in Europe, Duisburg only narrowly avoided relegation, having been in the relegation zone during the winter break. In the 1981–82 season, the club was relegated from the Bundesliga for the first time, finishing last.

Four years later, Duisburg were relegated again, finishing last in the 2. Bundesliga with only 15 points from 38 games. For their final game, they managed a crowd of just 600 fans. The club spent three years in the third-tier Oberliga Nordrhein, before returning to the 2. Bundesliga in 1989. During their time in the regional leagues, Duisburg also won the German amateur championship by beating Bayern Munich II.

Between the Bundesliga & 2. Bundesliga (1990s, 2000s)

In their second season back in the second-tier, Duisburg finished runner up to Schalke 04, returning to the Bundesliga for the first time in nearly a decade. However, they would immediately be relegated back and would develop a reputation for 'yo-yoing' between the top two leagues. In 1993, with former player Ewald Lienen as coach, they again won promotion from the 2. Bundesliga. Lienen's Duisburg led the Bundesliga as late as February as a newly-promoted team, becoming the first team to ever top the table with a negative goal difference;they eventually finished 9th, and were relegated again the following season.

Friedhelm Funkel brought the club back into the Bundesliga in 1996 and achieved three successive top-half finishes, also reaching the 1998 DFB-Pokal final. As in 1966, Duisburg lost to Bayern Munich. Duisburg qualified for the 1998–99 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, but were heavily beaten by K.R.C. Genk, in the club's final European appearance to date. In March 2000, with his team bottom of the table, Friedhelm Funkel was sacked; the club was relegated at the end of the season.

The new 31,500-capacity MSV-Arena, was completed during the 2004–05 season, in which Duisburg once again won promotion after five years in the 2. Bundesliga. In December 2005, promotion-winning coach Norbert Meier was infamously sacked after 'one of the most bizarre incidents in Bundesliga history,' where he headbutted 1. FC Köln player Albert Streit during a game and pretended to have himself been attacked.

Duisburg finished last in the 2005–06 Bundesliga, won promotion back in 2006–07, and then finished last again in 2007–08.

Financial troubles (2010s, 2020s)

In 2011, MSV Duisburg surprisingly reached their fourth DFB-Pokal Final. Schalke won the match 5-0, the joint-biggest winning margin in a DFB-Pokal final.

After five years in the 2. Bundesliga, Duisburg were demoted to the 3. Liga in 2013 despite finishing 11th, after having their license application denied by the league for financial reasons. The possibility of the club becoming insolvent was raised by club officials.

Duisburg earned promotion back to the 2. Bundesliga for the 2015–16 season, but lasted only one season, losing to Würzburger Kickers in the relegation playoff; there were again concerns over whether the club would be granted a license. Duisburg won the 3. Liga for the first time in 2016–17 and finished in the top half of the 2. Bundesliga in 2017–18. The following year they were relegated back to the 3. Liga.

The club was reportedly under threat of insolvency again in 2022.