Bundesliga

 

The German Football League, the first division of football, called the Bundesliga (pronounced in German: [ˈbʊndəsˌliːɡa] (hear)) is the professional football league in Germany and is considered one of the elite leagues in the world. It is considered the premier and basic division in the country, as it is the pinnacle of the German football league systems. It is competed by 18 teams that follow the system of promotion or relegation with the Bundesliga 2 (second division).

Since the founding of the Bundesliga, a total of 50 clubs have competed in it. Bayern Munich has dominated the tournament since the 1970s, winning the title 31 times. In any case, the Bundesliga witnessed other champions, the most prominent of whom were Hamburg, Borussia Dortmund, Werder Bremen, Borussia Mönchengladbach, Stuttgart and Wolfsburg.

The Bundesliga occupies one of the top ranks of national league systems, and is currently ranked third in Europe after England and Spain, according to the European Football Association (UEFA) classification of league tiers, based on the results of German clubs in recent European competitions. Germany delayed establishing a national league until very late, unlike most countries. The Bundesliga was not formed until 1963, and the organization and structure of the league has witnessed many changes in the country to this day. The league was originally founded by the German Football Association, but is now managed by the DFL.

The term Bundesliga also applies to the football league in Austria, but it is the common name for the German Bundesliga, and is used to refer to higher-level leagues in many other sports, whether in Germany or Austria.

The champion of the 2023-24 season is Bayer 04 Leverkusen, after it was able to secure the title 5 rounds before the end, achieving its first title in its history.

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After its founding in 1900, the German Football Association decided to organize the first official tournament in the country, and this actually happened in 1903 when the first official league was created in Germany under the name “Bezirksliga” that brought together the champions of the regional leagues in Germany to compete among themselves in a knockout system. In the first season, the city of Hamburg hosted the final match between DFC Prague and FAO FB Leipzig, which ended with the latter winning 7-2, subsequently crowning the title.

Bundesliga during Nazi rule in Germany (1933–1945)

During the reign of the Nazis, the previous league (Bezirksliga) was canceled and a new league was created under the name “Gauliga”. The origin of this name was inspired by the phrase “Gau”, which means (region or province), and the phrase “liga”, which means (league), meaning that the name “Gauliga” It means (district league) and its plural is "Gauligaen", meaning (district league). The German league system during the Nazi era was also the same as the previous league system. The champions of the regional leagues played among themselves in a playoff system, but with the expansion of the regional leagues to 16 leagues from only 8, From each of these 16 regional leagues, the champion team qualifies, forming 16 teams that play against each other in a knockout round system. After that, the German League was expanded by involving Austrian clubs after the Anschluss operation, and these clubs achieved achievements, with Rapid Vienna winning the league title once in the 1941 season. In addition to the German Cup in 1938, First Vienna also won the German Cup in 1943.

Military clubs were also included in the league, such as the Luftwaffe Hamburg team, which participated in the 1943-1944 season. After the end of Nazi rule in Germany, this league was canceled and replaced by a new league called “Oberliga.”

The Oberliga from 1946 to 1963

After the end of World War II and the end of Nazi rule in Germany, German football was in a state of complete chaos. The occupying Allied authorities ordered the dismantling of most of the organizations in the country, including sports and football clubs, but soon these clubs were restored again. Play was resumed and formation was formed. League under the name "Oberliga" By 1948, this name continued, inspired by the phrase "ober", which means (the highest), and the phrase "liga", which means (league), meaning that the name "oberliga" means (the highest league), and the Nuremberg club was the first club to win In the German League after World War II, after it defeated Kaiserslautern with a score of 2-1 in the final match that brought them together in the city of Cologne. In 1949, the shape of the German League Cup was changed (from a statue of the Roman goddess Victoria to a Meisterschale shield).

The beginning of the Bundesliga

The Bundesliga, which was founded in 1963, is considered the first German professional league. It is also considered a turning point and a major change in the German League, as the regional leagues were abandoned and the knockout round system used in previous leagues was abolished and replaced by the league system. 16 teams participated in the first season of the Bundesliga, and 1 club was crowned champion. Cologne won the title in the first season, and the first match in the Bundesliga was between Werder Bremen and Borussia Dortmund, and the former won 3-2, and the first goal was scored. تسجيله في البوندسليغا.

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