Regionalliga Süd (1963–1974)


The Regionalliga Süd was the second-highest level of the German football league system. It existed in the south of Germany from 1963 until the formation of the 2. Bundesliga in 1974. It covered the three states of Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg and Hessen.

Overview

The league started out in 1963 with 20 clubs which were reduced for the next season to 19. From 1965 to 1974, there were always 18 teams in the league, except in 1972 when another season of 19 clubs was played.
It was formed from the eleven clubs of the Oberliga Süd which did not get admitted to the new Bundesliga and from the top nine clubs of the 2. Oberliga Süd. The Regionalliga Süd was as such a continuation of the Oberliga Süd under a different name and a tier lower.
Along with the Regionalliga Süd went another four Regionalligas, these five formed the second tier of German football until 1974:
The new Regionalligas were formed along the borders of the old post-World War II Oberligas, not after a balanced regional system. Therefore, the Oberligas Berlin and West covered small but populous areas while Nord and Süd covered large areas. Südwest was something of an anachronism, neither large nor populous.
The league contained some big names of German Football, having the FC Bayern Munich, Kickers Offenbach and SpVgg Fürth as its founder members. In later years, clubs like TSV 1860 Munich, 1. FC Nürnberg and Karlsruher SC found themselves relegated to the league. The league posed something of a death trap for the big names of southern German football, as only the FC Bayern Munich and Kickers Offenbach achieved promotion from it. Kickers Offenbach also managed to win the German Cup in 1970, while still a Regionalliga side, the only club to do so.
The FC Schweinfurt 05, SpVgg Fürth, Stuttgarter Kickers, KSV Hessen Kassel, Freiburger FC and FC Bayern Hof all played in the league for the duration of its 11-season existence. Of those six, the Stuttgarter Kickers had the longest unbroken run in the second division, from 1960 to 1988, 28 seasons.
The winners and runners-up of this league were admitted to the promotion play-off to the Bundesliga, which was staged in two groups of originally four, later five teams each with the winner of each group going up.
The bottom three, some years four teams were relegated to the Amateurligas. Below the Regionalliga Süd were the following Amateurligas:
The league was dissolved in 1974. According to their performance of the last couple of seasons, 13 clubs of the Regionalliga went to the new 2. Bundesliga Süd. The five remaining clubs were relegated to the Amateurligas.
The teams admitted to the 2. Bundesliga Süd were:
The following teams were relegated to the Amateurligas:
From the Regionalliga Süd, 13 clubs qualified for the new 2. Bundesliga Süd, together with seven teams from the Südwest region.
The qualifying modus saw the last five seasons counted, whereby the last placed team in each season received one point, the second-last two points and so on. For a Bundesliga season within this five-year period, a club received 25 points, for an Amateurliga season none.
For the seasons 1969–70 and 70–71, the received points counted single, for the 71–72 and 72–73 season double and for the 73–74 season three times.
To be considered in the points table for the new league, a club had to play either in the Regionalliga Süd in 1973–74 or to have been relegated from the Bundesliga to it for the next season, something which did not apply to the league that year.
The bottom three clubs in the league, nominally the relegated teams in a normal season, were barred from entry to the 2. Bundesliga, regardless of where they stood in the points ranking. This fact saved the FC Augsburg, the last league champion, from relegation, as Hessen Kassel, placed ninth overall but having finished 16th in 1973–74 was barred from promotion, opening the way for FCA.
Points table:
RankClubPoints 1969–74Place in 1973–74
1TSV 1860 Munich1553
21. FC Nürnberg1382
3Karlsruher SC1348
4SV Darmstadt 981104
5FC Bayern Hof1049
6Stuttgarter Kickers986
7SpVgg Bayreuth905
8VfR Heilbronn9012
9Hessen Kassel 19016
10SpVgg Fürth8510
11FC Schweinfurt 056815
12Freiburger FC 16817
13SV Waldhof Mannheim617
14FC Augsburg541
15Jahn Regensburg 15318
16VfR Mannheim2813
17VfR Bürstadt2714
18FSV Frankfurt2611

The Regionalliga Süd was reformed in 1994, now as the third tier of the German football league system, again covering the three southern German states of Bayern, Baden-Württemberg and Hessen. In something of a repeat of history, the clubs from the Oberliga Südwest merged into the league in 2000. The Regionalliga Süd now roughly covered the same area as the 2nd Bundesliga Süd did from 1974 to 1981. In 2008, the Südwest clubs will leave the league again and join the new Regionalliga West and the Regionalliga Süd will revert to its coverage of the three original regions, but now as the fourth tier of the league system, below the new 3. Liga.

Winners and runners-up of the Regionalliga Süd

The winners and runners–up of the league were:
SeasonWinnerRunner–Up
1963–64Hessen KasselFC Bayern Munich
1964–65FC Bayern MunichSSV Reutlingen
1965–66FC Schweinfurt 05Kickers Offenbach
1966–67Kickers OffenbachFC Bayern Hof
1967–68FC Bayern HofKickers Offenbach
1968–69Karlsruher SCFreiburger FC
1969–70Kickers OffenbachKarlsruher SC
1970–711. FC NürnbergKarlsruher SC
1971–72Kickers OffenbachFC Bayern Hof
1972–73SV Darmstadt 98Karlsruher SC
1973–74FC Augsburg1. FC Nürnberg

The league placings from 1963 to 1974:
Club6465666768697071727374
FC Bayern Munich21BBBBBBBBB
Kickers Offenbach33212B1B1BB
FC Augsburg1
1. FC NürnbergBBBBBB31952
TSV 1860 MunichBBBBBBB4333
SV Darmstadt 9814131414818714
SpVgg Bayreuth171345
Stuttgarter Kickers147544412101186
SV Waldhof Mannheim11431112112077
Karlsruher SCBBBBB122528
FC Bayern Hof13992134132129
SpVgg Fürth9843778714910
FSV Frankfurt16101413161911
VfR Heilbronn1488612
VfR Mannheim66125614151613
VfR Bürstadt1314
FC Schweinfurt 057151105656121415
KSV Hessen Kassel15688107341016
Freiburger FC1011157926961517
SSV Jahn Regensburg155105161118
SpVgg Ludwigsburg1516
SSV Reutlingen52863911151017
FC Wacker München171918
Opel Rüsselsheim10121115131417
FC 08 Villingen15101391218
ESV Ingolstadt12121612161119
SV Göppingen17
Viktoria Aschaffenburg18
VfL Neckarau16
TSV Schwaben Augsburg4161191317
Rot-Weiß Frankfurt18
TSG Backnang17
SV Wiesbaden18
BC Augsburg1916
Germania Wiesbaden17
1. FC Pforzheim1513718
SpVgg Weiden17
VfR Pforzheim18
TSG Ulm 1846818
FC Emmendingen19
SpVgg Neu-Isenburg17
Borussia Fulda18
Amicitia Viernheim20

Source:

Key

Top scorers

The league's top scorers:
YearPlayerClubGoals
1963–64JendroschHessen Kassel34
1964–65Rainer OhlhauserFC Bayern Munich42
1965–66MikulaschESV Ingolstadt29
1966–67WindhausenSpVgg Fürth32
1967–68BreuerFC Bayern Hof27
1967–68SchäffnerVfR Mannheim27
1968–69KlierFC 08 Villingen23
1969–70KlierFC 08 Villingen22
1970–71BründlStuttgarter Kickers21
1971–72Erwin KosteddeKickers Offenbach27
1972–73KellerTSV 1860 Munich26
1973–74ObermeierFC Augsburg25

Source:

Records

The league records:
Highest win11–0Kickers Offenbach 11 – 0 VfR Pforzheim
Most goals in a game13Freiburger FC 2 – 11 FC Bayern Munich
Season with most goals1,255 1964–65
Round with most goals49 Round 19, 1964–65

All-time table

The best and worst teams in the all-time table of the league from 1963 to 1974: