How Germany’s north rediscovered success | OneFootball

Hamburg, Werder Bremen, St. Pauli: How Germany’s northern clubs rediscovered their magic

It wasn’t long ago that football fans in northern Germany had little to cheer about, as some of the region’s proudest institutions fell on hard times. Traditional northern giants Werder Bremen and Hamburg had stumbled and fallen into the second tier, where the likes of St. Pauli and Holstein Kiel repeatedly saw their own promotion attempts fall short. Indeed, as recently as the 2021/22 season, Wolfsburg – a long way from the Baltic sea in Germany’s north – stood as the most northern representative in the Bundesliga.

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Fast forward to today, and German football in the north has experienced a remarkable revival. Bremen are mixing it with European hopefuls once more. Hamburg have finally clawed their way back into the Bundesliga after years of heartbreak. St. Pauli have secured their status in the top flight for another season. Even Kiel, who suffered relegation on Matchday 33, spent a maiden campaign in Germany’s top flight and pushed hard until their fate was sealed.

It’s certainly been a period of resurgence for a German footballing heartland.

St. Pauli celebrate their promotion at the end of the 2023/24 season. (Selim Sudheimer)

Werder Bremen: European chasers

The 2000s were a hugely successful decade for Werder. Under the stewardship of Thomas Schaaf and with players like Diego, Miroslav Klose and Claudio Pizarro, Bremen claimed a double in 2003/04 and won another DFB Cup across the decade (three in total if you include 1999’s triumph).

But a gradual decline in standards eventually saw the club relegated at the end of the 2021/22 campaign – a 17th placed finish sealing their first demotion since 1979/80 and ensuring they would lose their position as the Bundesliga's longest-serving club to Bayern Munich.

Yet, from the depths of the Bundesliga 2, Bremen have orchestrated a stunning return. Their promotion in 2021/22 was seen as the first step back – as they retook Wolfsburg's crown as the most northerly club the following term – with things going from strength to strength since.

Under the guidance of Ole Werner, who's been at the helm since 2021, Bremen have defied expectations this season. Or have they simply continued after finishes of 13th then ninth back in the top flight?

Currently sitting in eighth place, and set to miss out on European football by potentially just a few goals, this season could provide a springboard to European football in the seasons to come some 15 years since they last featured on the continent.

Star performers have included right-back Mitchell Weiser, who has 12 goal involvements (five strikes, seven assists) in 31 appearances, and Oliver Burke, who has three goals in Bremen’s last seven fixtures – an unbeaten run for the club.

Their resurgence has reignited the Weserstadion, where talk isn’t just about staying up anymore. It’s about a return to European football.

St. Pauli’s survivors

If Bremen represent the establishment’s return to form, St. Pauli symbolise the rise of the underdogs. For decades, the Kiezkicker, from Hamburg’s urban St. Pauli district, have been known more for their off-pitch activism, punk culture and anti-fascist stance than their footballing prowess. Their promotion to the Bundesliga at the end of last season was widely celebrated not just by their fans but by neutrals and lovers of fan culture across the footballing world.

But there were doubts over whether they would last more than a season in the brutal world of the Bundesliga – particularly after young coach Fabian Hürzeler, the mastermind of last season’s success, left to join English Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion. St. Pauli were widely tipped by many to make a swift return to the second tier.

Instead, under Alexander Blessin, they’ve silenced the doubters with one of the best defensive records in the league. Matchday 33’s 2-2 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt – a result which all but secured their survival going into the final day – put them 14th in the table. Though when it comes to goals conceded (39) they’re second only to champions Bayern (32), an astonishing feat for a promoted club.

The key to their success? Discipline, organisation, and a fiercely united squad. Players like captain Jackson Irvine – who ranks among the league’s top players for distance covered and intensive runs – and Eric Smith have become cult heroes on the pitch in recent seasons, while the Millerntor has lived up to its raucous reputation.

They may not have the biggest budget, but St. Pauli’s survival is a testament to belief and hard work. Few will doubt their ability to survive again next term, when we'll even see the return of the Hamburg derby to the Bundesliga calendar...

Hamburg finally back

Few clubs have endured as public and painful a fall from grace as HSV. Once the proud ‘Dinosaur’ of the Bundesliga – the only club to have featured in every Bundesliga season since the league’s inception in 1963, prior to their drop in 2018 – Hamburg found themselves stuck in the Bundesliga 2 for six grueling seasons. Every year over that period brought fresh disappointment: last-minute collapses, managerial merry-go-rounds and an ongoing failure to escape the second tier.

But this year, under the shrewd leadership of young coach Merlin Polzin, who took over in December, Hamburg finally broke their second-tier curse. They secured promotion on Matchday 33 in a season which has seen them blow the competition out of the water. With 76 goals so far, they’ve outscored the next most prolific club (Elversberg with 62) by 14 strikes.

Key to their revival has been goal machine Davie Selke, who has stepped up in the absence of Robert Glatzel throughout much of the season to score a league- and career-best 22 goals.

More importantly, though, HSV seem to have learned from their mistakes. The club is no longer a circus of short-termism but is building with a clear philosophy, investing wisely and fostering a real togetherness under their young coach. Next season, the Volksparkstadion will once again host top-tier football. The 1983 European Cup winners and three-time Bundesliga champions, will be hoping they’re here for the long-term once again.

Kiel’s taste of the big time

After years of near-misses, Kiel’s Bundesliga promotion at the end of the 2023/24 campaign was seen as a massive achievement for a club which had never previously played top-flight football. In doing so, they became the most-northern Bundesliga club ever, a pioneer in the state of Schleswig-Holstein known better for its breed of cows and sailing.

Though they ultimately couldn’t avoid relegation – defeat at home to Freiburg on Matchday 33 essentially confirming their 17th-place finish – Kiel’s maiden Bundesliga campaign was filled with memorable moments. They shocked Bayer Leverkusen in bagging a 2-2 draw away from home, defeated Borussia Dortmund 4-2 at home, and battered Augsburg 5-1 on Matchday 15. Despite demotion, they’ve proudly flown the flag for the far north.

While they couldn’t accumulate enough points to stay up, their style of play under coach Marcel Rapp – built on quick transitions – won them admirers. Key performers included Japanese forward Shuto Machino, who has scored 11 goals in 31 appearances so far.

Kiel’s drop to Bundesliga 2 shouldn’t and certainly won't be seen as a failure by their fans. Instead it should serve as a foundation on which to build and an inspiration for future seasons in Germany’s top flight. The club remains financially stable and should retain much of a talented squad. Given the experience they’ve garnered this season, few would bet against them being back soon.

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