Wurzburger FV

Wurzburger FV is a German association football club from the city of Wurzburg, Bavaria founded in 1904 as 1. Wurzburger FV 04. The club emerged as WFV in 1923 after leaving a short-lived union formed with a gymnastics club.

History

1904-1981: FV 04 Wurzburg

The team has played as an unheralded local amateur side for most of its existence. From 1927 to 1933, they played in the tier-one Bezirksliga Bayern. In 1933–34 they spent a single season in the top flight Gauliga Bayern, one of sixteen premier divisions formed in the re-organization of German football under the Third Reich in 1933. Towards the end of World War II, WFV was forced into a merger with Kickers Wurzburg to play together as the wartime side (Kriegspielgemeinschaft) KSG Wurzburg. The unified club spent two seasons in last place in the Gauliga Bayern (Gruppe Nord). Play was interrupted as the war progressed and the team was disbanded at the end of the conflict.

WFV was re-established after the war and returned to playing anonymously in the lower amateur divisions. It became a permanent fixture in the tier-three Amateurliga Bayern from 1950 onwards. After not qualifying for the new single-division Amateurliga in 1963, the club declined somewhat, spending time in the tier-four Landesliga Bayern-Nord, interrupted by a Bayernliga appearance from 1964 to 1966. In 1970, the club finally returned to the third division more permanently. They broke through to the 2nd Bundesliga Sud 1976 in spite of a second-place finish and a 0:2 playoff loss to Wacker Munchen when Wacker declined promotion.

Wurzburg's four-year-long turn in the second division was a difficult struggle and they were relegated in 1980 after a 21st place finish. Their descent to the Oberliga Bayern (III) ended with another last place finish and was then promptly followed by the financial collapse of the club which owed its creditors over 2.