Now a regular presence in the Bundesliga, Augsburg have become known as obdurate opponents with a propensity to overachieve. No longer just the league's 'other' Bavarian club, let bundesliga.com give you the lowdown on Bayern Munich's closest rivals.

History

The club was founded on 8 August 1907 as FC Allemania and it was not until 1969 that its present name, Football Club Augsburg, came into being after a merger with local side TSV 1847 Schwaben Augsburg.

They bounced around the regional divisions for decades, struggling with debt until a group of investors came to the club's aid in 2001. That brought greater stability and allowed Augsburg to establish longer-term plans. Such strategic thinking paid off in 2006, when the Fuggerstädter – a nickname derived from the city's famous Fugger family – were promoted to Bundesliga 2 for the first time in 23 years.

Just five years later, Dutch coach Jos Luhukay led Augsburg to the Bundesliga for the first time. They have remained in the top flight ever since, and even qualified for the 2015/16 UEFA Europa League after Luhukay's successor, Markus Weinzierl, guided the side to a sensational fifth-placed league finish.

Former coach Markus Weinzierl (r.) oversaw Augsburg's incredible fifth-place Bundesliga finish in 2015 and has now returned to the club in 2021. - imago/ActionPictures

Honours

Bundesliga 2 runners-up (2010/11)
UEFA Europa League qualification (2015)

Coach

Weinzierl is the club’s longest-serving coach in the Bundesliga, having been at the helm four seasons from 2012 to 2016 and earning them their best-ever finish of fifth in 2014/15. Since he left to take over at Schalke, the Bavarians tried their luck with four other coaches but haven’t managed a top-half finish in that time. When patience finally ran out with Heiko Herrlich in April 2021, the club turned again to Weinzierl – their only coach who’s ever beaten Bayern in the Bundesliga era – to work his magic again.

Star man

Goalscoring proved an issue for Augsburg in 2020/21, but at least they could feel confident in defence with Rafal Gikiewicz in goal. The Pole made the second-most saves in the league last season and had the second-most points for goalkeepers in Fantasy at almost half the price of Manuel Neuer. He denied compatriot Robert Lewandowski countless times on the final day of the season until the last kick of the campaign. Signed on a free from Union Berlin, he was undoubtedly one of the deals of the season across the league.

Polish goalkeeper Rafal Gikiewicz was the saviour on countless occasions for Augsburg. - Bernd Feil/M.i.S./Pool/MIS

Want more Bundesliga Action?

GET THE UPDATES!

Last season

Opening wins over Union and Borussia Dortmund will have seen Augsburg fans perk up after a 15th-place finish the previous season. In reality, it was a bit of a false dawn and they spent the majority of 2021 in 12th or 13th place. Perhaps not a disaster for a club whose primary goal is to avoid relegation, but alarm bells started ringing at the end of April when a dramatic 3-2 loss at home to Cologne sparked the dismissal of Herrlich with three games remaining and the club in 14th but now at risk of bring drawn into the relegation squabble. Weinzierl was brought in and got a crucial 2-0 win at Werder Bremen on the penultimate weekend to ensure Die Fuggerstädter would go into an 11th straight season of Bundesliga football.

The stadium

The WWK Arena was completed in July 2009 after a 20-month construction project. It has a capacity of 30,660 (19,556 seating, 8,000 standing), but the architects' designs were such that it can still be expanded to 50,000 in a second phase of building if desired.

A complex system that harnesses the earth's natural geothermal energy provides the stadium's power, making it the first CO2-neutral arena in the world, saving approximately 750 million tons of carbon dioxide each year.

The technical aspects of Augsburg's home aside, the steep stands give the venue a compact feel and help create a spine-tingling atmosphere on matchdays, with the noise echoing around the ground. German broadsheet newspaper the Frankfurt Allgemeine Zeitung even once labelled the stadium "The Anfield of the B17 highway" due to its unique atmosphere.

Watch: A look around the WWK Arena

The city

Founded in 15BC, the city of Augsburg is a rare and special treat for history buffs, offering a huge selection of sights, sounds, tours and relics. Its location in southern Germany meant it became a major trading post en route to Italy, with the wealthy Fugger family (see the club's nickname above) rising to prominence as bankers.

They donated the Fuggerei, the oldest social housing estate in the world, which is one of several buildings still standing. The Fuggers' own palaces have been restored and are well worth a visit, as is the town hall, which dates back to 1620. The centre also has a generous smattering of quaint restaurants and coffee shops to help you digest the weight of history all around you, while the city's Botanical Gardens provide the ultimate spot to unwind.

Getting there

Although Augsburg does have a small airport of its own, it has very little commercial traffic, so the closest major transport hub is Munich, with frequent flights to and from all major European and international destinations arriving and departing daily. Memmingen Airport is also used by low-cost airlines as an alternative to Munich and is only an hour’s drive from Augsburg.

Augsburg is approximately 50 miles to the west of Munich, so is reachable in approximately an hour by car, or in 45 minutes if travelling by train. Public transport leaves from Munich main station (Hauptbahnhof) and arrives in the centre of Augsburg.

- DFL

Getting to the WWK Arena

On home matchdays there a special tram service, Stadion-Linie 8, which departs every five minutes from the central station (Hauptbahnhof) starting two hours before kick-off. The journey from the central station only takes around 20 minutes. All match tickets are valid for travel on public transport (bus and tram) run by Augsburg’s transport operator (AVG) within zones 10 and 20 (three hours before and after the game). This does not apply to regional trains and buses run by Augsburg’s transport association (AVV).

If you are arriving by car from the west or east on the A8 (Stuttgart-Munich), exit Augsburg-West (towards Augsburg Landsberg) to join the Bundesstraße 17. Stay on the B17 until the stadium exit (WWK ARENA).

If coming on the B2 (Donauwörth-Augsburg) from the north, exit onto the Bundesstraße 17 towards Landsberg. Follow the B17 until the stadium exit (WWK ARENA). If coming from the south on the Bundesstraße 17 (Landsberg-Augsburg), follow the B17 until the stadium exit (WWK ARENA).

Buying tickets

Tickets can still be bought via the official club website HERE.

Can’t make it? Watch here:

If you can’t make it to the stadium, Bundesliga matches are broadcast around the world. ESPN provides coverage in the United States, while BT Sports are the exclusive broadcaster in the United Kingdom. In Germany, Sky Sports show the majority of matches, with DAZN hosting one match per week.

Buy the kit

You can get your own Augsburg jersey from the official club shop.

About the clubs

FC Augsburg

WWK ARENA