Fun Facts
The tag “champions of hearts” is standard pub
The tag “champions of hearts” is standard pub talk about Schalke.
talk about Schalke. But here are the more special fun facts.
The first double winners: in 1937 FC Schalke
The first double winners: in 1937 FC Schalke 04 became the first German club to complete the double of league title and cup win, though the cup final ...
04 became the first German club to complete the double of league title and cup win, though the cup final against Fortuna Düsseldorf had to be postponed for scheduling reasons and was only played in January 1938.
Twice against Vienna: Schalke managed a unique feat
Twice against Vienna: Schalke managed a unique feat during the Third Reich and wartime era.
during the Third Reich and wartime era. They became the only club to win the German title twice against teams from Vienna: 9–0 against Admira in 1939 and 2–0 against First Vienna in 1942.
“FC Perjury”: that is the nickname rival supporters
“FC Perjury”: that is the nickname rival supporters – especially in Dortmund – still use for Schalke because of the club’s role in the match-fixing sc...
especially in Dortmund – still use for Schalke because of the club’s role in the match-fixing scandal.
Thon gives up the armband: Olaf Thon played
Thon gives up the armband: Olaf Thon played 295 league matches for Schalke in the first and second Bundesliga and was inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame in 2008.
295 league matches for Schalke in the first and second Bundesliga and was inducted into the club’s Hall of Fame in 2008. A year later he fell out with the club, feeling his experience and expertise were not sufficiently appreciated. For a while, at least.
The Knappen are almost always tight: as of
The Knappen are almost always tight: as of December 2019, no German club had ever amassed more debt than FC Schalke 04.
December 2019, no German club had ever amassed more debt than FC Schalke 04. The club borrowed about 285 million euros from 1998 onward to build the Arena AufSchalke. Even in 2012, liabilities still stood at 173.1 million euros.
18 instead of 16: Schalke played a major
18 instead of 16: Schalke played a major role in the Bundesliga becoming an 18-team league.
role in the Bundesliga becoming an 18-team league. At first there were only 16 clubs. In 1965 both Schalke and Karlsruher SC were relegated on sporting merit, but then Hertha BSC’s financial tricks came to light and the Berlin club were forcibly demoted.
After two months of debate, the DFB decided not only to include Tasmania Berlin to preserve top-flight football in the capital, but also to suspend relegation. From then on, except after reunification in 1991/92, the Bundesliga played with 18 teams.
One cult club, three stadiums: besides Bayern Munich,
One cult club, three stadiums: besides Bayern Munich, Schalke are the only club to have used three different home stadiums in Bundesliga history as of...
Schalke are the only club to have used three different home stadiums in Bundesliga history as of December 2019: the Glückauf-Kampfbahn, then the Parkstadion from 1973, then the Arena AufSchalke from 2001 onward.
Most goals in a season: Klaus Fischer in
Most goals in a season: Klaus Fischer in 1975/76 and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar in 2011/12 both scored 29 league goals for Schalke.
1975/76 and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar in 2011/12 both scored 29 league goals for Schalke. In both cases that meant the top scorer’s cannon.
Schalke in film, part 1: in Wolfgang Petersen’s
Schalke in film, part 1: in Wolfgang Petersen’s Das Boot, Schalke 04 receive a cinematic monument long before Football Is Our Life.
Das Boot, Schalke 04 receive a cinematic monument long before Football Is Our Life. In the film, one of the U-boat sailors brings the news that Schalke have just lost 0–5.
Senior Raúl and the Hunter: Raúl and Klaas-Jan
Senior Raúl and the Hunter: Raúl and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, with five goals each in 2010/11 and 2014/15, are Schalke’s top scorers in a single Champions...
Huntelaar, with five goals each in 2010/11 and 2014/15, are Schalke’s top scorers in a single Champions League campaign.
Schalke in film, part 2: Schalke references also
Schalke in film, part 2: Schalke references also appear in Theo Against the Rest of the World and in Sönke Wortmann’s Kleine Haie, where Jürgen Vogel ...
appear in Theo Against the Rest of the World and in Sönke Wortmann’s Kleine Haie, where Jürgen Vogel plays Schalke fan Ingo Hermann.
Fredi Bobic: the first goalscorer at the opening
Fredi Bobic: the first goalscorer at the opening of the Arena AufSchalke on 13 August 2001 was, of all people, Fredi Bobic of arch-rivals Borussia Dor...
of the Arena AufSchalke on 13 August 2001 was, of all people, Fredi Bobic of arch-rivals Borussia Dortmund.
The eternal record of “Tanne”: Klaus “Tanne” Fichtel,
The eternal record of “Tanne”: Klaus “Tanne” Fichtel, with 552 Bundesliga appearances for Werder Bremen and Schalke 04, probably holds an unbreakable Bundesliga appearance record.
with 552 Bundesliga appearances for Werder Bremen and Schalke 04, probably holds an unbreakable Bundesliga appearance record. Better still: at 43 years, six months and three days on 21 May 1988, he also became the oldest player ever to appear in the Bundesliga – and still held that record in December 2019.
Fireman and arsonist Gutendorf: in November 1968 Schalke
Fireman and arsonist Gutendorf: in November 1968 Schalke were bottom again and needed a firefighter.
were bottom again and needed a firefighter. Enter Rudi Gutendorf. One of his first measures, imported from Africa, was to pile up the shirts and burn them, along with the bad spirits inside them.
Special: Fun Facts About the Derby – Schalke
Special: Fun Facts About the Derby – Schalke 04 vs Borussia Dortmund...
04 vs Borussia Dortmund
Eleven fun facts about the mother of all
Eleven fun facts about the mother of all German derbies, in chronological order:...
German derbies, in chronological order:
3 May 1925: Schalke beat Borussia Dortmund 4–2.
The match is commonly seen as the birth of the Schalker Kreisel. “Short and flat, the ball wanders from man to man,” wrote the Dortmunder Generalanzeiger about Schalke’s play. Nineteen-year-old Ernst Kuzorra scored twice.
20 October 1940: Schalke 04 – Borussia Dortmund
20 October 1940: Schalke 04 – Borussia Dortmund 10–0.
10–0. In the Gauliga Westfalen, S04 shredded BVB 10–0. Ernst Kuzorra scored four goals in the first half. Only 3,000 spectators saw the rout.
7 September 1963: Schalke 04 – Borussia Dortmund
7 September 1963: Schalke 04 – Borussia Dortmund 3–1.
3–1. Reinhold Wosab scored the first Bundesliga goal in a Schalke-Dortmund derby – for Dortmund. Schalke then struck three times in 14 minutes to take the match.
12 November 1966: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
12 November 1966: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 6–2. “Whenever the ball disappeared into the fog, I just ran after it.
6–2. “Whenever the ball disappeared into the fog, I just ran after it. It was exhausting, but okay,” said referee Gerd Henning afterwards. No one knows why he started the match at all.
In the Rote Erde, 38,000 spectators saw practically nothing. The players did not see much more. Dortmund handled it better and won 6–2, with Lothar Emmerich scoring three. “If we’d been able to see, we’d have won by even more,” he said afterwards.
6 September 1969: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
6 September 1969: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 1–1.
1–1. Friedel Rausch lay on the turf with his backside exposed – bitten by police dog Rex after hundreds of Schalke fans stormed the field celebrating Hansi Pirkner’s goal. Rausch got a tetanus shot and kept playing.
22 April 1986: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
22 April 1986: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 1–1.
1–1. Klaus Fichtel, who had actually returned to Schalke as an assistant coach, ended up playing again in his 24th derby. Michael Zorc equalised Schalke’s lead from the penalty spot.
19 December 1997: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
19 December 1997: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 2–2.
2–2. The corner that led to the equaliser should never have been given. That did not matter to Jens Lehmann. Schalke’s goalkeeper surged forward and scored with a header in stoppage time – the first goal by a goalkeeper from open play in Bundesliga history. Lehmann later moved to Dortmund.
23 September 2000: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
23 September 2000: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 0–4. “Judas” returned.
0–4. “Judas” returned. Andreas Möller had switched from BVB to Schalke that summer and was met with immense hostility. He then played brilliantly, celebrated bare-chested in front of the Schalke fans, and heard them sing: “Without Möller you’ve got no chance!”
12 May 2007: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
12 May 2007: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 2–0.
2–0. BVB had had a dreadful season, but still had one goal left: Schalke must not become champions. And so it remained: “Look, but don’t touch.” Alex Frei and Ebi Smolarek scored, and Schalke’s title bid died there.
13 September 2008: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
13 September 2008: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 3–3.
3–3. Referee Lutz Wagner had a dreadful day. Schalke blew a 3–0 lead; Christian Pander and Fabian Ernst were sent off; the 2–3 was offside and the handball penalty for 3–3 was incorrect. Afterwards Wagner spoke of “personal perception”. Nobody laughed.
25 November 2017: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04
25 November 2017: Borussia Dortmund – Schalke 04 4–4.
4–4. Schalke appeared dead at 0–4 down after just 25 minutes. Tedesco only wanted to “win the second half”. Schalke kept going. Naldo finally headed the equaliser in stoppage time and completed the greatest comeback in derby history. A mass brawl followed on the pitch.
S04 — Financial Stability Score
Schalke ist das abschreckende Beispiel der Liga: Von CL-Halbfinale (2011) zu -104 Mio EK. Der Club zeigt was passiert wenn alle Minsky-Risiken gleichzeitig eintreten: Gehaltsexzesse, Transferfehler, Abstieg, COVID. Die Erholung dauert ein Jahrzehnt.
Fun Facts — Update 2020–2026
As of 2024, Simon Terodde is the all-time record goalscorer of the 2.
As of 2024, Simon Terodde is the all-time
As of 2024, Simon Terodde is the all-time record goalscorer of the 2.
record goalscorer of the 2. Bundesliga with 177 goals. No player has scored more often in Germany’s second tier. For Schalke alone he scored 30 goals in the promotion season of 2021/22.
The quickest return relegation after promotion in recent
The quickest return relegation after promotion in recent Bundesliga history: Schalke went up in 2022 and down again as bottom club in 2023.
Bundesliga history: Schalke went up in 2022 and down again as bottom club in 2023. One year in the top flight — and that was that.
Seven coaches in two seasons (2020/21 and 2021/22)
Seven coaches in two seasons (2020/21 and 2021/22) — a level of coaching wear and tear that was exceptional even by Bundesliga standards....
a level of coaching wear and tear that was exceptional even by Bundesliga standards.
Words of Wisdom — Update
Words of Wisdom — Update...
“In this suitcase are conviction, confidence and belief.”
“In this suitcase are conviction, confidence and belief.” — Christian Gross at his unveiling as Schalke coach, December 2020....
Christian Gross at his unveiling as Schalke coach, December 2020.
On the fan banners after relegation in 2021
On the fan banners after relegation in 2021 it read: “You sold out the club.”...
it read: “You sold out the club.”