Schalke 04
Die Knappen of Gelsenkirchen, seven times German champions.
Schalke 04 is a sports club from the Schalke district of Gelsenkirchen in North Rhine-Westphalia, best known for its football team, which returned to the Bundesliga after promotion from the 2. Bundesliga in 2025-26.
Quick Facts
- Full name
- Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen-Schalke 04 e. V.
- Nickname
- Die Königsblauen (The Royal Blues); Die Knappen (The Miners)
- Short name
- S04
- Founded
- 4 May 1904; as Westfalia Schalke
- Ground
- Veltins-Arena
- Capacity
- 62,273
- Chairman
- Matthias Tillmann
- Manager
- Miron Muslić
Lore & Background
The club was formed in 1904 and had its heyday in the 1930s and 1940s; in 1937 it became the first German club to win the double. It has won seven German championships, five DFB-Pokals, the UEFA Cup and two Intertoto Cups. With 210,000 members it is Germany's third-largest football club.
Reader's Guide
Schalke has played at the Veltins-Arena since 2001. Its fiercest rivalry is the Revierderby with Ruhr neighbours Borussia Dortmund. The nickname Die Knappen comes from an old word for miners.
In 1971-72 Schalke led the Bundesliga for much of the season before finishing second to Bayern Munich, and won the DFB-Pokal the same year.
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