RC Leipzig
German rugby club from Leipzig, playing in the Rugby-Bundesliga.
RC Leipzig is a rugby union club based in Leipzig, Germany, and plays in the Rugby-Bundesliga, the country's top division. The club was founded in 2004, but its origins go back to the early 1950s, when several rugby departments were set up in local sports clubs in what was then East Germany. Those earlier clubs—BSG Lok Leipzig-Wahren, SC DHfK Leipzig, BSG Gastronom Leipzig, and the army club ASK Leipzig—won a total of nine East German championships between them.
Rugby in Leipzig began in the 1950s, and the number of teams peaked in the 1960s. DHfK Leipzig was the most successful, winning five titles between 1954 and 1963, while Lok took four. By the 1980s, only Lok and Gastronom were still active. Lok had a strong run in the late 1970s, breaking the dominance of BSG Stahl Hennigsdorf and winning three straight East German championships.
After German reunification, the two surviving departments merged in the early 1990s and became part of HSG DHfK Leipzig. In September 1994, the rugby players moved to the re-formed TSV 1893 Leipzig-Wahren, forming a department there. They stayed for ten years, until September 2004, when RC Leipzig was founded in the suburb of Stahmeln. Some players remained at TSV for another year playing touch rugby before moving to the club SG LVB in Leipzig-Connewitz.
In recent years, RC Leipzig rebuilt its squad around the Under-18 side that won the national championship in 2007. The current squad includes several former age-grade national team players and others with high-level rugby experience abroad. The club had solidified its place in the Regionalliga East and aimed for promotion to the 2. Bundesliga within five years. A league reform in 2012 expanded the Bundesliga from ten to 24 teams, allowing RC Leipzig to jump from the third division straight to the first. In the 2012–13 season, the club finished fifth in its group, missing the championship round and entering the DRV-Pokal, where it placed second in the north/east division and lost in the quarter-finals to StuSta München.
In 2013–14, RC Leipzig qualified for the DRV-Pokal, finished first in the north-east division, and received a first-round bye. They originally advanced to the final against Heidelberger TV after a semi-final win over RC Rottweil, but that result was later overturned because Leipzig had used an ineligible player, and Rottweil took the final spot instead.
Quick Facts
- Teamname
- RC Leipzig
- Fullname
- Rugby Club Leipzig e.V.
- Union
- German Rugby Federation
- Location
- Leipzig, Germany
- Countryflag
- Germany
- Founded
- 2003
- Chairman
- Karsten Heine
- Coach
- Falk Müller
- League
- Rugby-Bundesliga (I)
- Season
- 2018–19
- Position
- Rugby-Bundesliga North/East, 4th, Cup champions
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
Rugby in Leipzig began in the 1950s with the formation of several rugby departments within local sports clubs, including BSG Lok Leipzig-Wahren, SC DHfK Leipzig, BSG Gastronom Leipzig, and the army club ASK Leipzig. DHfK Leipzig was the most successful, winning five East German championships between 1954 and 1963, while BSG Lokomotive Wahren Leipzig won four titles, including three consecutive championships in the late 1970s. By the 1980s only the Lok and Gastronom departments remained active.
Following German reunification, the two surviving departments merged in the early 1990s into HSG DHfK Leipzig, and in September 1994 the rugby players joined TSV 1893 Leipzig-Wahren. In September 2004, RC Leipzig was founded in the suburb of Stahmeln. Some players remained at TSV for an additional year playing touch rugby before moving to SG LVB in Leipzig-Connewitz.
A league reform in 2012 expanded the Bundesliga from ten to 24 teams, allowing RC Leipzig to jump from the third tier directly to the first division. The club finished fifth in its group in 2012–13 and entered the DRV-Pokal, where it reached the quarter-finals. In 2013–14, Leipzig advanced to the DRV-Pokal final against Heidelberger TV, but its semi-final win over RC Rottweil was later converted into a defeat after the use of an ineligible player was discovered. The club finished first in its DRV-Pokal group in 2014–15 and was eliminated in the semi-finals by RC Rottweil.
Reader's Guide
RC Leipzig represents the continuation of a rugby tradition in Leipzig that dates to the early 1950s, when multiple clubs in East Germany competed for national championships. The club's predecessor teams won nine East German titles, with DHfK Leipzig dominating the 1950s and early 1960s and BSG Lokomotive Wahren Leipzig enjoying a resurgence in the late 1970s. After reunification, the sport's infrastructure in Leipzig was reorganized through mergers and relocations, culminating in the founding of RC Leipzig in 2004.
The club's most notable achievement in the modern era came in 2012, when a league restructuring allowed it to ascend directly from the Regionalliga East to the Bundesliga. RC Leipzig has since competed in the DRV-Pokal, reaching the final in 2013–14 before being disqualified for fielding an ineligible player. The club has rebuilt its squad around its Under-18 side, which won a national championship in 2007, and has aimed for promotion to the 2. Bundesliga. Its presence in the top division underscores the resilience of rugby in eastern Germany and the ongoing development of both fifteen-a-side and touch rugby in Leipzig.
Did You Know?
- RC Leipzig was founded in September 2004 in the suburb of Stahmeln.
- The club's predecessor teams won a combined nine East German rugby union championships.
- A league reform in 2012 allowed RC Leipzig to jump from the third tier to the Bundesliga.
- In 2013–14, RC Leipzig reached the DRV-Pokal final but was disqualified for using an ineligible player.
More in Club History & Eras
Elsewhere in RB Leipzig
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