Latest news with #ElDorfico
San Francisco Chronicle
27-05-2025
- Sport
- San Francisco Chronicle
Europe's longest-serving club coach survives in the Bundesliga again in his 709th game
DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — The longest-serving coach in any major men's European soccer league has written another chapter in a remarkable career. Now he just wants a rest. A last-minute goal on Monday gave Heidenheim and its coach Frank Schmidt, who's nearing 18 years in charge, a win which guaranteed survival in the Bundesliga for another season. It was Schmidt's 709th game with a club he's taken from a regional league in southwestern Germany to the top division, beating Bayern Munich and facing the likes of Chelsea in the Europa Conference League. 'I've given all my energy to the team and it was very important, but now I'm empty,' Schmidt told broadcaster Sky after Leo Scienza's added-time goal sealed a 4-3 aggregate win over Elversberg in the promotion-relegation playoff. 'No one needs to call me tomorrow, I won't be contactable, because I'm going away. I need the energy to prepare for the new season.' Winning 'El Dorfico' The town of Heidenheim is home to 50,000 people and Schmidt's team is usually the underdog against clubs with more history, trophies and fans. It was the other way round on Monday. Heidenheim's opponent was Elversberg, another team which has risen from regional leagues to the national stage in recent years. It comes from a town of just 13,000 people. German fans dubbed the game 'El Dorfico,' a play on Barcelona and Real Madrid's El Clasico rivalry and the German word 'Dorf,' or village. Heidenheim seemed to be tiring as the game entered stoppage time but Brazilian winger Scienza burst down the left flank to score the winner to start Heidenheim's celebrations. It was a narrow escape for Heidenheim, which finished an impressive eighth in the Bundesliga last season to qualify for the Europa Conference League but struggled to cope with the extra games this year. A place in history The soccer world looked very different in September 2007 when Schmidt first coached Heidenheim in a regional cup game against Olympia Laupheim reserves. David Beckham had just made his debut for the Los Angeles Galaxy after a shock move from Madrid, while Alex Ferguson's Manchester United was the team to beat in England. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were successful young players at United and Barcelona, respectively, but neither had yet won the Ballon d'Or prize for best player in the world. They now have 13 Ballon d'Or awards between them. Schmidt's tenure with Heidenheim makes Pep Guardiola's nine years at Manchester City or Diego Simeone's 13-year stint at Atletico Madrid look short by comparison. He's still some way short of historical greats like Ferguson (26 years at United) or Arsene Wenger (22 years at Arsenal).
Fox Sports
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Europe's longest-serving club coach survives in the Bundesliga again in his 709th game
Associated Press DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — The longest-serving coach in any major men's European soccer league has written another chapter in a remarkable career. Now he just wants a rest. A last-minute goal on Monday gave Heidenheim and its coach Frank Schmidt, who's nearing 18 years in charge, a win which guaranteed survival in the Bundesliga for another season. It was Schmidt's 709th game with a club he's taken from a regional league in southwestern Germany to the top division, beating Bayern Munich and facing the likes of Chelsea in the Europa Conference League. 'I've given all my energy to the team and it was very important, but now I'm empty,' Schmidt told broadcaster Sky after Leo Scienza's added-time goal sealed a 4-3 aggregate win over Elversberg in the promotion-relegation playoff. 'No one needs to call me tomorrow, I won't be contactable, because I'm going away. I need the energy to prepare for the new season.' Winning 'El Dorfico' The town of Heidenheim is home to 50,000 people and Schmidt's team is usually the underdog against clubs with more history, trophies and fans. It was the other way round on Monday. Heidenheim's opponent was Elversberg, another team which has risen from regional leagues to the national stage in recent years. It comes from a town of just 13,000 people. German fans dubbed the game 'El Dorfico,' a play on Barcelona and Real Madrid's El Clasico rivalry and the German word 'Dorf,' or village. Heidenheim seemed to be tiring as the game entered stoppage time but Brazilian winger Scienza burst down the left flank to score the winner to start Heidenheim's celebrations. It was a narrow escape for Heidenheim, which finished an impressive eighth in the Bundesliga last season to qualify for the Europa Conference League but struggled to cope with the extra games this year. A place in history The soccer world looked very different in September 2007 when Schmidt first coached Heidenheim in a regional cup game against Olympia Laupheim reserves. David Beckham had just made his debut for the Los Angeles Galaxy after a shock move from Madrid, while Alex Ferguson's Manchester United was the team to beat in England. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were successful young players at United and Barcelona, respectively, but neither had yet won the Ballon d'Or prize for best player in the world. They now have 13 Ballon d'Or awards between them. Schmidt's tenure with Heidenheim makes Pep Guardiola's nine years at Manchester City or Diego Simeone's 13-year stint at Atletico Madrid look short by comparison. He's still some way short of historical greats like Ferguson (26 years at United) or Arsene Wenger (22 years at Arsenal). ___ AP soccer:
Hamilton Spectator
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
Europe's longest-serving club coach survives in the Bundesliga again in his 709th game
DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — The longest-serving coach in any major men's European soccer league has written another chapter in a remarkable career. Now he just wants a rest. A last-minute goal on Monday gave Heidenheim and its coach Frank Schmidt, who's nearing 18 years in charge, a win which guaranteed survival in the Bundesliga for another season. It was Schmidt's 709th game with a club he's taken from a regional league in southwestern Germany to the top division, beating Bayern Munich and facing the likes of Chelsea in the Europa Conference League. 'I've given all my energy to the team and it was very important, but now I'm empty,' Schmidt told broadcaster Sky after Leo Scienza's added-time goal sealed a 4-3 aggregate win over Elversberg in the promotion-relegation playoff. 'No one needs to call me tomorrow, I won't be contactable, because I'm going away. I need the energy to prepare for the new season.' Winning 'El Dorfico' The town of Heidenheim is home to 50,000 people and Schmidt's team is usually the underdog against clubs with more history, trophies and fans. It was the other way round on Monday. Heidenheim's opponent was Elversberg, another team which has risen from regional leagues to the national stage in recent years. It comes from a town of just 13,000 people. German fans dubbed the game 'El Dorfico,' a play on Barcelona and Real Madrid's El Clasico rivalry and the German word 'Dorf,' or village. Heidenheim seemed to be tiring as the game entered stoppage time but Brazilian winger Scienza burst down the left flank to score the winner to start Heidenheim's celebrations. It was a narrow escape for Heidenheim, which finished an impressive eighth in the Bundesliga last season to qualify for the Europa Conference League but struggled to cope with the extra games this year. A place in history The soccer world looked very different in September 2007 when Schmidt first coached Heidenheim in a regional cup game against Olympia Laupheim reserves. David Beckham had just made his debut for the Los Angeles Galaxy after a shock move from Madrid, while Alex Ferguson's Manchester United was the team to beat in England. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were successful young players at United and Barcelona, respectively, but neither had yet won the Ballon d'Or prize for best player in the world. They now have 13 Ballon d'Or awards between them. Schmidt's tenure with Heidenheim makes Pep Guardiola's nine years at Manchester City or Diego Simeone's 13-year stint at Atletico Madrid look short by comparison. He's still some way short of historical greats like Ferguson (26 years at United) or Arsene Wenger (22 years at Arsenal). ___ AP soccer:
Winnipeg Free Press
27-05-2025
- Sport
- Winnipeg Free Press
Europe's longest-serving club coach survives in the Bundesliga again in his 709th game
DUESSELDORF, Germany (AP) — The longest-serving coach in any major men's European soccer league has written another chapter in a remarkable career. Now he just wants a rest. A last-minute goal on Monday gave Heidenheim and its coach Frank Schmidt, who's nearing 18 years in charge, a win which guaranteed survival in the Bundesliga for another season. It was Schmidt's 709th game with a club he's taken from a regional league in southwestern Germany to the top division, beating Bayern Munich and facing the likes of Chelsea in the Europa Conference League. 'I've given all my energy to the team and it was very important, but now I'm empty,' Schmidt told broadcaster Sky after Leo Scienza's added-time goal sealed a 4-3 aggregate win over Elversberg in the promotion-relegation playoff. 'No one needs to call me tomorrow, I won't be contactable, because I'm going away. I need the energy to prepare for the new season.' Winning 'El Dorfico' The town of Heidenheim is home to 50,000 people and Schmidt's team is usually the underdog against clubs with more history, trophies and fans. It was the other way round on Monday. Heidenheim's opponent was Elversberg, another team which has risen from regional leagues to the national stage in recent years. It comes from a town of just 13,000 people. German fans dubbed the game 'El Dorfico,' a play on Barcelona and Real Madrid's El Clasico rivalry and the German word 'Dorf,' or village. Heidenheim seemed to be tiring as the game entered stoppage time but Brazilian winger Scienza burst down the left flank to score the winner to start Heidenheim's celebrations. It was a narrow escape for Heidenheim, which finished an impressive eighth in the Bundesliga last season to qualify for the Europa Conference League but struggled to cope with the extra games this year. A place in history The soccer world looked very different in September 2007 when Schmidt first coached Heidenheim in a regional cup game against Olympia Laupheim reserves. Thursdays Keep up to date on sports with Mike McIntyre's weekly newsletter. David Beckham had just made his debut for the Los Angeles Galaxy after a shock move from Madrid, while Alex Ferguson's Manchester United was the team to beat in England. Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi were successful young players at United and Barcelona, respectively, but neither had yet won the Ballon d'Or prize for best player in the world. They now have 13 Ballon d'Or awards between them. Schmidt's tenure with Heidenheim makes Pep Guardiola's nine years at Manchester City or Diego Simeone's 13-year stint at Atletico Madrid look short by comparison. He's still some way short of historical greats like Ferguson (26 years at United) or Arsene Wenger (22 years at Arsenal). ___ AP soccer:
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Tiny Elversberg chasing Bundesliga promotion 'dream'
A German team from the tiny town of Elversberg are unawed as they bid to become the smallest club in Bundesliga history ahead of Thursday's playoff first leg at top-flight Heidenheim. Elversberg finished behind Cologne and Hamburg, both of whom won automatic promotion from the second tier, and face Heidenheim, who ended the season third from bottom in the Bundesliga, for a place in the top flight. Promoted to the second division for the first time two seasons ago, Elversberg are from a town with a population of just 13,000. If promoted, Elversberg would break the record set by former top-flight side Unterhaching, from a town home to 26,000 residents. Hoffenheim, part of the town of Sinsheim, are the smallest current Bundesliga club, coming from a population of 36,000. Despite hosting English giants Chelsea in the UEFA Conference League this season, Heidenheim, with a population of 49,000, are also among the smallest clubs in German professional football. With the combined population of Elversberg and Heidenheim fitting easily into several of the country's larger stadiums, German tabloid Bild nicknamed the playoff 'El Dorfico', or the 'Village Clasico'. German rail provider Deutsche Bahn got in on the fun, posting on social media on Wednesday that a one-carriage chartered train was organised to transport fans to the match. Heidenheim hit back with a dig at the national rail company's reliability, telling fans to take a "car or a bus... after all, you want to be there in time for kick-off." Elversberg's rise has been led by club chairman Frank Holzer, a former player and local businessman who took over in 1990 and has occasionally stepped in as coach. Holzer is head of a local pharmaceutical company known for making eye drops which has become a major club benefactor. At press conferences, bottles of eye drops are placed alongside branded soft drinks and refreshments laid out by traditional sponsors. Coach Horst Steffen said his side should already be proud of what they had achieved. "The whole story now is already a dream, because it's so unusual," Steffen told reporters. "If (promotion) happens, I'll be glad. But I don't stay up all night thinking it's not fair we're not in the top flight." Heidenheim coach Frank Schmidt praised his counterpart on Wednesday, calling Steffen "the coach of the year" and Elversberg "the benchmark of the second division". Schmidt also tried to tap into the underdog spirit, saying "for us, it's not about stopping relegation, but about achieving something. This is a promotion battle, even if we're the Bundesliga team." Elversberg will host the return leg on Monday. Since the Bundesliga playoff was reintroduced at the end of the 2008-09 campaign, the top-flight team has won over two legs in 13 of 16 seasons. dwi/mw
