Who is Carl Zeiss? Some big East German optics firm. This makes FC one of the few clubs directly sponsored by a company. Actually, the roots go back to 1903, when it was actually founded as the employees club of the Carl-Zeiss company. In the GDR, the club was allowed to remain affiliated with the now state-run comany, although from 1954-66, it was known as SC Motor for some silly reason. The club was "refounded" in 1966 as FC Carl Zeiss, as the soccer section became independant.
CZ was a powerhouse in the DDR-Oberliga, usually battling for the title, although usually as runner-up - 7 times between 1966-1975. The best results have been 3 GDR titles, along with runner up in the 1981 EuroCupwinners Cup finals (losing 2-1 to Dinamo Tbilisi).
Upon reunification, Jena was seeded into the 2.Bundesliga, and initialy had some decent results. After relegation in 1994, they immediately bounced back, again with decent results. But things began to fall apart, as with most eastern "traditional" teams. The 1998-99 campaign was rather lame, as the club certainly expected more than the mid table finish. In the critical year prior to the combined Regionalliga, Carl Zeiss put together a good second half run to qualify for the new league. However, this experience turned out to be crap, as Jena ended up beaten up and in last place. After a few seasons attempting to make it back, by 2005 they won the Oberliga and returned. The 2.Liga experience proved to be too difficult, and the initial year in the 3.Liga was a near disaster, as Jena barely avoided relegation.
Fullname | Fußball-Club Carl Zeiss Jena e.V.
City |
Jena (Thüringen).
Pop: 101,000 (2002)
| Address |
Tazendpromenade 2a, 07743 Jena | Phone: (03641) 202020. Fax: (03641) 202022 Colors |
White shirt, blue pants. Often with some yellow. Road uniform is yellow
jersey, black shorts.
| Nickname |
| Stadium |
Ernst-Abbe-Sportfeld. Capacity: 12,000 (9,000 seats) | An expansion of additional 2,000 is planned. When built in 1924, it held some 25,000, and was known as Zeiss-Sportplatz Oberaue until 1939. The official website has a nice circular video tour of the stadium. Tickets |
Priced at 7-12 euros (2002). In mid-1970s, attendance averaged almost
14,000, but these days, expect around 4-5,000.
| Supporters |
Averaged 2,755 in 2004 (Oberliga). Some 157 recognized fan clubs, with
over 2,000 members.
When things aren't going to well, it gets noticeably quiet,
although non-die hard fans get very critical. Decent attendance at away
games. During GDR days, a good year might average 10,000.
| Friends |
Borussia Moenchengladbach, Erzgebirge Aue. Initial contacts with FC
Gütersloh as well.
|
Foes |
Biggest rival is Rot-Weiß Erfurt
| Heroes |
33 GDR internationals. Among the best known are Konrtad Weise (86
caps,
1970-81), Eberhard Vogel (74 caps, 1962-76), Lothar
Kurbjuweit (66
caps,
1970-81) and the brothers Roland and Peter Ducke (37 caps,
1958-67
and 68
caps, 1960-75). | Zeroes |
| Beer |
Koestritzer, a
brewery located in Bad Köstritz is the main sponsor. Their
specialty is the famed Koestritzer Schwarzbier, a world class brew.
Very
popular throughout Thüringen. I usually keep a supply
in my frig, so I can attest to it's divine quality :) Braugold was
once a sponsor. In addition, Rosen-Pils, from the
Rosenbrauerei
Pößneck . The Jenaer like their beer :)
| Pub Grub |
The stadium snackbars serve up the famed Thüringer
Rostwürstchen, roasted chicken, sandwiches and all sorts of
non-alcholic drinks. | The Net |
The official page is at
http://www.fc-carlzeiss-jena.de . It is very nicely done. Frank Cichos
and Volker Große
run
a complete fan page at
www.uni-jena.de/~zfc/club.html
| |
Recent History:
--------------
1965-66 (*) DDR-Oberliga 2nd
1966-67 (*) DDR-Oberliga 5th
1967-68 (*) DDR-Oberliga 1st
1968-69 (*) DDR-Oberliga 2nd
1969-70 (*) DDR-Oberliga 1st
1970-71 (*) DDR-Oberliga 2nd
1971-72 (*) DDR-Oberliga 4th
1972-73 (*) DDR-Oberliga 2nd
1973-74 (*) DDR-Oberliga 2nd
1974-75 (*) DDR-Oberliga 2nd
1975-76 (*) DDR-Oberliga 5th
1976-77 (*) DDR-Oberliga 3rd
1977-78 (*) DDR-Oberliga 5th
1978-79 (*) DDR-Oberliga 3rd
1979-80 (*) DDR-Oberliga 3rd
1980-81 (*) DDR-Oberliga 2nd
1981-82 (*) DDR-Oberliga 5th
1982-83 (*) DDR-Oberliga 3rd
1983-84 (*) DDR-Oberliga 10th
1984-85 (*) DDR-Oberliga 7th
1985-86 (*) DDR-Oberliga 3rd
1986-87 (*) DDR-Oberliga 6th
1987-88 (*) DDR-Oberliga 6th
1988-89 (*) DDR-Oberliga 8th
1989-90 (*) NOFV-Oberliga 5th
1990-91 (*) NOFV-Oberliga 6th
1991-92 (II) 2.Bundesliga 2nd
1992-93 (II) 2.Bundesliga 8th
1993-94 (II) 2.Bundesliga 17th
1994-95 (III) Regionalliga Nordost 1st
1995-96 (II) 2.Bundesliga 6th
1996-97 (II) 2.Bundesliga 12th
1997-98 (II) 2.Bundesliga 16th
1998-99 (III) Regionalliga Nordost 9th
1999-00 (III) Regionalliga Nordost 4th
2000-01 (III) Regionalliga Sud 18th
2001-02 (IV) Oberliga Nordost/Sud 3rd
2002-03 (IV) Oberliga Nordost/Sud 2nd
2003-04 (IV) Oberliga Nordost/Sud 2nd
2004-05 (IV) Oberliga Nordost/Sud 1st
2005-06 (III) Regionalliga Nord 2nd
2006-07 (II) 2.Bundesliga 13th
2007-08 (II) 2.Bundesliga 18th
2008-09 (III) 3.Liga 16th
2009-10 (III) 3.Liga 5th
2010-11 (III) 3.Liga 15th
2011-12 (III) 3.Liga
(c) Abseits Guide to Germany