The name Borussia Dortmund means something in German and world football. They have reached two Champions League finals, won three Bundesliga titles and three DFB Cups since the turn of the century alone. But when it comes to women’s football, that’s still in its infancy at the Ruhr giants. FC Bayern Women now get to face the third-division club for the first time in Monday’s DFB Cup first-round tie (kick-off: 6.30pm CEST). fcbayern.com has the lowdown on Dortmund’s history, their recent development and why the club isn’t actually an unknown opponent in women’s football.
Still new to the game
While Dortmund have long been a major force in men’s football, they only entered the women’s game in September 2020. Their lofty ambitions were immediately evident, starting out in the seventh tier in 2021/22 and winning every single match over two seasons to reach the fifth level of the women’s pyramid. A record of 23 wins and one draw there meant further promotion to the fourth tier. It was there that BVB suffered their first-ever loss in league competition, beaten by Iserlohn, but they were still able to make it four straight promotions thanks to 24 wins and a draw against Schalke, coming out just ahead of their arch-rivals to earn a place in the Regionalliga West for 2025/26.
As well as moving up another division, Borussia also won the Westphalia Cup to earn a place in the DFB Cup for the first time ever. Their reward is now a first-round tie with the holders.
A historic ground enjoying new life
As Dortmund’s men did prior to the construction of the Westfalenstadion some 40 years ago, BVB’s women also play their home games at the famous Rote Erde Stadium. It originally held 25,000 people when first opened in 1926 before being increased to 42,000 as interest grew in the 1960s. Germany played two international matches there in 1935 and 1967.
Health and safety measures mean crowds are limited to just 10,000 at the Rote Erde these days. Dortmund’s women have reached capacity twice in their derby wins over Schalke in the league and regional cup.
The road to professional football
Promotion to the third-tier Regionalliga has meant a summer of change and also professionalisation of the club. All players have received professional contracts and now do the job full-time. Markus Högner has been put in charge of the team after 12 years at the helm of Essen, with good knowledge of the area and also the Bundesliga, as he looks to develop this young squad further.
A total of 17 players left the team in the summer, with 16 new faces coming in. The approach is to sign exciting young players like Celina Baum (Gütersloh), Mia Scholle (Freiburg reserves), Jasmin Jabbes (Wacker Mecklenbeck) and Deniese Lichatschow (Alemannia Aachen). Players with top-level experience like Frederike Kempe (RB Leipzig), Sara Ito (Turbine Potsdam), Noreen Günnewig (Zürich) and Rita Schumacher (St. Pölten) are there to help guide the younger members of the squad.
Facing Bayern’s reserves
This DFB Cup encounter may be the first between the two first teams, but the clubs did actually meet for the first time last summer. Bayern’s second team hosted BVB at the Campus in pre-season last year, with Jerome Reisacher’s side winning 1-0 thanks to Lisa Marie Karl.
Five former players have been named in the new FC Bayern Women Legends:
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