Who hasn't heard of Borussia Dortmund!? One of the most famous and (by membership numbers) biggest clubs in the world. Renowned in recent times for the era of Jürgen Klopp and the 'Yellow Wall', it all began for the club back in 1909 (hence the '09' number in the club crest).

The Ballspielverein Borussia 09 was founded on 19 December 1909. Translated literally, the name means 'Ball Games Club Borussia', the acronym BVB, by which the club is widely known, coming from Ballspielverein Borussia.

Until after World War II, BVB played at various levels of the regional league pyramid, overshadowed for much of the time by neighbours Schalke 04 from Gelsenkirchen. It was not until after the War that there was a change in fortunes and Dortmund began to get the upper hand.

That period of success climaxed with a third triumph in 8 years at the end-of-season tournament between regional champions to give BVB the 1963 German national title and thus automatic admission as a founding member of the new national Bundesliga for the 1963/64 season.

Two years later, with a 2-1 win over Liverpool at Hampden Park, BVB won the European Cup Winners' Cup, thus becoming the first German club ever to win a European trophy.

In 1972, however, the club was relegated and played at tier-2 level for the next four seasons. During that period, BVB's new stadium, the Westfalenstadion, was built. It opened in 1974 and acted as a host stadium for the 1974 World Cup.

For all that we think of Borussia Dortmund as a German giant these days, it wasn't until 1995 that they won their first Bundesliga title - following that up a year later by successfully defending it.

In 1997, BVB then won the Champions League. 

Three years later, they made history off the pitch, becoming the first German club to float its men's professional football operating company on the stock exchange.

One more league title in 2002 was followed by 6 very average years, until the arrival in 2008 of Jürgen Klopp. In the following 7 seasons, BVB were champions twice, runners-up twice and winners of the league and cup double once. In 2011/12 they also became the first German and European club to average home gates of over 80,000.

The Westfalenstadion, as mentioned above, had been built for the 1974 World Cup. Originally, it had a capacity of 54,000, but has been expanded several times since, giving it a capacity today of over 81,000 (reduced to around 66,000 if operated in all-seater mode).

For information on getting to the stadium, travel to and around Dortmund, and places to eat, drink and stay, use the respective links above to the relevant pages on this site.

For more background history on the club and latest news, use the external links below.