Südwest Ludwigshafen

In 1964, the two major clubs Phönix and TuRa merged to form Südwest. Both clubs had a long history, but only with modest success.

Phönix was founded in 1904, and was soon playing in regional leagues. In the 1930s and 1940s, they generally competed in the Gauliga. In the 1950s they were a regular in the Oberliga Südwest, and became a founding member of the Regionalliga in 1963, finishing 10th. Attendance has been declining however, from some 6,300 per match in 1952 to 1,300 by 1964.

Turn- und Rasenportverein. can trace it's roots back to 1882, when it was started as TV Hemshof, cecoming Männer Turnverein Ludwigshafen in 1899. Soccer became more important in 1938, when MTV merged with FC 1903 and SC Germania to form TuRa. There was some success, as TuRa played in the Gauliga Westmark in the 1940s, and was a regular in the Oberliga Südwest in the 1950s. Like Phönix, TuRa was a charter member of the Regionalliga Südwest in 1963 (12th). With similar a decline in attendance (from 5,900 in 1952 to only 800 in 1964, it appeared that if Ludwigshafen were to remain viable in the 2nd division, the two clubs would have to combine resources, and thus Südwest Ludwigshafen was born in May 1964.

The newly merged SWL had some success on the field, but the Regionalliga Südwest was not financially lucrative. By the 1970s, SWL had run out of gas and the team was relegated. The best result of this era was a decent DFB-Cup run in 1979, when they made it to the Quarterfinals, getting knocked out by 1.FC Nürnberg 0-4. Since then, the club has remained near the upper echelons of the regional amateur leagues.

Full Name Sport-Verein Südwest Ludwigshafen e.V.

City Ludwigshafen (Rheinland-Pfalz). Pop: 162,458 (2002)
Address Mundenheimerstr.101, 67061 Ludwigshafen

Colors All white with blue trim. Alternative all blue with white trim.

Nickname

Stadium Südweststadion. Capacity: 41,383 (11,383seats)
This was once one of post-WWII Germany's premier stadiums. Built in 1949, it drew a record 83,000 in 1956 when Kaiserslautern played Karlsruhe in a playoff. It was also used for internationals. In recent times, SWL often plays at the smaller Südwest-Platz on the Erich-reimann-Straße. This is the former ground of Phönix. When built in 1949, it held about 12,000, but current capacity is probably around 4,000.

Tickets

Supporters Ludwigshafen is not a soccer town. In 1996, less than 200 showed up per match. Averaged 187 in 2004 (Verbandsliga). The fan club Ankerfront Ludwigshafen has about 70 members.
Friends

Foes They'd like to be rivals of Mannheim clubs across the river.

Heroes

Zeroes

Beer Pfungstädter
Pub Grub

The Net Official site: www.sv-suedwest-ludwigshafen.de
Pretty nice.

Recent History:
--------------

1964-65	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	5th
1965-66	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	11th
1966-67	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	7th
1967-68	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	6th
1968-69	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	7th
1969-70	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	3rd
1970-71	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	3rd
1971-72	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	10th
1972-73	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	9th
1973-74	(II)	Regionalliga Südwest	11th
1974-75	(III)	Amateurliga Südwest	3rd
1975-76	(III)	Amateurliga Südwest	6th
1976-77	(III)	Amateurliga Südwest	7th
1977-78	(III)	Amateurliga Südwest	4th
1978-79	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	5th
1979-80	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	4th
1980-81	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	2nd
1981-82	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	10th
1982-83	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	14th
1983-84	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	9th
1984-85	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	13th
1985-86	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	12th
1986-87	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	12th
1987-88	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	12th
1988-89	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	7th
1989-90	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	8th
1990-91	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	4th
1991-92	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	2nd
1992-93	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	10th
1993-94	(III)	Am.Oberliga Südwest	13th
1994-95	(IV)	Oberliga Südwest	6th
1995-96	(IV)	Oberliga Südwest	17th
1996-97	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	7th
1997-98	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	6th
1998-99	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	2nd
1999-00	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	14th
2000-01	(VI)	Landesliga SW-Ost
2001-02	(VI)	Landesliga SW-Ost
2002-03	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	5th
2003-04	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	5th
2004-05	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest
2005-06	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	5th
2006-07	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest	11th
2007-08	(V)	Verbandsliga Südwest

Full Name	Sport-Verein Südwest Ludwigshafen e.V.
City	Ludwigshafen (Rheinland-Pfalz). Pop: 162,458 (2002)
Address	Mundenheimerstr.101, 67061 Ludwigshafen
Colors	All white with blue trim. Alternative all blue with white trim.
Nickname
Stadium	Südweststadion. Capacity: 41,383 (11,383seats) This was once one of post-WWII Germany's premier stadiums. Built in 1949, it drew a record 83,000 in 1956 when Kaiserslautern played Karlsruhe in a playoff. It was also used for internationals. In recent times, SWL often plays at the smaller Südwest-Platz on the Erich-reimann-Straße. This is the former ground of Phönix. When built in 1949, it held about 12,000, but current capacity is probably around 4,000.
Tickets
Supporters	Ludwigshafen is not a soccer town. In 1996, less than 200 showed up per match. Averaged 187 in 2004 (Verbandsliga). The fan club Ankerfront Ludwigshafen has about 70 members.
Friends
Foes	They'd like to be rivals of Mannheim clubs across the river.
Heroes
Zeroes
Beer	Pfungstädter
Pub Grub
The Net	Official site: www.sv-suedwest-ludwigshafen.de Pretty nice.