Borussia Mönchengladbach

1899–1905: Formation

In November 1899, a group of discontented members left their sports association, TC Germania Gladbach (referred to as "Teutonia Gladbach" in some sources). On 17 November 1899, thirteen of these young men formed a new club, this time specifically focused on association football, in the Zum Jägerhof pub. They chose the word Borussia (Latin: "Prussia") as their association's new title, although this was not yet the club's official founding. Borussia was chosen because Mönchengladbach was located in the western provinces awarded to the Kingdom of Prussia as part of the 1815 Congress of Vienna. Other notable football clubs in western Germany that chose the name "Prussia" as their title include Borussia Dortmund in 1909 and SC Preußen Münster in 1906.Borussia's early years were faced with the problems typical for association football teams in the German Empire: the sport, only recently imported from the UK in the 1880s, was not yet institutionally accepted, and as a result there were logistical shortages of football fields, goals, changing rooms, and player equipment. Borussia's players initially had to finance their own gear for what was at the time a considerable financial expenditure for working-class people. Borussia was the second dedicated football club in the city of Mönchengladbach. FC Mönchengladbach, founded six years earlier in 1894, quickly became Borussia's first rival. Whereas FC Mönchengladbach was socially and financially established,…

Borussia Mönchengladbach's five Bundesliga championships entitle the club to display two gold stars of the "Verdiente Meistervereine".

For a list of every Borussia Mönchengladbach player with 100 or more appearances, see List of Borussia Mönchengladbach players Players of the club achieved the following honours: