FC Basel

Basel

Full name	Football Club Basel 1893
Nickname(s)	FCB, Bebbi (Citizen of Basel), RotBlau
Short name	FCB
Founded	15 November 1893(1893-11-15)
Ground	St. Jakob-Park,Basel
Capacity	38,512; 37,500 for international matches
Owner	FCB Holding AG (David Degen)
President	Reto Baumgartner
Manager	Fabio Celestini
League	Swiss Super League
2023–24	Swiss Super League, 8th of 12
Website	Club website
Home colours Away colours

Fussball Club Basel 1893,widely known asFC Basel,FCB,or justBasel,is a Swiss professionalfootballclub based inBasel,in theCanton of Basel-Stadt.Formed in 1893, the club has beenSwiss national champions20 times,Swiss Cupwinners 13 times, andSwiss League Cupwinners once.

Basel competed inUEFA competitionsfor 25 consecutive seasons between 1999–2000 and 2023–2024. They have qualified for the Group stages of theChampions Leaguemore times than any other Swiss club – a total of seven times – and are the only Swiss club to have ever qualified to the Group stages directly. In 2021 they set the new record for a Swiss team with the most successful international group stage campaign by reaching 14 points in their Conference League group.

Since 2001, the club has played its home games atSt. Jakob-Park,built on the site of their previous home,St. Jakob Stadium.Their home colours are red and blue, leading to a nickname of "RotBlau".

History

Poster designed by Rudolf Dürrwang (c.1910)

Foundation

FC Basel was started by an advertisement placed by Roland Geldner in the 12 November 1893 edition of theBaslernational newspaper, requesting that a football team be formed and that anyone who wished to join should meet up the following Wednesday at 8:15 in the restaurant Schuhmachern-Zunft. Eleven men attended the meeting, generally from the academic community, foundingFussball Club Baselon 15 November 1893.

Founder members

(Source: the documentation to the club's 50th anniversary)

• Emil Abderhaldenwas first team player in the early days, a famous physiologist and head of the physiological institute at theUniversity of Hallein Germany.
• Max Born,nothing is known about his private life.
• Josy Ebingerwas long-time player in the first team. He was active as a club official in various offices, club chairman from October 1902 to May 1903. He was vice president of theSwiss Football Associationin 1900.
• Max Geldnerplayed at least six games for the club's first team in the first two years and was still a loyal friend and a patron of FC Basel 50 years later.
• Roland Geldnerwas the first president of FC Basel. He was a well-known personality in the city and football player from the early days of football. A distinguished person, he was the soul of the club in the early years.
• Wilhelm Glaserwore the red and blue colors as a center forward for years, played at least 14 matches. He was still follower with great interest of the FC Basel activities 50 years later
• Jean Griederwas first and second team player, with at least one match for the first team. He was asset and liability manager and became the club's first actuary. For years he held high honorary positions in his hometown.
• Ferdinand Islerwas a professor at the canton school in Frauenfeld. He was the first team's first captain, played at least 17 games during the club's first three seasons. He later became actuary of the club. He was a great propagandist. He wrote brochures about the football game and translated the English rules of the game into German. He was one of the first sports journalists.
• Wilhelm Oserwas pharmacist by profession. His cheerful, spirited manner was highly valued in the club. An avid pioneer of the football movement.
• Fritz Schäublinfor many years was the highly respected rector of the humanistic grammar school in Basel. With his excellent skills he served the club in various offices for many years. He was an excellent player in the early days, played four matches in the club's first two season. He was founder of the tennis department.
• Lucien Schmoll,nothing is known about his private life.
• Richard Strubwas still and quite, loyal member of the club. Very little is known about his private life.
• John Tollmannwas a proficient goalkeeper and played at least 23 matches during the club's first five years. He was the first secretary-treasurer of theSwiss Football Association.A personality with a very special character. Together with Roland Geldner, he was the club's driving force in the early days.
• Charlie Volderauerwas an excellent defender and played at least 33 matches. He was president December 1896 to December 1899. Arranged the first games in Switzerland against British professionals: Newcastle United and Celtic Glasgow. A rarely eager club member.

Fussball Club Basel 1893has a long and illustrious history, that spans the period from 1893 to the present day. Having competed at the highest level offootball in Switzerlandfor most of this time, FCB currently play in theSwiss Super League.The club was founded on 15 November 1893. At first the club played their home games in theLandhofstadium. During the mid-1960s Basel then played their games inSt. Jakob Stadiumwhich was demolished in 1998. During the construction of the new stadium, between 1998 and 2001, theStadion Schützenmattewas the club's temporary home ground. Since 2001 Basel play home games atSt. Jakob-Park,which is currently the largest club stadium inSwitzerland.

The history of FC Basel

The Basel Coat of Arms,
FC Basel's Original logo

Due to its size thehistory of FC Baselhas been divided into five sections. For details on individual periods of the club's history, see the following articles:

• History of FC Basel (1893–1918)

The first section deals with the foundation, the early years, the forming of theSwiss Football Association(ASF-SFV), the first league championships and the years up to and during thefirst World War.

• History of FC Basel (1918–1939)

The second section is about the period between the two World Wars and the introduction of theSwiss Cup.FCB did not have much of an early footballing success; it took them 40 years to win their first trophy, winning the cup in 1933, as they defeated arch-rivals and reigning cup-holdersGrasshopper Club Zürichin the final.

• History of FC Basel (1939–1965)

The third section starts with relegation, no promotion, missed promotion, promotion after all, another relegation, another promotion and the second cup title. It then spans the period ofJules Düblinas chairman, the first championship title and the third cup win.

• History of FC Basel (1965–2000)

Under the motto rise and fall, the fourth section deals with the eraBenthaus,seven domestic league titles, the subsequent decline, relegation, six seasons of second-tier football and the long-awaited promotion.

• History of FC Basel (2000–present)

The fifth section deals with the financial backing that had been put into the club at that time, the move to the new stadiumSt. Jakob-Park,how success returned and how things have progressed to the present day.

Chart of FC Basel table positions in the Swiss football league system

Supporters and rivalries

Fans

FC Basel supporters at a2011–12 UEFA Champions Leaguematch againstFC Bayern Munichin St.-Jakob-Park

FC Basel is known for having a big and loyal local following.When polls are conducted about the most passionate club football fans, FC Basel's fans usually make the top 200 if not top 100 in the world, resulting in what is by far the highest average attendance inSwitzerlandwith around 30,000 fansattending every home game and with the new extension being built that number is expected to rise to around 40,000. The fans have also made themselves a name in numerous international matches in recent years. World tennis legendRoger Federeris one of the club's most famous fans.

In November 2010 their supporters caused the game againstFC Luzernto be stopped after they threw hundreds of tennis balls onto the pitch. This was in protest at the kick off times being moved to accommodate a tennis tournament on the TV schedule.

Rivalry

The city of Basel and the city of Zürich have a long-standing rivalry. Therefore, FCB's most traditional and fiercest rivals areGrasshopper Club ZürichandFC Zürich.In the past few seasons, the rivalry between FC Zürich and Basel has been fueled by Zürich's narrow league championship wins over Basel. Supporters from both sides have caused trouble in the past years, withthe worst incident happening in May 2006.Basel had won the league in 2003–04 and 2004–05 and were set to make it three in a row if they won or drew against Zürich at home on the last day of the 2005–06 season. Zürich took the lead after a late goal fromIulian Filipescuand consequently won the match and the league. After the final whistle, players and fans from both teams started fighting on the pitch and in the stands. This incident has fueled hatred and bitterness between fans from FC Zürich and FC Basel. There is controversy about which rivalry is bigger, the one with Grasshopper or FC Zürich, but it usually depends on the success of these teams.

Stadium

St. Jakob-Park at night

FC Basel play their home games at the 37,500 capacitySt. Jakob-Park.

UEFAhave awarded the stadium a 4-star rating, the highest rating that could be given to a stadium of that capacity. St. Jakob-Park was opened in 2001, originally holding a maximum attendance of 33,433. The stadium was expanded with a new stand (sector G) and upgraded to 42,500 due to Switzerland co-hostingUEFA Euro 2008.After Euro 2008, a number of seats were removed, thus giving more space between them, and the capacity was reduced 37,500 seats.The stadium is nicknamed "Joggeli" by the fans and has two restaurants, Restaurant UNO and Hattrick's Sports Bar, as well as a shopping centre which opened on 1 November 2001. It also has parking space for 680 cars and has its own train station. St. Jakob-Park hosted six matches during Euro 2008, including the opening game betweenSwitzerlandandCzech Republic,and a semi-final betweenGermanyandTurkey.The most interesting feature of the stadium is the translucent outer layer, which can be illuminated in different colours for impressive effects; this effect was copied three years later forBayern Munich's new stadium, theAllianz Arena.

Before St. Jakob-Park was built, FC Basel played home games in theLandhof(in the Quarter Kleinbasel) and, following the1954 FIFA World Cup,in the newly builtSt. Jakob Stadiumwhich was on the same site as the current stadium. During the construction period of St. Jakob-Park, Basel's home matches were played at theStadion Schützenmatte.

In 2016, theUEFA Europa League finalwas played at St. Jakob-Park.

St. Jakob-Park from the inside

Affiliated clubs

• FC Concordia Basel– FC Basel are the parent-club of local side Concordia, who currently play in the1. Liga Classic.Many of Basel's youth players, such asPatrik Baumann,Beg Ferati,andSimone Grippo,have had loan spells there. Basel have also signed a number players from Concordia, likeLouis CraytonandMurat Yakin.Miroslav König,Riccardo Meili,André Muff,andDominik Ritterare just a few ex-Basel players who have gone on to play for Concordia.

Colours and logo

FC Basel's traditional kit is a red and blue shirt. Due to the fact that some of the founders were members of the "Basler Ruder-Club", whose colors were red and blue, they adopted those colours for their new club. FC Basel's outfit is completed by blue shorts with gold trim and blue socks with red trim. From this comes the nickname "RotBlau"which isSwiss Germanand German for "RedBlue". Their away kit is all white with two stripes down the middle, the left being red and the right being blue. FC Basel's kits were formerly manufactured byNike,however in the summer of 2012 a new contract was formed withAdidasto produce the kits until 2017. The main sponsor isNovartis,a multinational pharmaceutical company which is based in the city of Basel. On the inside tag of the jerseys is inscribed "Rot isch unseri Liebi, Blau die ewigi Treui, Basel unseri Stadt." This roughly translates to "Red is our love, blue the eternal loyalty, Basel our city."

According to a legend, the famous "Blaugrana" colours of Barcelona have been said to have originated from the Rotblau colours of FC Basel. This legend evolved becauseJoan Gamper,founder of bothFC ZürichandFC Barcelonahad played two friendly games for FC Basel against Mulhouse and Strasbourg on short visits, as he did for other Swiss clubs, too.FC Barcelona today based on accounts of the Gamper family assumes, the colours had been taken from the rugby team of theMerchant Taylors' Schoolnear Liverpool.

For the 2008–09 season, Basel changed their shirt to resemble the traditional Barcelona shirt (red and blue vertical stripes). Barcelona changed theirs to one half of the shirt red, the other blue, which happens to resemble the traditional Basel shirt.

Old FC Basel logo without the two stars

Basel's current logo is a shield, the left half red and the right half blue. The shield is outlined with gold and in the centre in gold letters it reads "FCB", for "Football Club Basel" or "Fussballclub Basel". The logo is worn in the centre of the shirt opposed to on the traditional left-hand side. Like the club colours of Basel, the logo has a striking resemblance to that of Barcelona's. There are theories that suggest that the founder of Barcelona, being at one time the captain of Basel, reincorporated the logo of Basel to that of Barcelona. The resemblances seem clear: both logos seem to incorporate the shield design, as do most other clubs. Most notably, however, is the FCB acronyms on both logos and the red-blue colours, outlined in gold. Additionally, the football that lies on the left side of the Basel logo seems to be the exact shape, type and colour as that of the Barcelona logo in the bottom centre. Because of this, many say that Basel was the inspiration in the process of founding Barcelona.

Records

• Highest stage reached inChampions League:Round of 16 (2002–03, 2011–12, 2014–15, 2017–18)
• Highest stage reached inUEFA Europa League:Semi-finals (2012–13)
• Highest stage reached inUEFA Europa Conference League:Semi-finals (2022–23)
• Biggest European home win:Basel 7–0Folgore(24 August 2000, UEFA Cup qualifying round second leg)
• Biggest European away win:Fram0–5 Basel (18 September 1973, European Champion Clubs' Cup first round first leg)
• Biggest European home defeat:Basel 0–5Barcelona(22 October 2008, UEFA Champions League)
• Biggest European away defeat:Bayern Munich7–0 Basel (13 March 2012, UEFA Champions League knockout stage)
• Most league appearances:Massimo Ceccaroni(398)
• Most league goals:Josef Hügi(244)
• Record number of consecutive home games unbeaten:59 (February 2003 to May 2006)
• Record number of consecutive unbeaten games:26 (2011–12)
• Highest home game attendance (St. Jakob Stadium):60,000
• Highest home game attendance (St. Jakob-Park):42,500
• Mostcappedforeign player:Teófilo Cubillas,81 caps,Peru
• Most capped Swiss player:Alexander Frei,82 caps

Individual records, league

Updated to league matches played on 22 May 2022.

Top league goalscorers

#	Nat.	Name	Career	Goals
1		Josef Hügi	1948–1962	245
2		Erni Maissen	1975–1982 1983–1987 1989–1991	116
3		Marco Streller	2000–2004 2007–2015	111
4		Christian Giménez	2001–2005	94
5		Karl Odermatt	1963–1976	92
6		René Bader	1946–1953	90
=7		Otto Haftl	1931–1935	81
=7		Gottlieb Stäuble	1946–1951 1955–1959	81
9		Hermann Suter	1939–1948	79
=10		Alexander Frei	1997–1998 2009–2013	74
=10		Alfred Schlecht	1922–1924 1925–1936	74
=10		Roberto Frigerio	1958–1968	74
=10		Valentin Stocker	2007–2014 2018–2022	74

Most league appearances

#	Nat.	Name	Career	Apps
1		Massimo Ceccaroni	1987–2002	398
2		Erni Maissen	1975–1982 1983–1987 1989–1991	338
3		Fabian Frei	2007–2015 2018–	322
4		Werner Bopp	1944–1960	321
5		Josef Hügi	1948–1962	319
6		Otto Demarmels	1967–1982	307
7		Jörg Stohler	1970–1984	306
8		Benjamin Huggel	1998–2005 2007–2012	297
9		Karl Odermatt	1963–1976	296
10		Karl Bielser	1916–1936	293
11		Valentin Stocker	2007–2014 2018–2022	286
12		Scott Chipperfield	2001–2012	270

Individual records, all competitions

Updated to all matches played on 22 May 2022.

Top goalscorers all competitions

#	Nat.	Name	Career	Goals
1		Josef Hügi	1948–1962	282
2		Marco Streller	2000–2004 2007–2015	144
3		Erni Maissen	1975–1982 1983–1987 1989–1991	143
4		Karl Odermatt	1963–1976	123
5		René Bader	1946–1953	117
6		Christian Giménez	2001–2005	116
7		Alexander Frei	1997–1998 2009–2013	109
8		Helmut Hauser	1964–1972	107
9		Hermann Suter	1939–1948	104
10		Roberto Frigerio	1958–1968	103
11		Otto Haftl	1931–1935	102
12		Valentin Stocker	2007–2014 2018–2022	101

Most appearances all competitions

#	Nat.	Name	Career	Apps
1		Fabian Frei	2007–2015 2018–	456
2		Massimo Ceccaroni	1987–2002	452
3		Otto Demarmels	1967–1982	446
4		Jörg Stohler	1970–1984	425
5		Valentin Stocker	2008–2014 2018–2022	416
6		Karl Odermatt	1963–1976	411
7		Erni Maissen	1975–1982 1983–1987 1989–1991	406
8		Benjamin Huggel	1998–2005 2007–2012	401
9		Scott Chipperfield	2001–2012	385
10		Peter Ramseier	1966–1978	372
11		Werner Bopp	1944–1960	364
12		Josef Hügi	1948–1962	363

Honours

National

• Swiss Championship
  • Winners (20):1952–53,1966–67,1968–69,1969–70,1971–72,1972–73,1976–77,1979–80,2001–02,2003–04,2004–05,2007–08,2009–10,2010–11,2011–12,2012–13,2013–14,2014–15,2015–16,2016–17
  • runner-up (10):1948–49,1949–50,1970–71,2002–03,2005–06,2006–07,2017–18,2018–19,2020–21,2021–22,

• Swiss Cup
  • Winners (13):1932–33, 1946–47, 1962–63,1966–67,1974–75,2001–02,2002–03,2006–07,2007–08,2009–10,2011–12,2016–17,2018–19
  • runner-up (10): 1941–42, 1943–44, 1969–70, 1971–72, 1972–73, 1981–82,2012–13,2013–14,2014–15,2019–20,

• Swiss League Cup
  • Winners (1):1972,
  • runner-up (1): 1978–79,

European record

As of 18 May 2023.

Competition	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Win%
UEFA Champions League / European Cup	122	49	25	48	177	196	−19	040.16
UEFA Europa League / UEFA Cup	110	50	24	36	184	138	+46	045.45
UEFA Europa Conference League	34	18	8	8	62	40	+22	052.94
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup / European Cup Winners' Cup	4	0	1	3	3	13	−10	000.00
Inter-Cities Fairs Cup	10	1	1	8	3	13	−10	010.00
Total	266	109	57	100	398	383	+15	040.98

Ownership

FC Basel Holding AG

TheFC Basel Holding AGowns 75% ofFC Basel 1893 AGand the other 25% is owned by the clubFC Basel 1893members. The club FC Basel 1893 functions as a base club independent of the holding company and the AG. FC Basel 1893 AG is responsible for the operational business of the club, e.g. the 1st team, a large part of the youth department and the back office are affiliated there. All decisions that affect the club FC Basel 1893 are made within the AG.

On 11 May 2021 the FC Basel Holding AG chairmanBernhard Burgenerand board memberDavid Degenannounced a transfer of ownership rights, after months of massive fan protests. The new situation meant Degen owned 92% of the shares and about 8% is held by four small investors.At theAGMof FC Basel Holding AG on 15 June 2021, Bernhard Burgener, Peter von Büren andKarl Odermattstood down from the board of directors. A new board of directors stood for election. From that date the board consisted ofReto Baumgartner(president), Dani Büchi (delegate of the board),David Degen(vice-president), Johannes Barth, Marco Gadola,Christian Gross,Sophie Herzog and Andreas Rey. Degen said he will sell a part of the shares within his management team.

On 18 August the Holding AG announced how the shares had been divided between the shareholders. Degen himself kept 40%, Andreas Rey held 18,41%, his wife Ursula Rey-Krayer also held 18,41%. A group of four other investors, these being Johannes Barth, Marco Gadola, Dani Büchi and Dan Holzmann, together held 15,14%. The other 8,04% of the shares remained by another group of investors, these being Manor AG, J. Safra Sarasin, Novasearch AG, MCH Group AG and Weitnauer Holding AG.

On 27 December 2021 an extraordinaryAGMof the Holding AG was held and it was announced that the Board had reorganised itself. Ursula Rey-Krayer and Dan Holzmann were unanimously elected to the board of directors.

On 20 June 2022 theAGMsof both the FC Basel Holding AG and the FC Basel 1893 AG were held and both boards were confirmed. The Holding AG with following members: David Degen (president), Dan Holzmann, Ursula Rey-Krayer and Andreas Rey (vice-president). FC Basel 1893 AG with following members: David Degen (president), Carol Etter (delegate of the club FC Basel), Dan Holzmann, Ursula Rey-Krayer and Andreas Rey (vice-president).

Club management

The club's 127thAGMtook place in written form, during the week from Saturday 5 June and Friday 11 June. The results were communicated on Monday 14 June. On 13 April 2021 the club announced their proposal for the club management.Club presidentReto Baumgartnerand the two directors, Dominik Donzé and Benno Kaiser, remained in the board and three new members were elected. These three being Carol Etter (sports lawyer), Edward Turner (financial specialist) and Tobias Adler (marketingspecialist). Their exact roles are to be decided. Carol Etter was elected as delegate of the board, to represent the club at the meetings of the Holding.

After the dismissal ofHeiko Vogel,on 31 October 2023,the position of the sports director was left vacant, this until 15 May 2024 and then FCB announced thatDaniel Stuckihad been appointed as new sports director.

President	Reto Baumgartner(to date)
Sports director	Heiko Vogel until 31 October 2023
Sports director	Daniel Stucki from 15 May 2024
Director	Dominik Donzé (to date)
Director	Benno Kaiser (to date)
Director	Carol Etter (new)
Director	Edward Turner (new)
Director	Tobias Adler (new)
Ground(capacity and dimensions)	St. Jakob-Park(38,512) (37,500 for international matches)/ 120x80 m)

Updated to match played 15 May 2024
Source:FCB Official Site

Team management

On 28 November 2022 FCB had announced that they had takenHeiko Vogelunder contract as their new sporting director, as per 1 January 2023. After the end of theirprevious season,in which Vogel had taken over in charge of the coaching of their first team following the dismissal ofAlexander Freiin February, Vogel continued in his role as sports director for this season.

On 12 May 2023 the club announced thatTimo Schultzhad been signed a contract as head coach of the new FCB first team.On 22 May they announced that the entire trainer staff had been appointed. Loïc Favé would joinDavide Callàas assistant coach and Johannes Wieber would become athletic coach,Gabriel Wüthrichremained goalkeeper coach.On 23 May the club announced that the new coach of the U-21 is the ex-footballerDennis Hediger,who had been the coach of the U-18 team the previous season.Appointed a his assistant coaches wereMarco Aratoreand Michaël Bauch.

On 29 September the club announced that they were parting with coach Schultz, together with his assistant Loïc Favé, and that he would be replaced by the current sport directorHeiko Vogel.Vogel was dismissed a month later, withFabio Celestinitaking over until the end of the season.On 17 November 2023,Martin Ruedawas hired as an additional assistant coach.

Position	Staff
Head coach	Timo Schultz until 29 September 2023
Head coach	Heiko Vogel 29 September–31 October
Head coach	Fabio Celestini from 31 October
Assistant coach	Davide Callà
Assistant coach	Martin Rueda 17 November 2023
Assistant coach	Uwe Grünwald from 31 October
Athletics coach	Johannes Wieber
Goalkeeper coach	Gabriel Wüthrich
Youth Team U-21 coach	Dennis Hediger
Youth Team U-21 co-coach	Marco Aratore
Youth Team U-21 co-coach	Michaël Bauch

Source:FCB Official Site

Players

Current squad

As of 23 August 2024

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules.Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
1	GK	SUI	Marwin Hitz
3	DF	SUI	Nicolas Vouilloz
4	DF	ESP	Arnau Comas
6	DF	TUN	Mohamed Dräger
7	MF	KOS	Benjamin Kololli
9	FW	ESP	Kevin Carlos
10	FW	SUI	Xherdan Shaqiri
11	FW	CIV	Bénie Traoré
13	GK	SUI	Mirko Salvi
14	FW	SUI	Bradley Fink
18	MF	GHA	Emmanuel Essiam
19	FW	CRO	Marin Šotiček
20	MF	SUI	Fabian Frei(captain)
21	MF	GEO	Gabriel Sigua
22	MF	FRA	Léo Leroy

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
23	FW	SUI	Albian Ajeti
25	DF	NED	Finn van Breemen
26	DF	BIH	Adrian Leon Barišić
27	DF	SUI	Kevin Rüegg
29	MF	GER	Adriano Onyegbule
30	MF	GER	Anton Kade
31	MF	SUI	Dominik Schmid
32	DF	GHA	Jonas Adjetey
33	MF	ARG	Juan Gauto
34	MF	ALB	Taulant Xhaka(vice-captain)
35	FW	SUI	Roméo Beney
37	MF	SUI	Leon Avdullahu
38	FW	FRA	Axel Kayombo
39	MF	SUI	Arlet Junior Zé
—	FW	FRA	Jean-Kévin Augustin

Players out on loan

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules.Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	GK	SUI	Tim Spycher(toNyonuntil 30 June 2025)
—	MF	ESP	Jonathan Dubasin(toSporting Gijónuntil 30 June 2025)
—	MF	SUI	Dion Kacuri(toYverdon-Sportuntil 30 June 2025)

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
—	FW	GER	Maurice Malone(toAustria Wienuntil 30 June 2025)
—	FW	SRB	Đorđe Jovanović(toPartizanuntil 30 June 2025)

Retired numbers

Main article:List of retired numbers in association football

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined underFIFA eligibility rules.Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.

No.	Pos.	Nation	Player
2	DF	SUI	Massimo Ceccaroni(1987–2002)
12	12		12th man(FCB-Fans)
20	MF	SUI	Fabian Frei(2007–2015, 2018–)

Women's team

Main article:FC Basel Frauen

Since 2009 Basel have a women's team. It competes in theNationalliga A.

Superleague Formula

Main article:FC Basel 1893 (Superleague Formula team)

FC Basel had a team in the Superleague Formula race car series where football teams lent their name to cars.GU-Racing Internationalhas operated the car for all seasons andMax Wisselhas driven the car in all the races. FC Basel and Wissel won one race, in the2009 seasonatDonington Park.The team have scored three other podiums in the series.

Youth system

Basel is home to a leading youth academy system in terms of produced senior-level players that featured in the top-flight in Switzerland.FC Basel bases its promotion of young talent on the following criteria: The primary aim of the FCB youth department is to integrate as many players as possible into the first team squad, all representatives of the youth department adhere to the values of the FCB charter, a uniform, holistic game and training idea from the FE-14 to the U21 ensures optimal training, the FCB follows a dual system of educational training and football.

The youth department has developed many Swiss internationals such asErni Maissen,Adrian Knup,Alexander Frei,Marco Streller,Philipp,andDavid Degen.Since Basel moved into the St. Jakob-Park in 2001, they have strengthened their youth academy and many young talents like theFelipe Caicedo,Ivan Rakitić,Zdravko Kuzmanović,Xherdan Shaqiri,Yann Sommer,Eren Derdiyok,andMohammed Salahhave risen through the ranks there. In 2010 the former club presidentGigi Oericreated theStiftung Nachwuchs Campus Basel(in EnglishfoundationYouth Campus Basel)with the aim of continuously developing the club's youth division on a long-term basis.

Since 2001, more than 50 successful players have risen through the Basel youth system and joined their first team, including:

Felipe Caicedo David Degen Philipp Degen Eren Derdiyok Alexander Frei

Fabian Frei José Gonçalves Gökhan Inler Timm Klose Breel Embolo

Zdravko Kuzmanović Ivan Rakitić Xherdan Shaqiri Yann Sommer Valentin Stocker

Marco Streller Granit Xhaka Taulant Xhaka Hakan Yakin

The youth academy is as present set up in the following areas: Formation (U-21, U-19, U-17, U1-6 and U-15), Footeco (FE-14) and Project Team Basel (FE-12 and FE-13).

Under-21 team

The eldest members are in the U-21 team. This team plays in theSwiss Promotion League,the third highest level in theSwiss football league system,behind theSuper Leagueand theChallenge League.A number of players have professional contracts and often train or play with the first team.

Under-19 team

Basel Under-19s line up prior to theirUEFA Youth Leaguematch away toHamilton Accies,2018.

Until 2023 there was no official Basel U-19 team, because a U-19 championship did not exist inSwiss footballuntil then. Before then the team was quickly put together in the 2011–12 season from the youngest members of the first team, the younger Under-21 and the Under-18 teams who were eligible to play in the2011–12 NextGen Series.Note: Results and dates can be found here2011–12 NextGen series.

Because Basel qualified for the2013–14 UEFA Champions League,the Under-19 team was again called to life and played in the2013–14 UEFA Youth League.This time the members of this squad were solely members from the U-21 and U-18 teams, but the team only trained together once a week.Note: Results and dates can be found here2013–14 UEFA Youth League.

A year later Basel qualified for the2014–15 UEFA Champions League.Therefore, they were eligible to play in the2014–15 UEFA Youth Leagueand they took the matter a lot more seriously than the year before. Reserve team managerThomas Häberliwas also appointed as U-19 coach. Häberli's U-19 squad was still a mix between the younger U-21 and the older U-18 teams, but the team had training together virtually daily. This resulted with improved results, the team winning four games from their six, but failing to qualify for the knockout phase on tiebreak.Note: Results and dates can be found here2014–15 UEFA Youth League.

Basel's first team qualified for theChampions League again in 2016–17,so the U-19 team was revived for the2016–17 UEFA Youth League.Raphaël Wickywas U-19 coach. In the group stage they reached second position and advanced to the play-offs, but lost this againstRosenborg.Note: Results and dates can be found here2016–17 UEFA Youth League.

By winning the U-18 Swiss championship at the end of the 2016–17 season the team qualified for the2017–18 UEFA Youth League.Arjan Peçowas the U-19 team coach at the time.The team were drawn intoGroup Awhich they won and advanced to theround of 16,but here they were eliminated byAtlético Madrid.Note: Results and dates can be found here2017–18 UEFA Youth League.

At the end of the 2017–18 season the U-18 team coached byAlex Freiwon the Swiss championship and qualified for the2018–19 UEFA Youth League.But they were eliminated in the first round byHamilton Academical,having drawn both matches 2–2, they were defeated in the penalty shoot-out.Note: Results and dates can be found here2018–19 UEFA Youth League.

In November 2021, theSwiss Football Associationannounced their amendments to their league structure and further expanded their promotion of young talents.The Basel U-18 team won the championship 2022–23 and in line with the Associations new league structures, FCB advanced all their U-18 team members to their newly created U-19 team, who were thus qualified for the2023–24 UEFA Youth League.Here the team, under coachMario Cantaluppi,advanced through the qualification but were eliminated byBayern Munichin the play-offs.Note: Results and dates can be found here2023–24 UEFA Youth League.

Other youth teams

In total, the club has eight youth teams in their academy. In the groupFormationare the U-21, U-19, U-17, U1-6 and U-15, in the groupFootecothe FE-14 team and then there is the groupProject Team BaselFE-12 and FE-13.Since the 2020–21 season, the FE-13 and FE-14 teams from the clubs FC Basel 1893,BSC Old BoysandFC Concordia Baselwill appear with the addition of Team Basel.

Employees of note

Former players

Main article:List of FC Basel players

Coaches

See also:Category:FC Basel managers

NOTE:early history is largely unknown.

• Percy Humphreys(1913–14)
• Walter Dietrich(1919–22)
• Max Breunig(1922–23)
• Gyula Kertész(1928–30)
• Gustav Putzendopler(1930–32)
• Otto Haftl(1932)
• Karl Kurz(1932–33)
• Josef Haist(1933–34)
• Richard (Dombi) Kohn(1934)
• Alwin Riemke(1934–36)
• Heinz Körner(1936–37)
• Fernand Jaccard(1937–39)
• Walter Dietrich(1939)
• Max Galler(1939–40)
• Eugen Rupf(1940–43)
• Willy Wolf(1943–46)
• Max Barras(1946)
• Anton Schall(1946–47)
• Ernst Hufschmid(1947–52)
• René Bader(1952–55)
• Willy Dürr(1955)
• Béla Sárosi(1955–57)
• Rudi Strittich(1957–58)
• René Bader(1958–59)
• Jenő Vincze(1 July 1959 – 30 June 61)
• Georges Sobotka(1961–65)
• Helmut Benthaus(1 July 1965 – 30 June 82)
• Rainer Ohlhauser(1982–83)
• Ernst August Künnecke(1983–85)
• Emil Müller(1985)
• Helmut Benthaus(1 July 1985 – 30 June 87)
• Urs Siegenthaler(1 July 1987 – 30 June 90)
• Ernst August Künnecke(1990–92)
• Karl OdermattandBruno Rahmen(1992)
• Friedel Rausch(1 July 1992 – 30 June 93)
• Claude Andrey(1993–95)
• Karl Engel(1995–97)
• Heinz Hermann(22 March 1997 – 31 March 97)
• Salvatore Andracchio(interim), (1 April 1997 – 30 June 97)
• Jörg Berger(1 July 1997 – 6 October 97)
• Salvatore Andracchio(interim), (7 October 1997 – 31 December 97)
• Guy Mathez(1 Jan 1998 – 14 May 99)
• Marco Schällibaum(15 May 1999 – 14 June 99)
• Christian Gross(15 June 1999 – 30 June 2009)
• Thorsten Fink(1 July 2009 – 16 October 11)
• Heiko Vogel(interim) (13 October 2011 – 11 December 11)
• Heiko Vogel(12 December 2011 – 15 October 12)
• Murat Yakin(15 October 2012 – 17 May 2014)
• Paulo Sousa(1 July 2014 – 17 June 2015)
• Urs Fischer(18 June 2015 – 3 June 2017)
• Raphaël Wicky(4 June 2017 – 26 July 2018)
• Alexander Frei(interim) (26 July 2018 – 2 August 2018)
• Marcel Koller(2 August 2018 – 31 August 2020)
• Ciriaco Sforza(1 September 2020 – 6 April 2021)
• Patrick Rahmen(6 April 2021 – 21 February 2022)
• Guille Abascal(interim) (21 February 2022 – 23 May 2022)
• Alex Frei(23 May 2022 – 7 February 2023)
• Heiko Vogel(7 February 2023 – 31 October 2023)
• Fabio Celestini(31 October 2023 – present)

President

See also:Category:Swiss football chairmen and investors

• Roland Geldner(1893–1896)
• Emanuel Schiess(1896–1896)
• Charlie Volderauer(1896–1899)
• Ernst-Alfred Thalmann( 1900–1901)
• Emanuel Schiess(1901–1902)
• Ernst-Alfred Thalmann(1902–1902)
• Josy Ebinger(1902–1903)
• Ernst-Alfred Thalmann(1903–1907)
• Siegfried Pfeiffer(1907–1908)
• Ernst-Alfred Thalmann(1908–1913)
• Karl Ibach(1913–1913)
• Carl Albert Hintermann(1913–1914)
• Ernst-Alfred Thalmann(1914–1915)
• Philipp Leichner(1915–1915)
• Franz Rinderer(1915–1918)
• August Rossa(1918–1919)
• Bernard Klingelfuss(1919–1920)
• Franz Rinderer(1920–1921)
• Carl Burkhardt(1921–1922)
• Karl Ibach(1922–1925)
• Carl Burkhardt(1925–1926)
• Franz Rinderer(1926–1927)
• Karl Ibach(1927–1927)
• Karl Junker(1927–1927)
• Hans Rupprecht(1927–1929)
• Otto Kuhn(1929–1931)
• Franz Rinderer(1931–1936)
• Emil Junker(1936–1939)
• Albert Besse(1939–1944)
• Emil Junker(1944–1946)
• Jules Düblin(1946–1959)
• Ernst Weber(1959–1962)
• Lucien Schmidlin(1962–1966)
• Harry Thommen(1966–1970)
• Félix Musfeld(1970–1976)
• René Theler(1976–1980)
• Pierre Jacques Lieblich(1980–1982)
• Roland Rasi(1982–1983)
• Urs Gribi(1983–1986)
• Peter Max Sutter(1986–1987)
• Charles Röthlisberger(1987–1992)
• Peter Epting(1992–1996)
• René C. Jäggi(1996–2002)
• Werner Edelmann(2002–2006)
• Gisela Oeri(2006–2011)
• Bernhard Heusler(2012–2017)
• Bernhard Burgener(2017–2020)
• Reto Baumgartner(2020–)

At the club's Extraordinary General Assembly on 16 January 2012, the 601 attending members appointed Oeri as honorary president.

See also

• History of FC Basel
• List of FC Basel players
• List of FC Basel seasons
• Football in Switzerland
• The Football Club Social Alliance

External links

• Rotblau.ch Statistics(in German)(archived 1 December 2005)
• FC Baselat Soccerway
• FC Baselat Swiss Football League