FC Heidenheim are set to make history on Thursday when they make their European debut.
The side who had never featured in the top flight of German football until last season, were the Bundesliga’s surprise package in 2023/24.
So much so that they finished 8th and qualified for the final round of the Europa Conference League.
With a population of under 50,000 residents, Heidenheim’s success is a rarity in German football. The European places are often dominated by teams from larger cities who also have wealthy backers (Union Berlin perhaps the only other success story despite being from the capital).
Heidenheim’s debut will come against BK Häcken located in Gothenburg, Sweden. Played over two-legs, the overall winner of the tie will earn a place in the Conference League group stages this season.
Heidenheim head coach, Frank Schmidt, has been involved with the club since he was a player in the lower leagues of German football. He has oversaw the club’s rise from the semi-professional divisions into the professional leagues and now into a European competition.
Schmidt describes the club’s debut in Europe to be “naturally something significant.”
Heidenheim are backed by 500 travelling away fans who are keen on witnessing history and hopefully a favourable result.
Club captain, Patrick Mainka, sums up the mood: “This is a milestone game, and the fans are aware of it”…”We can leverage this and derive strength from it. We aim to put on a decent show for them and see where this journey takes us.”
Despite it being Heidenheim’s debut on the European stage, they will still be expected to progress to the group stages of the Conference League.
They’re in a superior league to their Swedish counterparts and have the better team on paper.
However, BK Häcken are already 9 games into their domestic season and possibly a little bit more match fit than Heidenheim.
The Bundesliga side played their first official competitive match of the season last weekend in round one of the DFB Pokal.
Frank Schmidt’s side easily got the better of fourth tier side, FC 08 Villingen, winning 0-4.
This sleepy village will be bouncing for the return leg next week and they’ll be hoping for many more Thursday evening fixtures against some of Europe’s most recognisable teams. Even if European football is just a once off for Heidenheim, they’re living through a golden era and it must be savoured whether you’re a local or football enthusiast.
GGFN | Jamie Allen
