60 years of Bundesliga
Club-by-club historical guide: Wuppertal
Wuppertaler have only spent three seasons in the Bundesliga, but one of them coincided with a UEFA Cup run after a fourth-place finish.
bundesliga.com is taking you through all the teams to have graced Germany’s first division over the last 60 years – based on the number of seasons they’ve played up to and including 2023/24.
>>> Discover many more memorable moments and records in the Bundesliga's 60-year history!
Wuppertaler SV
Years in Bundesliga: 3 (1972-75)
Most appearances: Gustav Jung (97)
Most goals: Günter Pröpper (39)
Youngest player: Wolfgang Keuken (19 years, nine months, 19 days)
Founded in 1954 after a series of mergers, Wuppertal were always around the top end of the second-tier Regionalliga but only managed to earn Bundesliga promotion in 1972 after Günter Pröpper scored 52 of their 111 goals to qualify for the play-offs that would finally earn them a place in the top flight. The Bergische Löwen (Bergish Lions) surprised all and finished fourth thanks to Pröpper’s 21 goals. Only Gerd Müller and Jupp Heynckes scored more that season. The club mascot Pröppi is unsurprisingly named after the striker.
It saw Wuppertal qualify for the UEFA Cup and taste European football for the first time ever. Despite winning the only continental fixture to take place at their Stadion am Zoo 5-4, they were unable to overturn a 4-1 first-leg loss to Ruch Chorzow of Poland in the first round. That same year, it took an 82nd-minute goal from Heinz-Dieter Lömm away at VfB Stuttgart on the final day to keep them up on goal-difference, before the dream came to an end in 1974/75 when they finished rock bottom with just 12 points – the second-lowest total in history – and equalled Tasmania Berlin’s unwanted record of fewest wins in a Bundesliga season (two).
It's generally been down since then, spending seven years in Bundesliga 2, 24 in the third level and seven in the fourth tier before filing for insolvency in 2013. That saw demotion to the fifth tier. They have been back in the Regionalliga since 2016.
>>> Discover many more memorable moments and records in the Bundesliga's 60-year history!