Famous players

and coaches

- KFV Heroes

Walther Bensemann

Walther Bensemann (13 January 1873 – 12 November 1934)

Bensemann was born in Berlin, Brandenburg, as the son of a Jewish banker. During his time at private school in Montreux, Switzerland, he learned about the new sport of football. When he moved to Karlsruhe in order to complete his school-leavers' exam, he began to spread the sport around the German Empire. There, in September 1889, he founded the International Football Club, the first football club in southern Germany, and two years later he was instrumental in the founding of Karlsruher FV, one of the first champion clubs in Germany. He was also involved in the creation of Karlsruher Kickers. In 1900 he belonged to the founding-fathers of the German Football Association, the DFB.Bensemann thought of football as a means of international understanding, so he started to organize international matches such as the ones between selections of Lausanne and southern Germany in 1893. Consequentially this also led to the five historical matches between selections from and Germany England between 1899 and 1901, which albeit not having any official status, are considered the historically first international matches of any German national side.In 1920, Bensemann founded Kicker, which evolved soon to Germany's leading football magazine, a status which it retains until today.

In 1933, the Nazi Machtergreifung in Germany compelled Benseman to move to Montreux where he died soon, relatively unnoticed and without means

Friedrich Wilhelm Nohe

(* 10.April 1864; † 13. Octobre 1940)

Bensemann und Schricker, 1898 in Paris, (7:0 vs. White Rovers Club, 2:1 vs. a football team from Parisl)

Dr. Ivo Schricker

Dr. Ivo Wolfgang Eduard Schricker (18 March 1877 in Strasbourg, Alsace-Lorraine – 10 January 1962 in Zürich, Switzerland) was in the late 19th century a pioneer of German football. He also served as an official and was FIFA-General secretary from 1932 until resigning in 1951.

He, and his brother Erwin (22 August 1878 – 20 October 1914, killed in action) played at Strassburger FK 1890, Karlsruher Kickers, FV Straßburg and, while studying in Berlin, Akademischer SC 1893 Berlin. With Karlsruher FV he became South German champion several times. In 1899 he was among the best players in the first—still unofficial—game against a team from England, and in September 1901, he also played in London.

His home town, Strasbourg in Alsace, was after World War I annexed to France again. After retirement as player, Schricker served from 1923 to 1925 as president of the South German association (Süddeutscher Fußball-Verband).

He moved to Zürich in Switzerland, a central and conveniently located place that fitted FIFA needs well when a permanent office was set up. Ivo Schricker became the organisation's first employee, and was appointed Permanent Secretary in 1931, working in a 30 square metre apartment at Bahnhofstrasse 77 that remained the home of football's governing body until 1954.From 1948 onwards, he was supported by secretary Marta Kurmann


FIFA-Generalsekretär Dr. Schricker		Trainer-Legende William Townley

William Townley

William "Billy" Townley, (14 February 1866 – 30 May 1950 in Blackpool, England)

He scored the first hat-trick in the history of the FA Cup final, but his lasting legacy is defined as an important pioneer of the game in Germany and as a journeyman coach on the continent.
Townley's career as a player began with Blackburn Olympic F.C. He joined Blackburn Rovers in 1886 and won the FA Cup with the club in 1890 and 1891. In the first of these title appearances against The Wednesday, the outside left made history by contributing three goals in a 6-1 victory, earning the distinction of becoming the first player to score a hat-trick in an FA Cup final. He scored another goal in the successful defence of the title as the Rovers overcame Notts County 3-1 the following year. Townley's total of four goals in FA Cup finals has to date only been bettered once, by Liverpool's Ian Rush, who scored five goals in three finals appearances in the 1980s.
Townley was capped twice for England, in 1889 and 1890, scoring two goals in the second of those matches, which was a 9-1 victory over Ireland. In 1894 he moved to Darwen and played there for six years before joining Manchester City, where his playing career ended after he suffered a serious head injury.
At the end of his playing years Townley took up coaching as a profession, and as the oppoutunities were limited in England he left for the continent where football was beginning to develop a serious following. In Germany, as in the rest of Europe at the time, the game was strictly amateur in character and players often had contribute to team expenses. For a club to have a coach was not yet a matter of course, but rather a luxury, as it was more common then for a senior player or club functionary to fill the role and carry out the tasks of a coach. Coaches were often hired for special occasions only, or for a brief period to help develop the skills of a team, before they moved on.
Townley's first coaching job was with DFC Prague who were beaten by VfB Leipzig in Germany's first national championship staged in 1903. He later joined Karlsruher FV, losing finalists in 1905, and led them to a their only national title in 1910.
The following year he was hired by the northern Bavarian club SpVgg Fürth. This club owned the most advanced facilities in Germany and was quickly becoming the largest club in the country with a membership approaching 3,000. Two months after his arrival Fürth lost against English side Newcastle United only 1-2. He guided the club to its first two Bavarian championships (Ostkreismeisterschaft) which heralded the onset of a golden era that would last into the 1930s which saw the club become one of the most dominant football sides in the country.
In December 1913 Townley got the call from Bayern Munich, but on a loan arrangement he re-joined to Fürth in April of the following year to guide the that club through the national championship rounds. In the final Fürth captured its first national title, defeating defending champions VfB Leipzig, holders of a then record three German titles. It is not clear, but he may then have returned to Munich, before the horrors of World War I overtook the continent, obscuring knowledge of Townley's activities during this period.
He re-emerged with Bayern in 1919 and coached there until 1921, helping the club earn local and regional titles. It appears he was loaned to the Swiss club FC St. Gallen in August 1920 for what was probably a summer training camp. Townley's two tenures in Munich coincided with the first two terms of legendary Bayern President Kurt Landauer who oversaw the club's first national title victory in 1932 during his third term with the Austrian Richard Dombi - of later Feyenoord fame - as coach.
Afterward Townley moved to SV Waldhof in Mannheim where he spent two months aiding in the club's preparations for the South German Championship. The team's campaign was cut short by eventual national champions 1. FC Nuremberg. It then appears that he may have coached in Sweden before joining SC Victoria Hamburg where he and his son, playing as a striker, spent a couple of seasons. In 1923 William Townley returned to St. Gallen where he stayed until February 1925.
Townley interrupted his time in Switzerland for a four month stint with the Dutch national team to guide them through the 1924 Olympics in Paris. In the semi-finals the Netherlands lost a closely fought match to Uruguay - the dominant side of that era who counted the legendary Andrade and Pedro Cea in their ranks - and had to settle for fourth place.
In May 1926 Townley rejoined SpVgg Fürth for the championship final in which they overcame Hertha Berlin to win their second national title - the third national title to his credit. A year later he was coaching 1925 finalists FSV Frankfurt and spent some time working with nearby Union Niederrad.
In 1930 Townley returned for a third time to Fürth, with the club winning the South German Championship before being ousted from the national playoffs in the quarterfinals by the defending champions Hertha Berlin.
Now in his mid-60s, Townley took up his last known posting in 1932 with Arminia Hannover, then a strong regional side. Arminia defeated Dresdner SC in a quarterfinal match, but lost in the next round at home to eventual champions Fortuna Düsseldorf, starring the legendary Paul Janes. This marks the zenith of Arminia's achievement and the last significant role of a great pioneer of the game in Germany.
William Townley died in Blackpool, England in 1950 at the age of 84.

Kurt Ehrmann

Interview with Kurt Ehrmann (in German)

Fritz Förderer

Friedrich "Fritz" Förderer (January 5, 1888 in Karlsruhe – December 6, 1952 in Weimar) was a German amateur football (soccer) player who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics.

He was a member of the German Olympic squad and played two matches in the consolation tournament and scored five goals.

Max Breunig

(* 12.November 1888 in einem Vorort von Karlsruhe; † 04. Juli 1961 in Pforzheim)

Max Breunig (November 12, 1888 near Karlsruhe – July 4, 1961 in Pforzheim) was a German amateur football player who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics.

Breunig, a midfielder, started his career at Karlsruher FV in 1908, and on the final day of the 1909/10 German League season, he scored the winning goal (a penalty kick) in a 1-0 win against Holstein Kiel to win the championship. In 1913 he signed for 1. FC Pforzheim but his football career ended when the First World War began.

He captained the German national team in all nine games he played for them and was a member of the German 1912 Olympic squad and played one match in the main tournament. He scored one goal at international level.

After his playing days, he became a teacher and he also went on to manage Karlsruher from 1921 until 1922, FC Basel from 1922 to 1923[1] and TSV München 1860 from 1925 until 1928 and from 1930 until 1934.

Gottfried Fuchs

(3 May 1889 – 25 February 1972)

A German Jew, he fled Germany because of The Holocaust and immigrated to Canada. He is remembered for scoring 10 goals for Germany in a 16-0 win against Russia at the 1912 Olympics on July 1.

He was part of the legendary attacking trio of Karlsruher FV with Fritz Förderer and Julius Hirsch. His older brother was Richard Fuchs.

Julius Hirsch

(7 April 1892 – 8 May 1945) was a German international footballer who was killed during the Holocaust.

He was deported to Auschwitz concentration camp on 1 March 1943. His exact date of death is unknown. In 1950, a German court declared him dead with the date of death set on 8 May 1945.
Julius Hirsch was the first Jewish player to represent the German national team. He died at Auschwitz in May 1945. Hirsch had served for four years in the German Army in the First World War, had been decorated with the Iron Cross and was a German patriot, unable and unwilling to believe that his life could be at risk

Ernst Hollstein

(December 9, 1886 in Karlsruhe – August 9, 1950) was a German amateur football (soccer) player who competed in the 1912 Summer Olympics.

He was a member of the German Olympic squad and played one match in the main tournament as well as in the consolation tournament.

Wilhelm Gros (* 06. 07. 1892; † 13. 10. 1917)

Lorenz Huber (* 24. 02. 1906; † 06. 10. 1989)

Ludwig Damminger (* 29. 10. in Wörth am Rhein; † in Jockgrim)

Franz Immig (* 10. September in Sondernheim; † 26. Dezember 1955)

Franz Immig war deutscher Nationalspieler 1939.

(10 September 1918 – 26 December 1955) was a footballer who played international football for both West Germany and Saarland. Born in Sondernheim, Immig played professionally for Karlsruher FV, Stuttgarter Kickers and 1. FC Saarbrücken.

Johann Herberger (*09. 11. 1919 in Wiesental, † 10. 2002 in Altbach)

Was a German soccer coach. He coached New York Hakoah in the American Soccer League (the team also competed in the International Soccer League). Herberger also coached the United States men's national soccer team for one. A relative of Sepp Herberger.

Biography: http://www.karlsruher-fv1891.de/jherberger.html

Emil Kutterer "Mile"

(* 11. 11. 1898 in Karlsruhe; † 13. 07. 1974)

Hermann Bosch

(* 10. 03. 1891 in Öhningen am Bodensee; † 16. 07. 1916)

James Lawrence

(16 February 1885 in Glasgow - November 1934) was a Scottish football player and later manager. A goalkeeper he played for Newcastle United between 1904 and 1921.

Born in Glasgow, Lawrence's first club was Partick Athletic, from where he moved to Glasgow Perthshire. Although still connected to Glasgow Perthshire, he sporadically played for Edinburgh side Hibernian when their regular custodian Harry Rennie was unavailable. He played with Newcastle for eighteen years after joining the Tyneside club in 1904 and still holds the record for making the most appearances for them, 496 matches in total.
With Newcastle he won the English Championship of 1905, 1907 and 1909, and the FA Challenge Cup of 1910. In the years 1905, 1906 1908 and 1911 he also reached the Cup final.
In 1911 he also represented the Scottish national team on one occasion. In a match for the British Home Championship Scotland then drew 1-1 with England at Goodison Park in Liverpool.
Lawrence showed an aptitude for administration when Chairman of The Players' Union in his later days at Newcastle and after his playing retirement Lawrence moved into management. His first appointment was with then Second Division side South Shields(1922-1923) before joining Preston North End. He stayed with the Lilywhites until 1925, when he relocated to Germany to manage Karlsruher FV. With this club he won the regional championships of Württemberg/Baden in 1926 and of Baden in 1928, 1929 and 1931 which qualified the club to participate in the matches for the German football championship.

Lawrence later returned to Scotland and in 1933 was elected chairman of Stranraer.[1] He died while in office a year later.