Overview
Sportfreunde Katernberg was a German association football club from the Katernberg suburb of Essen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club's greatest success was a runners-up finish in the tier one Oberliga West in 1947–48 which qualified the club to participate in the German football championship. Apart from football the club also offered a chess department when the team was a long-term member of the Chess Bundesliga.
History
Formed in 1913 the club played its first three decades as a non-descript local side. Sportfreunde took part in the 1943 Tschammerpokal, the German Cup, but lost 4–2 to FC Schalke 04 in the second round after defeating Luxembourg side FK Niederkorn in the first round. It won promotion to the Gauliga Niederrhein in 1944 but the league was cancelled after only one round because of the effects of the Second World War. Sportfreunde Katernberg spend three more seasons in the Oberliga from 1950 to 1953 but never came close to the success of 1947–48 and was eventually relegated back to the 2. Oberliga. Two seasons in this league followed until another relegation in 1955 took the club permanently from the top levels of German football.
Honours
The club's honours: * Oberliga West ** Runners-up: 1947–48 * Verbandsliga Niederrhein ** Champions: 1988–89 * Landesliga Niederrhein ** Champions: 1957–58, 1975–76, 1987–88
Recent seasons
The recent season-by-season performance of the club: * With the introduction of the Regionalligas in 1994 and the 3. Liga in 2008 as the new third tier, below the 2. Bundesliga, all leagues below dropped one tier. With the elevation of the tier six Verbandsliga Niederrhein to Oberliga status in 2012 all leagues below were elevated one tier.