The days are getting longer again, winter is on its way out and king football is back. Today marks the end of the winter break in the Austrian Bundesliga. A perfect time to have a look at the big football teams of Graz.

Champions x 2

Last year was one of the most successful years in Graz’ football history. Sturm Graz dethroned the serial champions from Salzburg to win their fourth Austrian championship title. In addition, they won the Austrian Cup for the second time in a row.

One level below, in the 2. Liga, the other big club from Graz, GAK, were crowned champions. They gained promotion and made their return to the Bundesliga after many years ob absence. This makes Graz the undisputed football capital of Austria – at least for the moment.

Similarities…

Both clubs share a similar history, that started more than a hundred years ago. For the longest time both teams were unable to find success at the highest level. But things changed at the end of the Millennium. Lead by the great Ivica Osim, Sturm won their first Bundesliga title in 1998. They were able to repeat this feat the following year and even made an impressive run in the Champions League.

A few years later it was GAKs time to shine, they won the championship in 2004. But soon after, dark clouds covered the football scene of Graz. Both teams had major financial difficulties, which lead to GAK being relegated to the lowest leagues of Steiermark.

… and differences

The most obvious difference between the two clubs is their color. Red is the color of GAK, that’s why one of their nicknames is “Die roten Teufel” – the red devils. The colors of Sturm are black and white, which makes them “die Schwoazn” or blackies.

Sturm Graz was founded in 1909 in the Augarten, while GAK was founded some years earlier in 1902. In the beginning Sturm was more of a workers club, while GAK was the team for academics. Nowadays there is not really a distinction anymore.

The Stadium

Another thing both teams share is the stadium, which is owned by the city of Graz. It was constructed right before the successful period of both teams started. In the beginning it was named after one of the most famous sons of Graz – Arnold Schwarzenegger. Now an insurance company is giving the stadium it’s name.

The Grazer Derby

The promotion of GAK to the Bundesliga also marks the return of the most anticipated football game of Graz – the Grazer Derby. Both teams played each other 200 times, with an almost even balance of wins for each team.

Current season

While Sturm managed to keep their flow going and are leading the league once again with 36 points in 16 games. GAK hat some troubles adjusting to the Bundesliga and are currently at 12 points after 16 games.

Both teams find each other on different sides of the table, but there are still a lot of games to play. Will Sturm be able to defent their title? Will GAK manage to stay in the Bundesliga? What will the next derby bring?

What do you think? Which team do you support? Who is your favourite player? Let us know in the comments!