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SK Sturm Graz

Adapted from Wikipedia · Discoverer experience

Team photo of SK Sturm Graz football players celebrating their victory in the 2010 Austrian Cup final.

Sportklub Sturm Graz is a professional football club from Austria, based in the city of Graz. The club was started a long time ago, in 1909, and plays its games in the Austrian Football Bundesliga. The team's colors are black and white, which you can see on their jerseys and logo.

Over the years, Sturm Graz has achieved great success. They have won the Austrian football championship five times, in the years 1998, 1999, 2011, 2024, and 2025. This shows just how strong and skilled the team has been. They have also taken part in big international competitions like the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League, where they faced teams from all over Europe.

One special thing about Sturm Graz is their rivalry with another team from Graz called Grazer AK. These two teams are neighbors and even share the same stadium, the Merkur Arena. This makes their matches very exciting, as both teams try hard to win and support their fans.

History

Historical chart of Sturm Graz league performance

SK Sturm Graz was founded in 1909 by students, like its neighbors Grazer AK, which was founded in 1902. Between 1921 and 1949, the team won the regional Styrian championship 11 times.

In 1981, the club achieved its first big success by finishing second in the league. In 1994, Ivica Osim took control of the team and helped it win its first Austrian Bundesliga title in 1998. The team also won the cup and super cup in 1999, and reached the UEFA Champions League. After some changes in coaches and financial challenges, Sturm Graz continued to compete strongly. In the 2023–24 season, they won their fourth league title and secured a place in the Champions League group stage for the first time since 2000–01.

Stadium

Merkur Arena

For many years, the team's home was the Gruabn. It could hold over 12,000 people and was known for its narrow field and close fans. In 1997, the team moved to the Arnold Schwarzenegger Stadium, which they share with a local rival team. In 2006, it was renamed UPC-Arena, and in 2016, it became the Merkur Arena.

Fans and the Graz Derby

A study from 2008 showed that SK Sturm Graz has about 360,000 fans in Austria, second only to Rapid Wien. In Europe, they have around 410,000 fans, making them the 117th-most supported club.

There are several organized fan groups, such as Jewels Sturm and Brigata Graz, both started in 1994, and Grazer Sturmflut, started in 1996. Sturm fans are friends with fans of the German club Karlsruhe, as well as Werder Bremen, and teams from Pisa and Carrara in Italy. Recently, they have also connected with fans from Maribor.

Sturm Graz has a big rivalry with their nearby team, Grazer AK, called the Graz Derby. In 1974, fans from both teams opposed a plan to merge into "FC Graz." Since 1920, they have played 199 matches, with Sturm winning more of these games than Grazer AK. They also have rivalries with clubs from Vienna, like Austria Wien and Rapid Wien, and many fans do not like Red Bull Salzburg because of how they took over Austria Salzburg.

Honours

SK Sturm Graz has achieved many notable accomplishments throughout its history. The club has been a joint winner of the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2008 and won the Austrian Amateur Championship in 1934.

The team has also been runners-up in several prestigious competitions. They finished second in the Austrian Bundesliga eight times, including the most recent seasons of 2021–22 and 2022–23. They were also runners-up in the Austrian Cup four times, and in the Austrian Supercup twice.

SK Sturm Graz has participated in major European competitions as well. They have taken part in the UEFA Champions League four times and the UEFA Cup eleven times, showcasing their skill on the international stage.

TypeCompetitionTitlesSeasons
DomesticAustrian Bundesliga51997–98, 1998–99, 2010–11, 2023–24, 2024–25
Austrian Cup71995–96, 1996–97, 1998–99, 2009–10, 2017–18, 2022–23, 2023–24
Austrian Supercup31996, 1998, 1999

European record

This section shows different stages a team can reach in European competitions.

The short forms stand for:

  • Q = Qualifying
  • P = Preliminary
  • PO = Play-off
  • KPO = Knockout play-offs
  • R16 = Round of 16
  • QF = Quarter-finals
SeasonCompetitionRoundCountryOpponentHomeAway
1970–71Inter-Cities Fairs Cup1FinlandIlves3–02–4
2EnglandArsenal1–00–2
1974–75UEFA Cup1BelgiumAntwerp2–10–1
1975–76UEFA Cup Winners' Cup1BulgariaSlavia Sofia3–10–1
2HungarySzombathelyi Haladás2–01–1
QFWest GermanyEintracht Frankfurt0–20–1
1978–79UEFA Cup1West GermanyBorussia Mönchengladbach1–21–5
1981–82UEFA Cup1Soviet UnionCSKA Moscow1–01–2
2SwedenIFK Göteborg2–22–3
1983–84UEFA Cup1RomaniaSportul Studențesc0–02–1
2ItalyHellas Verona0–02–2
3East GermanyLokomotive Leipzig2–00–1
QFEnglandNottingham Forest1–1 (a.e.t.)0–1
1988–89UEFA Cup1SwitzerlandServette0–00–1
1991–92UEFA Cup1NetherlandsUtrecht0–11–3
1995–96UEFA CupQCzech RepublicSlavia Prague0–11–1
1996–97UEFA Cup Winners' Cup1Czech RepublicSparta Prague2–21–1
1997–98UEFA Cup Winners' Cup1CyprusAPOEL3–01–0
2GreeceAEK Athens1–00–2
1998–99UEFA Champions LeagueQ2HungaryÚjpest4–03–2
Group C – 4thRussiaSpartak Moscow0–20–0
ItalyInternazionale0–20–1
SpainReal Madrid1–51–6
1999–2000UEFA Champions LeagueQ3SwitzerlandServette2–12–2
Group D – 3rd, PFranceMarseille3–20–2
EnglandManchester United0–31–2
CroatiaCroatia Zagreb1–00–3
UEFA Cup3ItalyParma3–3 (a.e.t.)1–2
2000–01UEFA Champions LeagueQ2IsraelHapoel Tel Aviv3–02–1
Q3NetherlandsFeyenoord2–11–1
Group D – 1st, PScotlandRangers2–00–5
TurkeyGalatasaray3–02–2
FranceMonaco2–00–5
Group A – 3rdSpainValencia0–50–2
EnglandManchester United0–20–3
GreecePanathinaikos2–02–1
2001UEFA Intertoto Cup2SwitzerlandLausanne0–13–3
2002–03UEFA Champions LeagueQ3IsraelMaccabi Haifa3–30–2
UEFA Cup1ScotlandLivingston5–23–4
2BulgariaLevski Sofia1–00–1 (8–7 p)
3ItalyLazio1–31–0
2005UEFA Intertoto Cup1AndorraRànger's5–01–1
2GermanyVfL Wolfsburg1–32–2
2008UEFA Intertoto Cup2BelarusShakhtyor Soligorsk2–00–0
3HungaryBudapest Honvéd0–02–1
2008–09UEFA CupQ2SwitzerlandZürich1–1 (2–4 p)1–1
2009–10UEFA Europa LeagueQ2Bosnia and HerzegovinaŠiroki Brijeg2–11–1
Q3MontenegroPetrovac5–02–1
POUkraineMetalist Kharkiv1–11–0
Group F – 4thRomaniaDinamo București0–11–2
TurkeyGalatasaray1–01–1
GreecePanathinaikos0–10–1
2010–11UEFA Europa LeagueQ3Georgia (country)Dinamo Tbilisi2–01–1
POItalyJuventus1–20–1
2011–12UEFA Champions LeagueQ2HungaryVideoton2–02–3
Q3Georgia (country)Zestaponi1–01–1
POBelarusBATE Borisov0–21–1
UEFA Europa LeagueGroup L – 4thRussiaLokomotiv Moscow1–21–3
GreeceAEK Athens1–32–1
BelgiumAnderlecht0–20–3
2013–14UEFA Europa LeagueQ2IcelandBreiðablik0–10–0
2015–16UEFA Europa LeagueQ3RussiaRubin Kazan2–31–1
2017–18UEFA Europa LeagueQ2MontenegroMladost Podgorica0–13–0
Q3TurkeyFenerbahçe1–21–1
2018–19UEFA Champions LeagueQ2NetherlandsAjax1–30–2
UEFA Europa LeagueQ3CyprusAEK Larnaca0–20–5
2019–20UEFA Europa LeagueQ2NorwayHaugesund2–10–2
2021–22UEFA Europa LeaguePOSloveniaMura2–03–1
Group B – 4thFranceMonaco1–10–1
NetherlandsPSV Eindhoven1–40–2
SpainReal Sociedad0–11–1
2022–23UEFA Champions LeagueQ3UkraineDynamo Kyiv1–2 (a.e.t.)0–1
UEFA Europa LeagueGroup F – 4thItalyLazio0–02–2
NetherlandsFeyenoord1–00–6
DenmarkMidtjylland1–00–2
2023–24UEFA Champions LeagueQ3NetherlandsPSV Eindhoven1–31–4
UEFA Europa LeagueGroup D – 3rdPortugalSporting CP1–20–3
PolandRaków Częstochowa0–11–0
ItalyAtalanta2–20–1
UEFA Europa Conference LeagueKPOSlovakiaSlovan Bratislava4–11–0
R16FranceLille0–31–1
2024–25UEFA Champions LeagueLeague phase – 30thFranceBrest—N/a1–2
BelgiumClub Brugge0–1—N/a
PortugalSporting CP0–2—N/a
GermanyBorussia Dortmund—N/a0–1
SpainGirona1–0—N/a
FranceLille—N/a2–3
ItalyAtalanta—N/a0–5
GermanyRB Leipzig1–0—N/a
2025–26UEFA Champions LeaguePONorwayBodø/Glimt2–10–5
UEFA Europa LeagueLeague phase – 26thDenmarkMidtjylland—N/a0–2
ScotlandRangers2–1—N/a
ScotlandCeltic—N/a1–2
EnglandNottingham Forest0–0—N/a
GreecePanathinaikos—N/a1–2
SerbiaRed Star Belgrade0–1—N/a
NetherlandsFeyenoord—N/a0–3
NorwayBrann1–0—N/a

Players

SK Sturm Graz has a team of players who wear special numbers on their shirts. Some of these players are currently away from the team, playing for other clubs temporarily. The team also has a reserve team called Sturm Graz II, which plays in a lower league in Austria. These players get practice and sometimes get to play in big matches too. The club has also retired some special numbers that were once worn by favorite players.

Sturm Graz II

No.Pos.NationPlayer
20FW AUTPeter Kiedl (at SV Ried until 30 June 2026)
No.Pos.NationPlayer
3DF AUTGünther Neukirchner (1989–2006)
7FW AUTMario Haas (1993–2012)

Coaching staff

PositionName
Head coachAustria Fabio Ingolitsch
Assistent CoachAustria Christoph Witamwas
Austria Sargon Duran
Goalkeeper CoachAustria Stefan Loch
Match AnalystGermany Sebastian Podsiadly
Austria Michele Stock
Development CoachAustria Günther Neukirchner
Managing Director SportGermany Michael Parensen
Technical DirectorGermany Benjamin Schunk
ScoutAustria Emil Bauer
Austria Rasim Memić
Director of youth departmentAustria Thomas Raffl
Chief instructorAustria Dietmar Pegam
Team ManagerAustria Martin Ehrenreich

Managerial history

Here is a list of the managers who have led SK Sturm Graz over the years. The club has had many managers from different countries, including Austria, Germany, Hungary, and others. Each manager took care of the team for a certain amount of time, some for just a few months and others for many years. The managers shown started from 1945 up to today.

Related articles

Austrian Football Bundesliga
UEFA Champions League
Austria
Italy
Netherlands
England

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