The FT Adler Kiel Rugby is a German rugby union club from Kiel, currently playing in the 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East. It is part of a larger club, the FT Adler Kiel, which also offers other sports like volleyball, table tennis and handball.
The term Adler is the German word for eagle.
History
Origins Kiel rugby began in the 1930s, when the local shipyards workers and German Navy members, then called the Reichsmarine, formed the 1. Kieler Rugby Fussball Verein.FT Adler Kiel Rugby website - History accessed: 7 April 2010
In post-Second World War Germany, competitive rugby in Kiel resumed in 1949, when three local clubs competed in a league with clubs from Hamburg. The three clubs were the 1. Kieler Rugby Fussball Verein, PSV Kiel and FT Adler. Rugby in Kiel greatly benefited from a strong support through the British Army, which was stationed at Kiel-Holtenau.
Towards the end of the 1950s, Kiel rugby declined and the clubs were only able to field a combined team. In 1963, even this team had to be disbanded. As a form of farewell to rugby in Kiel, a final friendly match was organized. The match was against a team selected from a visiting detachment of the Japanese Navy. After this, rugby disappeared from the city for almost 30 years.
Current club Rugby returned to Kiel in the late 1980s through the efforts of foreign students at Kiel University. The current rugby department of FT Adler was formed in 1997 however.FT Adler Kiel club info at totalrugby.de accessed: 7 April 2010
FT Adler took out the 2008 championship in the Regionalliga North but failed in the promotion round, losing on aggregate to RU Hohen Neuendorf.Rugby Spielpläne - Archiv 2007/2008 - Regionalliga Nord rugbyweb.de, accessed: 7 April 2010
The club earned promotion from the Rugby-Regionalliga North, after another championship there, to the 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga, the second tier of German club rugby, in 2009.Rugby Spielpläne - Archiv 2008/2009 - Regionalliga Nord rugbyweb.de, accessed: 7 April 2010
Kiel lasted for only one season at this level before being relegated again to the Regionalliga, where it came fourth in 2010-11. At the end of the 2014–15 season the club was promoted back to the 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga after a Regionalliga championship.
Club honours Rugby-Regionalliga North Champions: 2008, 2009, 2015
Recent seasons Recent seasons of the club:RugbyWeb Ergebnisarchiv rugbyweb.de - Results archive, accessed: 24 July 2012 Year Division Position 2005-06 Rugby-Regionalliga North (III) 3rd 2006–07 Rugby-Regionalliga North 6th 2007–08 Rugby-Regionalliga North 1st 2008–09 Rugby-Regionalliga North 1st — Promoted 2009–10 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North/East (II) 9th — Relegated 2010–11 Rugby-Regionalliga North (III) 4th 2011–12 Rugby-Regionalliga North 5th 2012–13 Rugby-Regionalliga North 2nd 2013–14 Rugby-Regionalliga North 4th 2014–15 Rugby-Regionalliga North 1st — Promoted 2015–16 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North 2nd2016–17 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North5th2017–18 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga North5th
References
External links
Official website Official website of the rugby department FT Adler Kiel club info at totalrugby.de