Energie Cottbus celebrates 60th: Wollitz wants cohesion

Energie Cottbus has made Bundesliga history. Be it through the curious header goal by goalkeeper Tomislav Piplica in April 2002 against Borussia Mönchengladbach. Or as the first team to field eleven foreign players in 2001. There will be plenty of anecdotes to share when the club from Lusatia celebrates its 60th birthday on Saturday.

President Sebastian Lemke is already looking forward to the celebrations: "It's going to be a mammoth event," he said. And the FCE boss has announced a bang. The club wants to present the new kit supplier to the fans and members at the gala. "I think it's a huge step for Energie Cottbus," said Lemke.

Special choreo by fans and players

Ahead of the party is the daily routine of the third division: On Saturday afternoon (14:00), FCE will host the second team of 1899 Hoffenheim at home. The fans have prepared a big birthday choreography.

Noteworthy: The Energie professionals have lent a hand and supported the fan scene in the preparations. Captain Axel Borgmann emphasized: "As a team, we can contribute the most if we win the home game and thus get the birthday present for the club."

Many former coaches and players who played their part in the eventful history of the former company sports community from the lignite combine in Lusatia are expected to attend the ceremony in the evening.

Delegation before foundation

This began with the usual delegations for GDR soccer. In 1963, the first team of SC Aktivist Brieske-Senftenberg was sent to SC Cottbus - including players such as Klaus Stabach, who was given membership number 1 at BSG Energie, which was founded on January 31, 1966.

As a libero and later as manager, he shaped the club for decades and played a major role in Energie's repeated promotions to the first division in the GDR and even sensationally storming into the Bundesliga after reunification.

Iconic coach Geyer

Under coach Eduard Geyer, FCE made it from the then third-tier Regionalliga to the DFB Cup final in 1997. In 2000, they were promoted to the Bundesliga with greats such as Piplica, Vasile Miriuta and Detlef Irrgang. In 2006, Cottbus returned to the first division under current Magdeburg coach Petrik Sander - with players such as Sergiu Radu, Gregg Berhalter and current Union Berlin coach Steffen Baumgart. They stayed in the first division for three years.

After that, the downward spiral began, which even took FCE to the bottom of the regional league table and to the brink of insolvency during the coronavirus era. Under President Lemke and coach Claus-Dieter Wollitz, who returned for the second time, FCE has experienced an upswing since 2020. Promotion to the third division was followed by a brilliant 2024/25 season in which Cottbus were promoted and only failed to make it through shortly before the end of the season.

Now the Lusatians are back in the top flight of the 3rd division and can dream of returning to the 2nd division in their birthday year of all years. Detlef Irrgang, record player at Energie, explains: "There's really only one goal: promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga. This year, things are looking even better."

Coach Wollitz, who has now spent more games on the sidelines than Eduard Geyer, hits the brakes: "Anyone who expects promotion doesn't want anything good for the club." Instead, he wishes for "cohesion in this region on the club's birthday so that this club can continue to develop."