FC Schalke 04 For most of its history, FC Schalke 04 has been defined less by individual stars than by a signature style of play: in the 1930s and 1940s, built around brothers-in-law Fritz Szepan and Ernst Kuzorra, the Gelsenkirchen side developed the so-called "Schalker Kreisel" ("Schalke Spinning Top"), a system built on rapid, short passing and constant off-the-ball movement. That approach brought the club six German championships between 1934 and 1942, including, in 1937, the first league-and-cup double in the history of German football.
The club was founded in 1904 in the working-class Schalke district and was closely tied from the outset to the mining and industrial identity of the Ruhr region, which gave rise to the nickname Die Knappen ("The Miners"). Schalke's seventh, and to date last, German title came in 1958, secured with a 3–0 win over Hamburger SV in the final; despite several close finishes since, the club has not won the league championship again.
The club's greatest European achievement remains its UEFA Cup triumph in the 1996–97 season: after both legs of the final ended 1–0 to the home side, the trophy was decided by a penalty shoot-out at the San Siro, which Schalke won 4–1 against Inter Milan. The side, coached by Huub Stevens and known for his mantra "Die Null muss stehen" ("It has to stay at zero"), is still remembered by fans today as the "Euro Fighters."
Schalke 04 is one of the largest football clubs in the world by membership — around 178,000 in 2023, making it the second-biggest club in Germany. That scale underpins its intense, long-running rivalry with Borussia Dortmund, known as the Revierderby, one of the most emotionally charged fixtures in German football. Recent years have brought sporting turbulence, with several relegations and promotions between the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga, but Schalke closed the 2025–26 season as champions of the second division, securing an immediate return to the Bundesliga.