SVWW narrow defeat to Champions in season finale
Pros |
History: The lily features in both the city's coat of arms and the SV Darmstadt 98 badge – hence why the team are also known as "The Lilies". SVD's club history began on 22 May 1898 with the founding of FK Olympia Darmstadt by a professor and his five sons. In 1919, Olympia merged with SV Darmstadt to form the club we know today: SV Darmstadt 98. The South German champions of 1973 played in the top flight of German football for the first time in 1978/79. Further promotions to the Bundesliga followed in 1982 and 2015, but at present SV98 are in their third successive season in the second tier.
Stadium: The "Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor” is the closest stadium to SVWW in the Bundesliga 2, with the two grounds separated by a distance of approximately 46.5 kilometres as the crow flies. The stadium was named in part after “Böllen” – the Hessian word for poplar trees, which even now still grow in the area around Darmstadt’s stadium. Furthermore, back in the days when Darmstadt was part of a grand duchy, there was a city gate that could be locked if necessary, hence the “Falltor” (paddle) part. As for the first part of the name, the pharmaceutical and chemicals company Merck acquired naming rights in 2014. Following several renovations, the “Böll” can now hold 17,400.
Coach: Dimitrios Grammozis has been head coach at SV Darmstadt 98 since 24 February 2019. The 41-year-old had previously coached various youth teams at VfL Bochum. Almost a year to the day since taking over the reins at the Lilies, he announced that he would be leaving the club prematurely at the end of the season. The reason was a difference of opinion regarding the length of his contract. But the decision has not had any bearing on how the club has fared on the pitch. SVD have been one of the strongest teams in the second half of the season, with Grammozis' team picking up 25 points in 2020. The Wuppertal native, who made 92 appearances for 1. FC Kaiserslautern, helped Darmstadt finish in 10th place in the Bundesliga 2 last season.
Personnel matters: A total of 16 players left the Hessian second-tier outfit in the summer – including first-choice goalkeeper Daniel Heuer Fernandes, who joined Hamburger SV. To compensate for the loss, SV98 brought in 13 new signings. Centre-forward Serdar Dursun, who has been at the club since 2018, currently occupies third place in the goalscoring charts with 14 goals – behind Fabian Klos (19) and Manuel Schäffler (18). Fabian Holland, a Darmstadt player since 2015, was made the new club captain for this season. Another prominent player at SVD is Marcel Heller. The experienced midfielder has made 207 appearances for the Lilies to date, notching 21 goals and 34 assists.