Arminia Bielefeld

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Full name: Deutscher Sport-Club Arminia Bielefeld

Nickname(s):
-Die Arminen
- Die Blauen

Founded: 1905

Stadium: Schüco Arena, Bielefeld (Capacity 28,008)

Club's official website: DSC Arminia Bielefeld

Chairman: Hans-Hermann Schwick
Manager: Michael Frontzeck
League: Bundesliga

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Marco Rose (FSV Mainz 05) and Petr Gabriel (Arminia Bielefeld) have been suspended by the DFB disciplinary panel.


Mainz will have to make do without Rose in their next two matches against VfL Wolfsburg and Schalke 04, Bielefeld will be without Gabriel in their match against Hertha BSC Berlin.

Professional fouls

Rose had been sent off in Mainz' 1-1 draw at Leverkusen on Saturday for a professional foul on Stefan Kießling in the 90th minute.

Gabriel had been dismissed after bringing down Dortmund striker Ebi Smolarek in injury time.

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Bielefeld were only able to get a dra at home against Wolfsburg

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Arminia Bielefeld's injury list makes much shorter reading now.


Abdelaziz Ahanfouf, Ioannis Masmanidis and Marcio Borges returned to full training on Wednesday.

Moroccan Ahanfouf, a summer signing from MSV Duisburg, had been out with a fibula fracture since August 26th.

Borges fit for Saturday?

Masmanidis had been out with ligament damage in his knee, Borges was down with the flu.

However, only Borges is in the running for a return to the squad in Saturday's match at Werder Bremen.

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Bielefeld were trashed at the Weser.
They lost 3-0 to Bremen away from home

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Bielefeld head coach Thomas von Heesen tells bundesliga.de how he deals with stress and why he celebrates staying up like a championship.


In his playing career the midfielder played 368 (of his 378) Bundesliga matches for Hamburger SV, winning two German titles and one DFB Cup. He also won the European Cup in 1983.

Von Heesen joined Arminia Bielefeld in 1994. One year later, Arminia won promotion from the Regional League to the 2. Bundesliga. Another year later, Bielefeld sensationally were back in the Bundesliga.

100 Bundesliga goals

Von Heesen hung up his boots in 1997, after he had scored his 100th Bundesliga goal in the 1996-97 season. He became Arminia head coach on August 17th 1998 and led the relegated club back into the top flight.

Afterwards he worked as Bielefeld's sporting director for a long time. He once again was appointed head coach in 2005, his contract runs until 2007.

bundesliga.de: Thomas von Heesen, you're currently studying for your coaching qualifications in Cologne, and at the same time you're the trainer of a successful Bundesliga team. How stressful is it combining both?

Thomas von Heesen: "On the whole, I must say that it is compatible with the training schedule we have. We had arranged that we would only participate in coaching studies every Monday and Tuesday, and sometimes on a Wednesday. As you probably know, we normally have a game on a Saturday, which is followed by light training on Sundays. Mondays are usually training-free, and on Tuesday, the assistant trainer can hold team training. Things are working out fine."

bundesliga.de: How do you deal with the stress personally? After all, the stress a coach has to deal with is completely different to that of a player or manager.

Von Heesen: "I've been doing this for a while, in both positions: trainer and sporting director. So I don't let the stress get to me. I always try to look at the big picture, and tell myself that I won't be getting annoyed about the situation in ten years time! Maybe I'm just a different kind of person. I don't know why, but a drop in the quality of life doesn't seem to bother me as much as it would others. That wouldn't ever happen to me."

bundesliga.de: As a player, you won the Bundesliga twice and the 1983 European Cup with Hamburg SV. Later in your career, you helped Arminia Bielfeld go from the regional league to the Bundesliga. Which of these experiences means more to you? Or are they not comparable?

Von Heesen: "It's a question of timing. In my opinion, you cannot take it all in as a young player. In 1983 when Hamburg won the European Cup, it was pretty normal for the club. After all, we'd just won two Bundesliga championships. It was a bit like how it is with FC Bayern nowadays. You take it all in your stride. But later, you learn to value those experiences, because they were in a different dimension to that what you experience later in your career. That's why I rate those experiences differently to those I have with Arminia. Our promotion from the Regional League to the second division was one of the greatest moments ever for all those who were involved. It meant so much to the whole city and the club. We were finally back to where the club wanted to be. After that, there was a period of relegations and promotions, as anyone who knows anything about Arminia will tell you. We then wanted to establish the club in the Bundelsiga. That's why it's like winning the title every time we avoid relegation."

bundesliga.de: Is Thomas von Heesen an aristocratic name?

Von Heesen: "That was debated when I joined Hamburg. The local press just didn't know how to deal with the name, and they approached me about it. I then received a lot of letters, all full of explanations behind the name. But to be honest, I don't really know, and I don't really care either, because there's nothing to it. I'm not an aristocrat. It's just a normal name that originated a long time ago and has been passed down the generations."

bundesliga.de: What do you do to switch off in your spare time, or is that even possible?

Von Heesen: "At the moment, I'm studying! I just take my school books home with me. They're important right now, and they're helping me to further my education. I need them to help me graduate and earn my coaching qualifications. Otherwise I spend time with my little daughter. That also requires a lot of energy, in a positive sense, but it is a lot of fun. I have a lot of things that can distract me from my Bundesliga routine, but they cannot help distract me completely. I'm always ready for the next task or challenge, or the next team training, in which I'll coach the squad for something new to help us take on our next opponent. But it's a lot of fun, and it's my hobby!"

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Bielefeld drew 0-0 with Leverkusen at home

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Arminia Bielefeld had just overcome their injury worries, now the flu foils them.


Two players who had come through the first infection wave in November unscathed are ill in bed with a cold.

Abdelaziz Ahanfouf became ill on Tuesday, Artur Wichniarek followed on Wednesday. It is unknown when the two strikers will be able to return to the training ground.

Borges and Gabriel back

On the other hand, Marcio Borges and Petr Gabriel are back in training after overcoming knee problems.

Jörg Böhme trained despite slight adductor problems while Sibusiso Zuma took a regenerative break.

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Bielefeld got a draw at Hannover.
1-1 the final score

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Bielefeld lost at home 1-0 to Shalke

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bundesliga.de asked players and officials how they spend Christmas. For Bielefeld, Reinhard Saftig and Vatmir Vata answer the questions.


bundesliga.de: Where do you celebrate Christmas?

Reinhard Saftig: Together with my wife and my three children.
Fatmir Vata: Together with my wife, my children, my father and my brother. The whole family meets here in Bielefeld.

bundesliga.de: What was the one Christmas present that stood out so far for you?

Saftig: The pictures my children painted all by themselves.
Vata: I once got a golden collar with a star sign hanger.

bundesliga.de: And what was the one present that annoyed you?

Saftig: I never fumed at a present so far. The one who gives it always means well.
Vata: It's the same with me.

bundesliga.de: What do you wish your fans for Christmas?

Saftig: A lot of joy and a lot of presents!
Vata: Exactly! A lot of you, a lot of presents and that they keep enjoying our team.

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bundesliga.de takes a look at Bielefeld's South African international striker Sibusiso Zuma, who joined Arminia last season.


Sibusiso Zuma loves the town of Bielefeld. The South African can often be seen in the city, at least between May and October.

While enjoying himself during the final sunny days of autumn, Zuma is quick to explain that the sun plays a major part in his life: "I really hate cold weather, and Europe can very cold sometimes. It's really hard to go out and train and sometimes play games.”

Favourite player: Klinsmann

But it's the other way around for Arminia Bielefeld's fans. Most found it hard to live ten weeks without Zuma. They were relieved when he made his comeback against Energie Cottbus, and "Zuma the Puma” didn't disappoint, scoring in the 3-1 win.

Zuma plays in Germany, and logically, his idol is a German too!Zuma explains, "My favourite player was Klinsmann, because of his finishing. It was simple, but he could put the ball in the net. He played for 90 minutes, but you know that with his one chance he would put the ball in the net. "

Captain of the South African team

The 31 year-old has the knack of scoring goals that other players would love to net themselves, and that has made him immensely popular in Bielefeld. The captain of the South African national team is happy with Arminia, and Zuma believes that playing for a smaller club has its advantages.

"I love the challenge and the pressure to prove yourself as a good player! And I'm always looking for that challenge, because given the chance, I know that I am a good player!”

Already won two "titles"

Keeping hold of talent is hard for a club such as Arminia. The club has yo-yoed between the Bundesliga and second division, being promoted five times. This season the club can boast a strong squad and a young head coach, who has a simple philosophy when it comes to motivation.

Thomas von Heesen says "This is our third year in the Bundesliga. As I always say, for a club like this, staying up is equivalent to winning the title. Which means that every player has already won two titles. Together, we aim to avoid the drop and make it three titles.”

World Cup dream

Von Heesen can always rely on Zuma, his team's textbook professional. South Africa will host the 2010 World Cup, and "Zuma the Puma” aims to be part of it, even though he'll be 35 years old.

His fitness will be decisive in his quest to fulfil his ultimate dream. That's only possible through discipline. That's something Zuma has plenty of !

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Werder Bremen have gone all the way to the final of the Oldenburg Indoor Tournament.


Werder's run came to an end there as they were beaten 4-2 by tournament winners VfL Osnabrück.

The Regional League North side won all their matches, including a 4-0 victory over Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg in the semi-final.

Bielefeld beat Wolfsburg

Bremen had beaten Bundesliga rivals Arminia Bielefeld by the same scoreline.

Bielefeld won the match for third place against Wolfsburg 3-1.

Group A:
VfL Wolfsburg - Lech Posen 2-2
Lech Posen - Werder Bremen 0-3
Werder Bremen - VfL Wolfsburg 3-1

Table:
1. Werder Bremen 6-1 6
2. VfL Wolfsburg 3-5 1
3. Lech Posen 2-5 1

Group B:
VfL Osnabrück - VfB Oldenburg 1-0
VfB Oldenburg - Arminia Bielefeld 0-3
Arminia Bielefeld - VfL Osnabrück 0-2

Table:
1. VfL Osnabrück 3-0 6
2. Arminia Bielefeld 3-2 3
3. VfB Oldenburg 0-4 0

Semi-finals:
Werder Bremen - Arminia Bielefeld 4-0
VfL Osnabrück - VfL Wolfsburg 4-0

Match for third place:
Arminia Bielefeld - VfL Wolfsburg 3-1

Final:
Werder Bremen - VfL Osnabrück 2-4

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Bundesliga side Arminia Bielefeld and 2. Bundesliga side SC Paderborn have drawn a friendly in Andalusia. Arminia's keeper was man of the match.


The match ended in a goalless draw, with the 2. Bundesliga side having more clear-cut chances than Thomas von Heesen's Bundesliga outfit.

Hain with a great performance

But the SCP strikers simply couldn't get the ball past Arminia keeper Mathias Hain.

Roel Brouwers had a decent opportunity in the first half.

Thomas Bröker and Timo Röttger were denied in one-on-one situations after the break.