The Billy Goats a.k.a DieGeißböcke formed in 1984 after a merger of the clubs KölnerBallspiel-Club 1901 and SpVgg Sülz 07.The club’s nickname Die Geißböcke(The Billy Goats) refers to the club’s mascot, a male goat named Hennes after the veteran FC player and (later) manager Hennes Weisweiler. The first Hennes was donated by a circus entrepreneur as a Cologne carnival joke. The current mascot is Hennes VIII, and has been since 24 July 2006. Another nickname for the club, more common locally due to its ambiguity, is FC (often written as Effzeh), a common German abbreviation for football clubs.

1. FC Köln have been a club who have only been successful in the past. In 1962, 1964 and 1978 the club has managed to win the Bundesliga and in 1986 they lost a Uefa Cup Final against Real Madrid. 1. FC Köln have had their 21^stcentury ups and downs due to the mixed performances the club recently has had. They have been relegating from the 1. Bundesliga to the 2.Bundesliga and promoting the other way around quite a few times. Their last relegation to the 2. Bundesliga was last season. So I’ve set out to bring this glorious club back to the top of German football. Once we achieve that milestone European and Global domination are going to be our new objectives.

Looking into the future

The club is currently shaken up after the relegation to the 2. Bundesliga and with myself as the new manager a shift in direction will take place. Our biggest focus for the upcoming season is making sure we secure promotion to the 1. Bundesliga. To be really honest with you guys, i don’t care how we do it as long as we do it. Being in the 1. Bundesliga is a must for 1. FC Köln from now on and getting relegated should no longer be an option. Having the right mentality in all layers of the club is going to be a key factor if i want to bring success to this club.

I quickly realised that if i wanted to achieve a this “right” mentality at Die Geißböcke i really needed help from a very experienced person. Thank god quite a few of them are around in the world of football. All i had to do was find one we could actually pay and who was willing to help me with my little ‘Blitzkrieg am Rhein’ project in Cologne. And boy oh boy did i find myself the right person for this job! For now i will not go into who this person is, i will reveal him in a future post.

Five-year plan

In order to secure growth in all areas of this club a solid plan needs to be created. With short-term and long-term goals i want to steer 1. FC Köln to the European top within five years. My ambition knows no limits and i expect a lot from everybody at the club very quickly. Due to the fact that Football Manager and it’s updates can throw you a curveball at anytime during your savegame i will keep my goals simple but clear.

Short-term goals:

• Get promoted to 1. Bundesliga
• Create a first team squad worthy of 1. Bundesliga football
• Invest in (important) current players (keeping them happy at the club)
• Invest in decent members of staff

Long-term goals:

• Invest in the club’s facilities
• Create financial growth via good results
• Create a solid transfer policy (increase income by selling and buying players for the right price)
  
• Increase the club’s reputation
• Fight for the German title (within five seasons)
• Secure European football (within five seasons)
• Develop youth players
  

In my next post i will unfold my transfer strategy and i will guide you through the next steps that i have taken at 1. FC Köln. For now i want to thank everybody for reading this post, i can only hope you’ve enjoyed it. ‘Till next time …