SV Elversberg, a newly promoted club, shocked the German football faithful on Saturday following a 3-2 victory over Bayer Leverkusen at the Ursapharm-Arena in Elversberg.
The little-known football club from south-west Germany, close to the border of France, enjoyed a moment of history by going up 3-0 against one of the Bundesliga’s strongest teams in their first game before Bayer Leverkusen were able to return two goals to end the game 3-2.
Their debut performance was one that will live long in the memory as the side that, just a few years ago, was playing in the country’s regional leagues, defeated Bayer Leverkusen, who won the league two years ago.
“We did it step by step, and it didn’t feel like a fairy tale for the people here because they are so strong in their decision-making and very clear in how they want to play, and we want to act as a club,” Josef Welzmuller, Elversberg’s technical director, said.
According to him, the team’s progress to the German top-flight league has been deliberate. “It might sound like the rise has been a rush, but at every stage the floor was solid before the next one was built.”
