BORUSSIA DORTMUND: A HISTORY IN BLACK AND YELLOW

by Terry Duffelen

From their humble beginnings to the present day, Die Schwarzgelben have always been at the forefront of German football. This book details their journey and how they became the key destination for young talent in the world game. The triumphs are celebrated here as we tell the history of one of the most celebrated clubs in Europe. Names you know, origin stories you don’t, this book has them all. This is Borussia Dortmund, a history in black and yellow.

200 pages, Paperback

Published November 22, 2021

Reviews

[Zachary Kleiner · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chock full of interesting history about the club I’ve grown to love, but lacking the structure and editing I would have expected for a book of this caliber. It was very difficult to follow at times and seemed to bounce around to topics and ideas without guiding the reading properly. Felt as if names and details were thrown at you with reckless abandon.

Echte Liebe.

[Rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

Terry Duffelen’s book has come hot on the heels of another history of the storied German football club by Uli Hesse but such is the richness of the subject matter, there’s ample room for a different take. I liked the way Duffelen (an experienced creator of online content stretching well beyond the Bundesliga and including the excellent Sound of Football podcast) concentrates on some key themes in the volume – rivalries with Schalke 04 and Bayern Munich are entertainingly described but the author is right to point out the overblown nature of the Der Klassiker label to describe the latter.

The book is big on personalities – from Timo Konietzka to Lars Ricken; from Andreas Möller to Matthias Sammer – and Duffelen never loses sight of the political, social and cultural context of a club that is one competing manifestation of football in the mighty Ruhr region. Controversies are well described – the financial meltdown of the club in the 2000s is expertly picked apart while renaissance under the long forgotten and obscure Jürgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel heralds the period when the author became one of the leading commentators of German football in English.

The book’s also wittily and engagingly written with many a nugget that I did not know. When I started off as a fan of soccer in the 1970s, Dortmund weren’t doing that well – and one of my first memories was mention of their 12-0 defeat to Borussia Mönchengladbach in Shoot! magazine. That they have emerged as A European super club, constantly able to reinvent themselves and to discover new talent is testimony to their influence and drive.

[F · Rating 3 out of 5]

It took me a while to get into it, some writing/structural aspects took me aback for the first chapters but once I got used to it it was a delight. I've learned a lot and I'm happy to have read it! It offers a historical/biographical account of the club from its origins to present times (the postscript deals with the Pokal win, for orientation).

[David Macnamara · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent read telling the story of a great club.