Energie Cottbus

Energie Cottbus trace their roots to SC Cottbus, formed in 1963 in what was then East Germany, which took in the team of SC Aktivist Brieske-Senftenberg, just relegated from the DDR-Oberliga. The football section became BSG Energie Cottbus on 31 January 1966 and took the name FC Energie Cottbus on 1 July 1990. The club have worn red and white since their founding. Home is the stadium opened in 1930 and long known as the Stadion der Freundschaft, renamed LEAG Energie Stadion in December 2023.

Cottbus first reached the DDR-Oberliga in 1973. After reunification their rise came under coach Eduard Geyer: in 1997 they reached the DFB-Pokal final as a Regionalliga club, losing 2-0 to VfB Stuttgart, and won promotion to the 2. Bundesliga. They reached the Bundesliga in 2000 and played six top-flight seasons in two spells, the second ending with a play-off defeat to Nurnberg in 2009. A 1-0 win at Jahn Regensburg in May 2026 sealed a return to the 2. Bundesliga after 12 years away.