Survivor-founded Makkabi Berlin soccer club makes historic German Cup debut

First-ever Jewish team to appear in the tourney, which was started under the Nazis in 1935, overpowered 6-0 by Bundesliga club Wolfsburg

BERLIN, Germany (AP) — Makkabi Berlin became the first Jewish soccer team to compete in the German Cup when it was beaten 6-0 by Wolfsburg on Sunday.

Makkabi, which was founded by Holocaust survivors in 1970, had already made history just by qualifying for the 64-team German Cup, becoming the first Jewish soccer club ever to take part in the tournament.

The fifth-tier team’s hopes of a historic upset were swiftly swatted away though by a pair of goals from the visitors’ Lukas Nmecha and Jonas Wind in the opening minutes.

Makkabi did not fold against the overpowering Bundesliga team, backed by car manufacturer Volkswagen, but it was left with a goose egg after Kanto Fitiavana Voahariniaina’s apparent goal was ruled out for offsides.

Wolfsburg put the result beyond doubt early in the second half and would have scored more but for Makkabi goalkeeper Jack Krause, who earned the home fans’ biggest cheers. Tiago Tomas had two goals off the bench for Wolfsburg, which won the cup in 2015.

Makkabi, which earned a promotion to the fifth tier by winning the Berlin league last season, qualified for this year’s German Cup by winning the Berlin Cup in June for the first time. When the annual competition was started under the Nazis in 1935, Jews were not allowed to take part.

Kuba #Kaminski narazie bez błysku w pierwszej połowie pucharowego meczu #Wolfsburg z #Makkabi Berlin w pierwszej rundzie #PucharNiemiec. Wilki prowadzą 2:0 po golach Nmechy (8') i Winda (9').#Kamiński #Wolfsburg #Makkabi #DFBPokal #Berlin #Mommsenstadion #nasizagranica #kadra pic.twitter.com/ehH9Zx27Vb

— Mateusz Micuda (@eMATe1899) August 13, 2023

“The game is a yearning, that there shouldn’t be anything historic about it,” Central Council of Jews in Germany leader Josef Schuster said before the game. “For 90 minutes (or more), it’s all about who wins in a fair, sporting competition – nothing more. These moments give a magic that I would wish for more often in our everyday society.”

Elsewhere, Augsburg became the third top-division team to be eliminated in the first round after losing 2-0 to third-division Unterhaching. Augsburg’s fellow Bundesliga clubs Werder Bremen and Bochum lost their games the day before.

The Makkabi Berlin team pose for a group photo before its German Cup first-round game against visiting Wolfsburg, in Berlin, Sunday, Aug. 13, 2023. Makkabi, which was founded by Holocaust survivors in 1970, had already made history just by qualifying for the 64-team German Cup – by winning the Berlin Cup for the first time – to become the first Jewish club to take part since the tournament was started under the Nazis in 1935. (AP Photo/Ciaran Fahey)

Last season’s runner-up Eintracht Frankfurt beat Lokomotive Leipzig 7-0 in a game that was repeatedly interrupted by fans throwing pyrotechnics and other objects, leading the referee to take the teams off briefly.

Fifth-division Oberachern held top-tier Freiburg at bay for an hour before conceding the first goal in what finished a 2-0 win for Freiburg. Heidenheim beat Rostocker FC 8-0.