The Grail Files
The file on this jersey is still being written
This is the canonical catalog record for the borussia dortmund 1996-97 home jersey. Its grail file, the story of the season it lived through, lands here soon.
10Flat-lay 4:5
On the record
TeamBorussia Dortmund
Season1996-97
Kit typeHome
ManufacturerNike
SponsorDie Continentale
02The season it lived through
Borussia Dortmund 1996-97
Highlights from the season this shirt belongs to, whichever kit was worn on the day.
League 3rdThird PlaceUEFA Champions League Winners
Sammer's Ballon d'Or Season
Dortmund entered 1996-97 as back-to-back Bundesliga champions, led by captain and sweeper Matthias Sammer, who had just been named Ballon d'Or winner in December 1996 on the strength of that title and Germany's Euro 96 triumph. Ottmar Hitzfeld's side could not land a third straight league crown, finishing third on 63 points, eight behind champions Bayern Munich (71) and also trailing Bayer Leverkusen (69).
The Wattenscheid Upset
The domestic cup ended almost as soon as it began: second-division SG Wattenscheid 09 eliminated Dortmund from the DFB-Pokal 4-3 after extra time in August 1996, though the club had opened the season by beating Kaiserslautern on penalties to win the DFB-Supercup.
The Road to Munich
Europe told the real story of the season. Dortmund advanced from their Champions League group in second place, beat Auxerre home and away in the quarterfinals, then shut down Manchester United 2-0 on aggregate in the semifinals, a tie built on tight marking rather than firepower. For the final against defending champions Juventus in Munich on 28 May 1997, Hitzfeld made the ruthless call to drop Wolfgang Feiersinger, hero of the semifinal, in favor of more attacking options.
Ricken's Sixteen-Second Winner
It worked. Karl-Heinz Riedle scored twice in the first half, Alessandro Del Piero pulled one back for Juventus, and 20-year-old substitute Lars Ricken, on the pitch for sixteen seconds, chipped Angelo Peruzzi from 25 yards to seal a 3-1 win in front of 59,000 fans. It was Dortmund's first European Cup and remains their only Champions League title to date. Stephane Chapuisat led the club with 16 goals across all competitions, and a defense built around Sammer and Jurgen Kohler, behind goalkeeper Stefan Klos, carried the team through a season where continental glory outweighed domestic disappointment.
Memorable matches
- Borussia Dortmund 3-1 Juventussource
Riedle headed in twice (29', 34') before Del Piero reduced the deficit; substitute Ricken scored 16 seconds after coming on to make it 3-1 and deny Juventus back-to-back European Cups. Paul Lambert's close marking neutralized Zinedine Zidane throughout.
- Borussia Dortmund 1-0 Manchester Unitedsource
Dortmund edged United at home to take first-leg control of the tie against the English Premier League champions.
- Manchester United 0-1 Borussia Dortmundsource
Dortmund won at Old Trafford to complete a 2-0 aggregate victory and reach their first Champions League final, eliminating a Manchester United side that included Eric Cantona.
Star players
- Matthias Sammersource
Club captain and libero, Sammer won the 1996 Ballon d'Or, the first defender to receive the award since Franz Beckenbauer in 1976. He lifted the Champions League trophy as captain in Munich after Dortmund's victory over Juventus.
- Karl-Heinz Riedlesource
Striker who scored both of Dortmund's first two goals in the Champions League final with headers in the 29th and 34th minutes, earning man-of-the-match honors against defending champions Juventus.
- Lars Rickensource
Twenty-year-old Dortmund academy product who scored the clinching third goal just 16 seconds after being introduced as a substitute in the Champions League final, the fastest goal by a substitute in a Champions League final at the time.
- Jurgen Kohlersource
Center-back who appeared in 40 matches across all competitions and marshaled the defense throughout the Champions League run. Named German Footballer of the Year for 1997 following Dortmund's triumph.
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