SC Freiburg, full name Sport-Club Freiburg e.V, was founded on May 30th, 1904 as FC Schwalbe Freiburg. Initially a gymnastics club, the football department was not completely separated until 1912. The club's official website provides an extensive history of its formation.
In their early years, the team oscillated between divisions but found relative success by reaching the Bezirkliga Baden in the late 1920s and early 1930s. However, World War II brought challenges for every German football club with regular play suspended and many players drafted into military service.
Post-war era saw SCF struggling to gain sustainable momentum due to financial difficulties and inconsistent performances. But things finally began to shift positively when they gained promotion to Bundesliga for the first time in1981 under manager Jupp Zlatko’s leadership.