PressSplit
The new Lüdenscheider football club sets no limits. © Schäfer, Lars
The new Lüdenscheider Football Club (LFC) sets no limits. “We believe in the power of sport and solidarity in our city. “Together we can achieve great things,” is a central message from the LFC.
Before the sun fought its way over the north of the mountain town, the Dickenberg sports field was shrouded in thick fog on Sunday morning. This slightly mystical scenery seemed somehow appropriate, almost a bit kitschy, because not far from the major construction site for the new Rahmede viaduct, on this first weekend in November, the fog was supposed to clear a little with regard to a newly founded sports club. A club that wants to achieve great things in and for the city and “make Lüdenscheid shine”. The Lüdenscheider Football Club, or LFC for short, and its founders, according to their own statements, set no limits when it comes to visions and ambitions. “We believe in the power of sport and solidarity in our city. “Together we can achieve great things,” is a central message from the LFC.
Video gets people talking
Flashback: It was mid-September when those in charge of this new Lüdenscheid football club published a video on social networks that, in the days and weeks that followed, became a topic of conversation not only on the city’s sports fields and locker rooms, but in almost the entire Lüdenscheid football district. Various people from Lüdenscheid, also well-known from the local football scene (including top league footballer Abdullah El Youbari and long-time RWL keeper Jonas Brackmann) could be seen in this video. The short, professionally edited statements were about, among other things, Lüdenscheid as a home, about football, but also about keywords such as standstill, cohesion, passion and emotions, but above all it was about visions and “thinking big”. , as a metaphor the view went as far as Europe. A video that undoubtedly aroused curiosity, but perhaps also raised question marks. The timing of the publication shortly before the city festival, at which the LFC presented itself at a stand, was by no means a coincidence, but rather a deliberate choice. Although the LFC is not yet officially a registered club and the public relations work is (still) defensive, it has been a topic of conversation and whispers on the sports fields and locker rooms in this city since this video. What is growing there?
Something tangible will be presented in January
The LFC founders want to present something tangible to the public when the club is officially registered in the club register. There should be a press conference in January at the latest and the results will be presented. On Sunday, three important LFC people, Malte Willms, Jamy Sukup and Denis Graupner, emerged from the previous fog. Malte Willms, who will head the “social affairs” department at the LFC and is acting as coach of the C league team TuRa Eggenscheid this season, is part of the executive board. Jamy Sukup will be responsible for PR at the LFC, i.e. public relations, social media and sponsorship. Denis Graupner is responsible for the sports department. The 34-year-old is known in the Lüdenscheid football scene as chairman of A-League newcomer Polonia. Polonia Lüdenscheid will also be the LFC’s merger partner. The plan is for the LFC to take Polonia’s A league starting position with its first team in the 2025/26 season, meaning that it does not have to start in the lowest division (district league C). It should be mentioned at this point that Polonia is threatened with relegation in the district upper house. “It is very important to me that every Polonia player and every Polonia member has the opportunity to become part of the LFC,” emphasizes Graupner. The LFC venue will be the Dickenberg sports field, at least for the first season. There should be at least a first men’s team in the first LFC season, but in the medium term women’s and youth football should also be offered at the new LFC.
The LFC is not an “ego number”
“Everything can be possible here. We don’t want to set any limits for ourselves,” says Jamy Sukup. The people who founded the LFC “all love football and the city of Lüdenscheid,” emphasizes Malte Willms. The vision: There should be a “modern, sustainable club life” at the LFC that brings people together and rekindles enthusiasm for the sport – in the current 2024/25 season the mountain town is no longer represented in inter-district senior football. “We want to get the best out of the city,” says Sukup, who, like Willms and Graupner, emphasizes the “we feeling” several times on this first weekend in November. The LFC is not an “ego number”, it is said in unison that “everyone is welcome”. It is time to think big in Lüdenscheid and yes, to dream together.
The logo of the Lüdenscheider football club. © Schäfer, Lars
LFC’s core business is supposed to be football, but they also want to “establish a brand” with the club in Lüdenscheid and also organize events in and for the city. “We want to do our part to ensure that people stay in Lüdenscheid. There are a lot of people in this city who want to make a difference,” explains Jamy Sukup. This LFC should be locally rooted, future-oriented and sustainably successful at the same time. There are therefore no limits set in relation to the league.
In the past few weeks and months, some doors have opened that one did not necessarily expect to open. Of course, this is also about sponsors and partners, but not only. The buzzword “networking” was also mentioned on Sunday, as was being together and creating a feeling of togetherness. The LFC wants to connect people, bring joy and be open to everyone. It will be exciting to see the LFC present something tangible at the beginning of the new year. And the fog finally clears.
