The Gauliga Mitte was the highest football league in the Prussian province of Saxony and the German states of Thuringia and Anhalt from 1933 to 1945, all located in the center (German:Mitte) of Germany. Shortly after the formation of the league, the Nazis reorganised the administrative regions in Germany, and the Gaue Thuringia, Magdeburg-Anhalt and Halle-Merseburg replaced the states and Prussian province.

Overview The league was introduced by the Nazi Sports Office in 1933, after the Nazi takeover of power in Germany. It replaced the Bezirksligas and Oberligas as the highest level of play in German football competitions.

Until the formation of the Gauliga, the region was covered by a number of local leagues and, together with clubs from state of Saxony, they played out a Central German championship (German: Mittel-Deutsche Meisterschaft).

In its first season, the league had ten clubs, playing each other once at home and once away. The league champion then qualified for the German championship. The bottom two teams were relegated. The league operated on the same modus until the outbreak of World War II in 1939.

Due to the effects of the war, the 1939–40 and 1940–41 seasons were played with only eight clubs. In 1941, the league returned to a ten-club strength, which it retained until 1944.

The imminent collapse of Nazi Germany in 1945 gravely affected all Gauligas and football in the region was split into six regional groups. However, none of them played more than a few games before the arrival of the Red Army, and the end of the war ended all competitions.

Aftermath With the end of the Nazi era, the Gauligas ceased to exist and the region found itself in the Soviet occupation zone. The DDR-Oberliga was formed in the following years as the highest level of play in the new country of East Germany and the region became part of the East German football league system.

Virtually all football clubs in the region were dissolved and replaced with clubs controlled by the new communist government. Of those, some readopted the pre-1945 names after the German reunification in 1990.

Founding members of the league The ten founding members and their league positions in the 1932–33 season were: FC Wacker Halle, champion Saale division SV 08 Steinach, champion Südthüringen division VfL Bitterfeld, champion Mulde division SpVgg Erfurt SV Victoria 96 Magdeburg SC 95 Erfurt, champion Nordthüringen division 1. SV Jena 03, champion Ostthüringen division SV Merseburg 1899 Fortuna Magdeburg, champion Elbe division SC Preußen Magdeburg

Winners and runners-up of the Gauliga Mitte The winners and runners-up of the league: SeasonWinnerRunner-Up1933-34FC Wacker HalleSV 08 Steinach1934-351. SV Jena 03FC Wacker Halle1935-361. SV Jena 03 Cricket Viktoria Magdeburg1936-37SV Dessau 05FC Thüringen Weida1937-38SV Dessau 05 Cricket Viktoria Magdeburg1938-39SV Dessau 05 1. SV Jena 031939-401. SV Jena 03 SV Dessau 051940-411. SV Jena 03 SV Dessau 051941-42SV Dessau 05 1. SV Jena 031942-43SV Dessau 05 SpVgg Erfurt1943-44SV Dessau 05 SpVgg Erfurt

Placings in the Gauliga Mitte 1933-44 The complete list of all clubs participating in the league: Club 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 FC Wacker Halle 1 2 7 9 3 3 8 SV 08 Steinach 2 3 9 3 VfL Bitterfeld 3 9 SpVgg Erfurt 4 8 5 7 6 9 2 3 SV Victoria 96 Magdeburg 5 6 8 10 SC 95 Erfurt 6 7 10 10 5 8 4 1. SV Jena 7 1 1 3 4 2 1 1 2 5 5 SV 99 Merseburg 8 10 8 3 7 7 Fortuna Magdeburg 9 10 Preußen Magdeburg 10 Cricket Viktoria Magdeburg 4 2 5 2 5 5 4 10 Sportfreunde Halle 5 3 4 9 8 4 7 1. FC Lauscha 4 6 8 8 SV Dessau 05 6 1 1 1 2 2 1 1 1 FC Thüringen Weida 2 7 4 3 3 9 VfL 96 Halle 5 6 6 6 4 7 9 1. SV Gera 4 7 8 9 SpVgg Zeitz 5 6 10 SC Apolda 8 SV 98 Dessau 7 6 6 Reichsbahn/VfL Merseburg 2 Preußen Burg 10

References

Sources Die deutschen Gauligen 1933-45 - Heft 1-3 Tables of the Gauligas 1933–45, publisher: DSFS Kicker Almanach, The yearbook on German football from Bundesliga to Oberliga, since 1937, published by the Kicker Sports Magazine

External links The Gauligas Das Deutsche Fussball Archiv Germany - Championships 1902-1945 at RSSSF.com