Berliner FC Dynamo

Berliner Fussball Club Dynamo e. V., commonly abbreviated to BFC Dynamo (German pronunciation: [beːʔɛfˌt͡seː dyˈnaːmo] ^ⓘ) or BFC (German pronunciation: [beːʔɛfˈt͡seː] ^ⓘ), alternatively sometimes called Dynamo Berlin, is a German football club based in the locality of Alt-Hohenschönhausen of the borough of Lichtenberg of Berlin. The team competes in the Regionalliga Nordost, the fourth tier of German football.

BFC Dynamo was founded in East Germany in 1966 from the football department of sports club SC Dynamo Berlin. BFC Dynamo established itself as a top-team in the DDR-Oberliga in the mid-1970s. Supported by extensive youth work, BFC Dynamo eventually became one of the most successful clubs in East German football. BFC Dynamo is the record champion in East Germany, with ten consecutive league championships from 1979 through 1988, under coach Jürgen Bogs. In 1989, the team became the first and only winner of the DFV-Supercup.

BFC Dynamo renamed itself to FC Berlin during Die Wende. One of the largest hooligan scenes in Germany was formed around FC Berlin. Young FC Berlin-supporter Mike Polley was killed by German police during football riots in Leipzig in 1990. FC Berlin just narrowly failed to qualify for the 2. Bundesliga in 1991. The club lost the equivalent of two complete teams in players to other clubs in the first one or two years after the fall of the Berlin Wall. FC Berlin struggled in re-unified Germany and never progressed beyond the third tier of German football. The club took back its old name Berliner FC Dynamo in 1999.

BFC Dynamo suffered a financial crisis in 2001 and eventually became insolvent. The club's supporters played an important part in saving the club from bankruptcy. The insolvency proceedings were brought to a positive conclustion in 2004 and the club consolidated in the NOFV-Oberliga Nord. After an undefeated season in the NOFV-Oberliga Nord under coach Volkan Uluc, the team finally won promotion to Regionalliga Nordost in 2014.

BFC Dynamo has since established itself firmly in the Regionaliga Nordost. In 2022, the team won its first Regionalliga title, under coach Christian Benbennek. BFC Dynamo has become one of the most successful teams in the Berlin Cup in recent years. The team has won six Berlin Cup titles since 2013. BFC Dynamo saw the biggest increase in membership of any club in Berlin in 2021, apart from Hertha BSC and 1. FC Union Berlin. By 2023, the club had finally managed to win back the rights to its previously lost traditional crest. During the 2023-24 season, BFC Dynamo reported its highest attendance figures since 1990.

BFC Dynamo plays its home matches at the Stadion im Sportforum. The club enjoys a traditional cross-city rivalry with 1. FC Union Berlin. The rivalry with Union Berlin is part of the Berlin derby. BFC Dynamo has won recognition for its youth work. Since 2003, the club also operates an award-winning day care project for local children. The club is based in the Sportforum Hohenschönhausen. The sports complex is the location of the club offices, the clubhouse and the youth teams.

BFC Dynamo started as a football department of sports club SC Dynamo Berlin. SC Dynamo Berlin was founded on 1 October 1954 as one of the new elite sports clubs in East Germany. The sports club was affiliated to sports association SV Dynamo.

The new sports club SC Dynamo Berlin became a center of excellence (German: Leistungsschwerpunkte) of sports association SV Dynamo. In order to establish a competitive side in Berlin, the team of SG Dynamo Dresden and its place in the DDR-Oberliga was transferred to the new sports club SC Dynamo Berlin. The relocation was designed to give the capital a team that could rival teams from West Berlin, such as Hertha BSC, which were still popular in East Berlin. Among the players delegated from SG Dynamo Dresden were Johannes Matzen, Herbert Schoen and Günter Schröter. The team played its first match as SC Dynamo Berlin on 21 November 1954 against BSG Rotation Babelsberg in the 1954-55 DDR-Oberliga.