Two weeks before the start of the Regionalliga Nordost, the women’s team of 1. FC Union Berlin will play their penultimate pre-season friendly on Sunday, 6 August 2023, when they host former German and European champions, 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam to Dörpfeldstraße. Kick off at the Fritz-Lesch Sportplatz is at 14:00. Admission is free.

The opponents

When one usually thinks of 1. FFC Turbine Potsdam it is usually in connection to their many championship titles, their cup victories and Champions League successes. However, sadly, those glorious times seem to be over. Last year, the Brandenburg team were relegated from the Bundesliga for the first time, finishing bottom of the table, and will play in the 2. Liga next season after an absence of 29 years.

It was only about a year ago, the summer of 2022, that Turbine Potsdam reached the DFB Pokal final. However, this was followed by a disastrous season in which the club were confirmed as relegated early on and made a total of three coaching changes.

In March, an old acquaintance from the Union family took over the reins in the shape of Marco Gebhard. Union’s former captain, who played for the club from 2007 to 2010, became head coach in Potsdam in the spring. But although the 50-year-old managed to pick up seven points from the last eleven games - Turbine had previously only collected two points from the first eleven it wasn’t to be enough for survival. Now Gebhardt is staying on for the new challenge of the 2. Liga.

It won’t be easy. 16 players left the club in the summer, while the club have introduced six new players so far.

So far, the Potsdam team, who also kick off the regular season in a fortnight, have played a single match in their pre-season, losing 4-1 to league rivals Carl Zeiss Jena last Sunday.

Union want to build on winter successes

The teams last faced each other in six months ago, in a friendly in Potsdam during the 2023 winter break. Union won that encounter 1-0 thanks to a dream goal from Dina Orschmann, who played for Turbine herself from 2019 to 2022.

Orschmann is not the only Unioner who used to lace her boots up in Potsdam. Jennifer Zietz, Union’s director of girls' and women's football, was part of the club's most successful period from 1999 to 2015 and is Potsdam's record appearance-maker with 267 games.