Cottbus Shine Bright in Bleak East German Soccer Landscape

The former German Democratic Republic (GDR) has spawned some of Germany's best players, including stars Michael Ballack, Bernd Schneider and Tim Borowski.

But, unfortunately, that's where the good news ends. All the aforementioned players have left the region and headed west and have been followed by a steady stream of further soccer talent over the years.

The talent drain has also affected clubs in the region -- so much so that in the 2005/2006 season the Bundesliga was without a team from the former East for the first time since reunification.

Cottbus brings hope to old East

But now, the region's slipping soccer fortunes have received a boost with the promotion of Energie Cottbus to the top division for the 2006/07 season.

Cottbus finished third in the second division last season to win promotion along with VfL Bochum and Alemannia Aachen and are now the only team from the former GDR in the Bundesliga.

Founded by coal miners in 1966, Cottbus have budgeted close to 20 million euros ($25.6 million) to beat the drain, and Polish international Mariusz Kukielka and China international Shao Jiayi are two major arrivals.

Nevertheless, Petrik Sander, regarded as one of the most promising managers in Germany, admits his team are favorites for an immediate return to the second division.

Cottbus, cup runners-up in 1997, may not be a glamour name in German soccer but they have experience of the top-flight, spending three consecutive seasons in the Bundesliga from 2000 to 2003.

On April 6, 2001, the club made Bundesliga history when they became the first club to field 11 foreigners, in a 0-0 league draw with VfL Wolfsburg.

Cottbus kick off their campaign against Borussia Mönchengladbach on Saturday carrying the hopes of eastern Germany on their shoulders.

Bleak future

Despite Cottbus' leap to the country's top league, there's little denying that the defunct East Germany's soccer future is in bad shape.

Clubs like Dynamo Dresden, once a proud and prominent team in the GDR and which later played in the Bundesliga, have since crashed out of the professional game.

Once renowned for its enviable network of rigorous youth training programs and soccer academies, eastern Germany failed to maintain its high soccer standards after reunification in 1990. The whole system fell into decay as funding dried up, sponsors looked elsewhere, infrastructure languished and young players left.

Experts point out that the woes plaguing eastern German soccer mirror the region's financial problems.

"Soccer in the former East is not advancing because of the economic situation," Jürgen Sparwasser, a GDR soccer legend who is working on setting up a new soccer training school in eastern Germany close to Potsdam, told news agency Reuters recently.

"It is hard to find sponsors and, though there are still good youth training facilities, they can't afford to keep their talent."