Suche
Mein Konto
Rapid Vienna: Crisis in the squad – The Austrian pot is in danger!
SK Rapid Wien faces challenges in the 2025 Bundesliga as the proportion of Legionnaires increases and the Austrian pot becomes more important.
Rapid Vienna: Crisis in the squad – The Austrian pot is in danger!
SK Rapid Vienna is in a challenging development phase. The squad is not strong enough for sales, meaning the club has difficulty generating consistent income. What is particularly noticeable is that Rapid participates in the Austrian pot would be poorly positioned. The proportion of Legionnaires' minutes in the Bundesliga has more than doubled compared to the previous season 2023/24 - from around 20 to over 40 percent.
At the same time, the gap to WSG Tirol, which takes part in the Austrian pot, remains small. Rapid's coaching staff, consisting of Robert Klauß and Stefan Kulovits, has gained more flexibility by leaving the Austrian team. Instead of having to nominate a maximum of six legionnaires per match day, they have a free hand in putting together the squad. Rapid used a maximum of six legionnaires in 56 percent of the games; an average of 6.06 legionnaires were used per game.
The focus on local talent
In the midst of these developments, however, Rapid is proving to be a model club when it comes to supporting local players. A proud 79.5 percent of the minutes played in the ADMIRAL Bundesliga Austrian players accounted for 2023/24. The Rapid team leads the statistics, while Altach (79.4%) and Blau-Weiß Linz (78.4%) follow closely. In contrast, some clubs such as Red Bull Salzburg (17.3%) and Sturm Graz (28.9%) did not meet the criteria for the Austrian pot.
In order to qualify for the Austrian pot, at least twelve players with Austrian citizenship or those who were registered in Austria before the age of 18 must be included in the match report. This rule ensures that clubs that do not meet the minimum requirements cannot receive funding from the Austrian pot. An interesting development is that minutes played by U22 players are counted four times, which also plays into Rapid's advantage.
A look beyond the borders
While Rapid is increasingly relying on local talent, it is noteworthy that the number of Austrian football legionnaires abroad is constantly increasing. Many players can be found in the surrounding leagues, such as Germany, Croatia and Switzerland, but also in more distant countries such as Australia, Iran or Canada. These developments could be important for the future of Rapid and Austrian football.
Some of the most famous Austrian footballers in the Professional leagues worldwide include David Alaba, who plays for Real Madrid, and Sasa Kalajdzic in the Premier League for Wolverhampton. There are also numerous Austrian talents represented in the Bundesliga, which attract the attention of foreign scouts.
In summary, SK Rapid Wien is in a critical transition phase that brings with it both challenges and opportunities. The emphasis on local talent could strengthen the club in the long term, even if the current situation is not easy.