SGS Essen had a disastrous start to the season in the Women’s Bundesliga. However, the traditional club has recovered by the end of the year.

Even the 1-4 defeat against Eintracht Frankfurt at the end of the year is unlikely to have dampened the burgeoning hope at SGS Essen too much. At the start of the season in the Women’s Bundesliga, it didn’t look as if the traditional club would have any chance of staying up this season. They had just two points to their name after the first ten games. The low point was undoubtedly the 8-0 defeat against VfL Wolfsburg. The club struggled after the departure of coach Markus Högner, who moved to Borussia Dortmund. The solution of bringing in Robert Augustin as coach was not a successful one.

However, under interim coach Jessica Wissmann, SGS got back on track. Eight points in four games and a jump out of the relegation zone were the reward. The Essen women even kept three clean sheets.

SGS is gaining new momentum for the rest of the season, which begins on January 25, 2026, with an away game at Hamburger SV. Wissmann is stepping back into the second row. Heleen Jaques is taking over the top job on the bench. The 37-year-old Belgian now wants to build on the work of her former assistant coach. “The short-term goal is, of course, to stay in the league,” she explained during her presentation in mid-December. She still has twelve games to do so. SGS Essen is also still in the DFB Cup. However, the quarterfinal match against Werder Bremen in March is likely to play only a minor role. Only the day-to-day league action counts – and that is certainly challenge enough for the Essen women.

And yet Wissemann has once again raised hopes. Accordingly, Florian Zeutschler, managing director of SGS, was convinced that Jaques, Wissmann, and the entire Essen team “will continue the positive trend of recent weeks.”