Modest Heidenheim celebrates Bundesliga promotion after remarkable climb

By CIARÁN FAHEY
AP Sports Writer

BERLIN (AP) — Little-known Heidenheim has seemingly come out of nowhere to reach the Bundesliga. It’s a remarkable success for a town of just 50,000 inhabitants in the south of Germany. Two injury-time goals propelled Frank Schmidt’s team to a dramatic promotion as second-division champion on Sunday. Heidenheim will be the 57th team to play in the Bundesliga since the league’s formation in 1963. Twenty years ago it was playing at fifth-tier level as part of Heidenheimer Sportbund, a local sports association. The Heidenheim-born Schmidt took over in 2007 and steered the club to third-division promotion two years later, then the second division in 2014, before Sunday’s remarkable ascent to the Bundesliga.