BERLIN, April 30 (Reuters) - Borussia Dortmund were crowned German champions for the seventh time on Saturday after taking an unassailable eight-point lead over their only challengers Bayer Leverkusen with two games to spare. Here are some key facts on the team.
* Dortmund have won the German league title seven times, in 1956, 1957, 1963, 1995, 1996, 2002, 2009. The Bundesliga began in 1963/64.
* For a team that last won a major title in 2002, Dortmund enjoy phenomenal support and are currently the club with the second-highest average attendance in Europe at just over 80,000, behind Spain's Barcelona, according to the German Football League.
* Dortmund have also been crowned Champions League winners, clinching the top European trophy under Ottmar Hitzfeld with a win over Juventus in 1997. They also won the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1966, beating Liverpool, but were relegated to the second division six years later before going back up in 1976.
* The club celebrated its centenary in 2009 but it has not all been plain sailing with Dortmund mired in financial trouble only a few years back.
It is the only football club in Germany floated on the stock exchange and its stock, which started trading at 11 euros back in 2000, quickly became the butt of jokes as it lost 10 percent on the first day.
It gradually fell to well below one euro just over a year ago but it has since shot up to 3.04 euros at close of business on April 21 as the Dortmund edged closer to the title this season.
* Dortmund play in the Westfalen stadium which is the largest football arena in Germany with a capacity of 80,720 and hosted several games during the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
* The club was founded in 1909 when 18 "rebels" broke away from a Catholic club to avoid what they said at the time was a systematic "defamation and opposition" by the vicar who ran it and opposed the youngsters playing football. Their first colours were a blue-white striped top with a red diagonal stripe and black shorts.
* The term Borussia -- Latin for Prussia -- was used as the founders were looking for a quick name to establish their new club and borrowed the name of the nearby Borussia brewery.
* Dortmund have won the German league title seven times, in 1956, 1957, 1963, 1995, 1996, 2002, 2009. The Bundesliga began in 1963/64.
* For a team that last won a major title in 2002, Dortmund enjoy phenomenal support and are currently the club with the second-highest average attendance in Europe at just over 80,000, behind Spain's Barcelona, according to the German Football League.
* Dortmund have also been crowned Champions League winners, clinching the top European trophy under Ottmar Hitzfeld with a win over Juventus in 1997. They also won the European Cup Winners' Cup in 1966, beating Liverpool, but were relegated to the second division six years later before going back up in 1976.
* The club celebrated its centenary in 2009 but it has not all been plain sailing with Dortmund mired in financial trouble only a few years back.
It is the only football club in Germany floated on the stock exchange and its stock, which started trading at 11 euros back in 2000, quickly became the butt of jokes as it lost 10 percent on the first day.
It gradually fell to well below one euro just over a year ago but it has since shot up to 3.04 euros at close of business on April 21 as the Dortmund edged closer to the title this season.
* Dortmund play in the Westfalen stadium which is the largest football arena in Germany with a capacity of 80,720 and hosted several games during the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
* The club was founded in 1909 when 18 "rebels" broke away from a Catholic club to avoid what they said at the time was a systematic "defamation and opposition" by the vicar who ran it and opposed the youngsters playing football. Their first colours were a blue-white striped top with a red diagonal stripe and black shorts.
* The term Borussia -- Latin for Prussia -- was used as the founders were looking for a quick name to establish their new club and borrowed the name of the nearby Borussia brewery.
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