Early years (1919–1945) FC Bregenz was founded on 28 June 1919 with the club colours being black and white, making it the fourth oldest football club in the
Vorarlberg region. In its early history, the club played mainly
friendly matches against German and Swiss clubs from around
Lake Constance. In 1927, the
Bregenz based club made its first appearance in the Vorarlberger A-Klasse, the highest level in Vorarlberg at the time, where they finished second. Already in 1928, FC Bregenz became Vorarlberg champions ahead of FA Turnerbund Lustenau (today
SC Austria Lustenau) and
FC Lustenau. In 1930, FC Bregenz only reached fourth place and, as a result, were relegated from the A-Klasse. In 1933, the Bregenz team was back in the top flight and managed to stay in the Vorarlberger A-Klasse until its upheaval in 1938. After the
Anschluss in 1938, the Vorarlberger A-Klasse was replaced by the Bodensee-Vorarlberg Bezirksklasse. After winning several championships, Schwarz-Weiß Bregenz became the first club from Vorarlberg to be promoted to the top division of Austria, the
Staatsliga, in 1954.
Bundesliga, Europe, and bankruptcy (1999–2005) Between 1999 and the
2004–05 season, the club played in the
Austrian Bundesliga. In
2002 and
2004, Bregenz also played European football in the
UEFA Intertoto Cup. Opponents included
Torino, against whom the club was eliminated after a 1–0 away defeat at the
Stadio Delle Alpi and a 1–1 draw at home. After a successful run, the club ran into increasingly severe financial problems. A poor 2004–05 season was followed by relegation to the second-tier
Erste Liga. However, the club was denied a licence for the following season due to financial problems. After also losing the battle before the permanent neutral arbitration court of the Austrian Bundesliga, Bregenz filed for bankruptcy and was consequently dissolved.
Resurgence (2005–present) The senior team was admitted to the 5th level of the Austrian football pyramid and adapted the traditional black and white club colours of the former SW Bregenz in the 2009–10 season. On 8 July 2013 the club was renamed
Schwarz-Weiß Bregenz again and they also took over the logo of the former club. The club was relegated from
Austrian Regionalliga West in 2016. In 2022–23, Schwarz-Weiß Bregenz secure promotion to Austrian 2. Liga from 2023 to 2024 and champions of Regionalliga West in 2022–23. ==Stadium==