Fußballclub Gelsenkirchen- Schalke 04 e. V., generally called FC Schalke 04 (German: [ɛf tseː ˈʃalkə nʊl fiːɐ̯], Schalke 04, or abbreviated as S04 (German: [ˈɛs nʊl fiːɐ̯], is an expert German football as well as multi-sports club originally from the Schalke area of Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia. The 04 in the club s name originates from its development in 1904. Schalke has actually long been among the most prominent specialist football teams and multi-sports club in Germany, although the club s prime time was in the 1930s and also 1940s. Schalke play in the 2. Bundesliga, the second rate of the German football league system, as an outcome of the 2020-- 21 transfer. As of June 2018, the club has 155,000 participants, making it the second-largest sports club in Germany and also the fourth-largest sports club on the planet in terms of membership. Various other tasks used by the club consist of athletics, basketball, handball, table tennis, winter season sports and also eSports. ...