Oberliga Berlin (1945-63)
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|
| Country |
 Germany
|
|---|---|
| State |
 Berlin
|
| Founded | 1945 |
| Folded | 1963 (18 seasons) |
| Replaced by | Bundesliga |
| Level on pyramid | Level 1 |
| Relegation to | Amateurliga Berlin |
| Domestic cup(s) | Berlin Cup |
| Last champions |
Hertha BSC (1962–63) |
The Oberliga Berlin (English: Premier league Berlin), sometimes also referred to as Stadtliga Berlin (English: City league Berlin) or Vertragsliga Berlin (English: Contract league Berlin) was the highest level of the German football league system in the city of West Berlin in Germany from 1945 until the formation of the Bundesliga in 1963. It was by far the smallest of the five Oberligas.
The league was created in 1945, incorporating clubs from all four sectors of the allied-occupied Berlin. It replaced the Gauliga Berlin-Brandenburg as the highest league in the region. In its first year, it was staged in four groups with the winner of each group taking part in a finals tournament. In 1946, three clubs from each of those four groups went to form the single-division, twelve team, Oberliga Berlin. Alongside the Oberliga Berlin, four other Oberligas were formed in Germany in those years:
The clubs in Berlin were originally not permitted to carry their pre-war names and had to be simply named after the suburb they represented. This rule was slowly lifted in the three western sectors and by 1948, clubs in what was to become West-Berlin carried their original names again. In the Soviet sector, the future East Berlin, clubs took up names in accordance with the requirements of the new Communist regime.
With the reintroduction of the German championship in 1948, the winner of the Oberliga Berlin went on to the finals tournament with the other Oberliga champions. Being the smallest of the five Oberligas it is not surprising that no club from Berlin won a German championship in these years or even reached the final.
After the 1949-50 season, the clubs from East Berlin left the unified Berlin league system and joined the East German leagues instead. [[1. FC Union Berlin|Union Oberschöneweide, qualified for the German championship finals in 1950, was not permitted to participate in this tournament either. The Oberliga Berlin carried on with clubs from West Berlin only.
Below the Oberliga Berlin ranked the Amateurliga Berlin as a second tier. Originally staged in a varying number of groups, it became a single-group competition from 1950.
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