The tiny town aiming to defy odds in Bundesliga debut

In south-west Germany, close to the border of France, lies the small town of Elversberg.

It has no railway station and a population of just 13,000, but on Saturday it will enjoy a moment of history as its football team plays in the Bundesliga for the first time.

The club have enjoyed a meteoric rise, having gone from the regional leagues in Germany to the top flight in just a few years.

And their coach Vincent Wagner has not played down the enormity of the task ahead for his side.

"For the team to avoid relegation in the top flight would be like a journey to Mars," he said.

But Elversberg are well-versed in defying the odds, and will aim to do so again this season.

"It might sound like the rise has been a rush but at every stage the floor was solid before the next one was built," Elversberg's technical director Josef Welzmuller said.

"We did it step by step and it didn't feel like a fairytale for the people here because they are so strong in their decision-making and very clear in how they want to play and we want to act as a club.

"This is the whole magic to be honest, and a lot of very, very hard work."

With three promotions in the past five years, Elversberg have swiftly climbed from the fourth tier of German football to the top flight.

It is not unusual in football for a small team to enjoy a rapid rise - Wrexham have famously done just that having gone from non-league football to the Championship .

But while they have been helped by having wealthy owners, Elversberg have never had similar financial clout - and as a result have had to do things a little differently.

A key figure in Elversberg being able to rise as quickly as they have was Ole Book.

A former footballer in Germany's lower leagues, Book joined Elversberg in 2017 as a scout, and within a year was promoted to sporting director.