DFB-Pokal winners twice in a row: in 1979 and 1980 Fortuna Düsseldorf repeated what their Rhineland rivals 1. FC Köln had done in 1977 and 1978 – they defended the cup. After the 1–0 after extra time against Hertha BSC in the 1979 final in Hanover, courtesy of a Wolfgang Seel goal, came perhaps the more prestigious triumph: in Gelsenkirchen’s Parkstadion – the final moved around different venues every year until 1985 – F95 beat 1. FC Köln 2–1. Rüdiger Wenzel (59) and Thomas Allofs (65) overturned Köln’s 1–0 halftime lead, scored by World Cup winner Bernd Cullmann (26), within six minutes and triggered scenes of total jubilation. Fortuna coach Otto Rehhagel celebrated by playing the trumpet.
It was not until January 1981 that Fortuna lost another cup match, and to this day the club still boasts the record streak of 18 consecutive DFB-Pokal wins as of December 2019.