The 2011–12 1. FC Köln season began on 31 July 2011 against Wiedenbrück 2000 in a DFB-Pokal 1st round match. They play their home matches in RheinEnergieStadion. The club hired Ståle Solbakken as their new head coach. The board of directors announced their resignation at the annual general meeting. Speculation concerning Lukas Podolski's future at 1. FC Köln has been written about a lot during the season. 1. FC Köln were eliminated from the German Cup in the 2nd Round. The club was in 10th place halfway through the season. The club went to Portimão, Portugal during the winter break. Unfortunately, the team had an alarming slump in form in the 2nd half of the season which coincides the fact that their star player Lukas Podolski had signed for Arsenal on 30 April 2012 and will join the team