1. FC Heidenheim 1846 is a German professional association football club from the town of Heidenheim, Baden-Württemberg. The club currently plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German football league system. The club was formed in 2007 through the separation of the football section from parent association Heidenheimer Sportbund, a larger multi sports club that has 5,800 members in 25 departments. The independence of the football side allows it to operate under the stricter economic standards set for professional clubs which are members of the German Football Association (Deutscher Fußball-Bund or DFB). Heidenheimer SB itself was founded through the 1972 merger of TSB Heidenheim and VfL Heidenheim. The club's origins go back to 14 August 1846, with the establishment of the gymnastics club Turngemeinde Heidenheim, which folded in 1852, but was re-constituted under the same name in 1861. The club was renamed Turnverein Heidenheim in 1872.