The club was founded in 1912 as FC Pelikan-Havelse by a group of thirteen young men from the small village of Havelse. They took their name from the maker's brand of the first football purchased by the club for the grand sum of 7,50 Reichsmarks. World War I took a heavy toll on the club, which was inactive for a time. In 1929, a local gymnastics club, Turnverein Havelse was formed and four years later the "Pelikans" took to the field again as the club's football side. Some time during the 1930s – club records are not clear – the club took on its current name.
For most of its existence this has been un-storied local side: the highlight for the team was a single season spent in the 2. Bundesliga in 1990–91. From 1986 to 1990 the club was led by Volker Finke, who played with the team from 1969 to 1974, and then went on to become the longtime coach of SC Freiburg. Their biggest achievements in the DFB-Pokal came against the same team. In 1991 and 2012, the club eliminated 1. FC Nürnberg to advance to the third and second round respectively of the competition proper.
Since 2010 the club has played in the tier four Regionalliga Nord with a second place in 2013 as its best result.
TSV Havelse plays in the Wilhelm-Langrehr-Stadion, originally built as the "TSV-Kampfbahn an der Hannoverschen Straße" in 1933. However, since the stadium does not meet the requirements for the 3. Liga, the club will play at the HDI-Arena in nearby Hanover for the duration of the 2021–22 season.[5]
Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules; some limited exceptions apply. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
^"Havelser Jungs" (in German). TSV Havelse. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
^Grüne, Hardy (2004). Norddeutschland – Zwischen TSV Achim, Hamburger SV und TuS Zeven. Legendäre Fußballvereine. Kassel: AGON. pp. 313–315. ISBN3-89784-223-8.
