In the aftermath of World War I, a number of local sides went through a series of mergers.

Late in 1918 LFK merged with FC Preußen 09 and SV Luedenscheider 1910 to form VfB Lüdenscheid 08.

In 1919, Ballspielverein Lüdenscheid and FC Fortuna 1910 formed another predecessor side called RSV Höh 1910.

Finally, in 1971, RSV and Sportfreunde merged to form the present club.

RWL plays its home matches in the Nattenberg Stadion, built in 1972, which has a capacity of 19,000 (2,234 seats).