On August 1st, the 3rd league starts the new season – here there is everything important for the new season.
What does the game plan look like?
It is the 18th season of the third highest German division. It starts on August 1st, at the latest on May 16, 2026, the champions are determined after 38th game days. After the 19th matchday (December 21) it goes into the winter break, on January 16, 2026 the ball rolls again. There will be four English weeks – on 7, 11th, 28th and 32nd matchday. On the weekends around September 6th, October 11th and November 15th there is no play due to international break breaks.
The relegation games between the third of the 3rd league and the third last last in the 2nd Bundesliga are planned for May 22nd and 26th, 2026.
The kick -off times remain unchanged. The Friday game rises at 7 p.m., on Saturday there are five games at 2 p.m. and one at 4.30 p.m., on Sunday there are also three kick -off times – 1.30 p.m., 4.30 p.m. and 7.30 p.m.
Who is new?
SSV Ulm 1846 and SSV Jahn Regensburg have relegated from the 2nd league. The MSV Duisburg, the 1st FC Schweinfurt, TSV Havelse and the U23 of TSG 1899 Hoffenheim come from the regional leader.
Duisburg made direct return a year after relegation, the Hoffenheimers are there for the first time in the 3rd division with their second representation.
What happens at the start?
Rot-Weiss Essen and TSV 1860 Munich open the season on Friday (01.08.2025) with a duel between two traditional clubs in the stadium on Hafenstrasse.
In addition, the duel between two top teams from last season is scheduled for the start on Saturday: Energie Cottbus expects 1. FC Saarbrücken. And there is a derby in the south: FC Ingolstadt has to go against Jahn Regensburg. In addition, there will be a duel between two promoters on match day 1: Hoffenheim celebrates its third division debut against Havelse.
How does it run reporting In the ARD?
Fans are well looked after by the ARD. In the third programs there are two games live on almost every matchday (except English weeks). They will then also be broadcast in the Livestream on Sportschau.de and in the ARD Mediathek. BR, HR, MDR, NDR, RBB, SR, SWR and WDR show a total of 68 games free of charge on free TV. The sports show shows summaries on Saturdays from 6 p.m.
On matchday 1, the games between Ingolstadt and Regensburg (August 1st in the BR) and between Aue and Rostock (August 2 in the MDR) will be shown. All games can be seen at the right holder “Magenta Sport”.
Who are the favorites?
After the 1st FC Saarbrücken failed only in the relegation to Eintracht Braunschweig last year and also mixed up for a long time in the season, the return to the 2nd division should now succeed in the third attempt.
In addition to the two second division graders from Ulm and Regenburg, Energie Cottbus and Hansa Rostock – two top teams from the previous season are also also good. The TSV 1860 Munich has made a lot, and FC Ingolstadt is considered a kind of insider tip.
What did the transfer market did?
The clubs are very careful not to take over economically. This is traditionally reflected on the transfer market. The majority of the entrances change free of charge or are rental shops.
However, there is remarkable things: Ex-international Kevin Volland changes free of charge from Union Berlin back to 1860 Munich. With Florian Niederlechner from Hertha BSC, the “Löwen” were able to bag another top transfer. Hansa Rostock is also happy about a former Bundesliga professional: Andeas Voglskmler comes from Hannover 96.
How is that economic Situation?
Since the start of the 3rd division for the 2008/09 season, clubs have repeatedly struggled with financial problems, which often ended in bankruptcy. The clubs often failed due to the economic and technical-organizational requirements of the German Football Association (DFB).
He therefore launched a task force “Economic Stability 3. League” in September 2020. The minimum capacity for stadiums was adapted from 10.001 to 5,001 spectators. This means a significant reduction in the costs of the infrastructure, especially for smaller clubs.
On the other hand, there have also been higher hurdles since then. For example, they concern floodlights and lawn heating, both are now prescribed. Since the changes by the Task Force, only Turkgücü Munich has had to register bankruptcy in the 2021/22 season.
The fans’ encouragement is high. Last season 4,388,424 spectators came to the stadiums – that was a new record. The audience cut was five digits for the first time at 11,548