It’s about 200,000 euros
This final changes everything for a Hamburg amateur team
May 22, 2026 – 3:38 p.mReading time: 3 minutes
Two amateur clubs are fighting for much more than prestige in the Hamburg State Cup final. Whoever wins gets a place in the DFB Cup – and with it a bonus of 200,000 euros.
The final of the Hamburg State Cup is historic even before kick-off at 11:30 a.m. on Saturday (May 23rd). Because none of the participants in the final have been able to win the competition so far, neither Vorwärts Wacker Billstedt nor HEBC Hamburg from Eimsbüttel. This ends a major dry spell for both clubs: Vorwärts-Wacker is in the final for the first time since 2011, and HEBC has had to wait for this since 1983.
For the clubs, both of which compete in the Oberliga (5th division), it’s not just about the prestige and the trophy that the cup winner gets. There’s a lot of money at stake: Whoever wins the national cup can take part in the first round of the DFB Cup. For this alone, the DFB paid out a bonus of 211,886 euros in the current season.
DFB Cup game brings a windfall for amateurs
In addition, there is income from ticket sales for the DFB Cup game. Depending on the luck of the draw, this can also be lucrative for the amateurs: As Eintracht Norderstedt 2025 FC St Pauli at the Millerntor, all around 29,000 tickets were sold. In 2024, Phönix Lübeck moved to the Volksparkstadion for the cup duel with Borussia Dortmund, where around 50,000 fans came and made the cash register ring accordingly.
The HEBC reached the final with victories over Viktoria Harburg, VfL Hammonia, TSV Buchholz 08, West-Eimsbüttel, SC Nienstedten and USC Palma. In the league, the club finished 13th and narrowly avoided relegation by one point.
Vorwärts-Wacker Billstedt: Dramatic route to the final
The same applies to Vorwärts-Wacker Billstedt – due to the slightly worse goal difference, the club ended the season in 14th place, tied with the HEBC. But Billstedt’s path to the final was much more dramatic: the team was actually almost eliminated in the quarter-finals.
- National coach reveals: Ex-96 striker narrowly misses the World Cup squad
- “Unforgettable memories”: The next player leaves St. Pauli
In the quarter-finals on March 10th, Vorwärts-Wacker welcomed SC Victoria at the Öjendorfer Weg sports complex. After 64 minutes, “Vicky” was 3-1 up, but then the floodlights failed to stop the game. The suspicion: A kebab shop could have overloaded the circuit. The duel was canceled and rescheduled.
