Cup drama: third division teams against top clubs in the 2025 DFB Cup!

Cup drama: third division teams against top clubs in the 2025 DFB Cup!

The draw for the first round of the 2025/2026 DFB Cup caused heated discussions in Cologne. Today, June 15, 2025, the opponents of the third division teams were announced and there are exciting matches on the program. The games will be played between August 15th and 18th and August 26th and 27th. Anyone who wants to experience the games live can look forward to some tricky duels.

1. FC Schweinfurt can play against Fortuna Düsseldorf and SV Wehen Wiesbaden welcomes none other than FC Bayern Munich. Other exciting matches include 1. FC Saarbrücken against 1. FC Magdeburg, Hansa Rostock against TSG Hoffenheim, Energie Cottbus against Hannover 96 and SSV Jahn Regensburg against 1. FC Köln. Rot-Weiss Essen will also face Borussia Dortmund and Viktoria Köln will play against SC Paderborn 07. Last but not least, SSV Ulm 1846 will play against SV Elversberg. These schedules promise a feast for all football fans!

Important dates in the DFB Cup

The first rounds are just the beginning. If you want to make it to the final, you have to prepare yourself early. The second round will take place on October 28th and 29th and the round of 16 will follow on December 2nd and 3rd. For the quarterfinals the dates are 3rd/4th. and 10/11. February mentioned, while the semi-finals will be played on April 21st and 22nd. The big showdown, the final, is scheduled for May 23rd. An exciting year for everyone involved!

Last season, the teams were able to benefit greatly from the bonus distribution. Every club that made it into the first round received an impressive 209,500 euros. There were 418,900 euros in the second round, 837,800 euros in the round of 16, 1.675 million euros in the quarter-finals and 3.351 million euros in the semi-finals. We are eagerly waiting to see whether the new season will bring a similar distribution of rewards. Last season, VfB Stuttgart, who won the cup, received 4.3 million euros, while Arminia Bielefeld, the final loser, received 2.88 million euros.

Distribution of bonuses and outlook

For the coming season, a total of up to 75 million euros are available for the DFB Cup, of which 67 million euros are to be distributed by the semi-finals. The exact distribution of proceeds is still being finalized, but the foundations have been laid. The bonuses for the coming season are exciting, especially since the total payout including the final is 67 million euros plus 7.2 million euros for the big final. The rewards in detail are just as attractive as last season and this will certainly encourage competition on the pitch.

So we can look forward to the first round of the cup and the graphics of the games that will be presented to us in the coming months. The DFB Cup is an exciting challenge for the players, the clubs and, above all, the fans. Let's hope that there will be many exciting games this year too!

For more information about the cup round visit League3 Online, the Kicker and the official website of the DFB.