Relegation 2025: Heidenheim and Braunschweig are fighting to stay in the league!

Relegation 2025: Heidenheim and Braunschweig are fighting to stay in the league!

The 2025 Bundesliga relegation has provided exciting football moments in the last few weeks. Fans and teams looked forward to the decisive games with high expectations, which will decide which teams will be allowed to take part in the top German football league in the coming season. The focus was particularly on the matches in the second and third leagues.

Overall, the relegation games took place between May 22nd and May 31st, 2025. The big showdown began with the game between 1. FC Heidenheim and SV Elversberg, which took place on Thursday, May 22nd at the Voith Arena. Here the Bundesliga club Heidenheim secured the last place in the Bundesliga with a 2-1 win in the second leg after the first leg ended 2-2. Eintracht Braunschweig also performed well against 1. FC Saarbrücken, with a final score of 2-2 after extra time, thus consolidating their place in the second division after the first leg ended 2-0 in Braunschweig's favor. These games impressively demonstrate how competitive relegation is in the German football landscape. bundesliga.com reports that relegation has been an integral part of German football since 2009 and causes a lot of excitement.

The game schedules and results

The relegation included several exciting encounters scheduled as follows:

• 22. Mai 2025: Heidenheim – Elversberg (Voith-Arena) – 2:1
• 23. Mai 2025: Saarbrücken – Braunschweig (Ludwigspark) – 2:2
• 26. Mai 2025: Elversberg – Heidenheim (Ursapharm-Arena) – 1:2
• 27. Mai 2025: Braunschweig – Saarbrücken (Eintracht-Stadion) – 0:2

What is particularly noteworthy is that the away goals rule no longer applies this season. If there is a tie after regular time, extra time and, if necessary, even a penalty shootout are ordered, which further increases the tension. In addition, the video assistant and goal line technology are used in all relegation games to ensure fair assessment. bundesliga.com offers comprehensive information on this.

A look at relegation through the years

Relegation to the German Bundesliga has a long history. It was introduced in 1982 and has been firmly anchored in football fans' calendars ever since. Since its reintroduction in 2009, the game has been played between the third-to-last team in the Bundesliga and the third-placed team in the 2nd Bundesliga, as well as between the third-to-last team in the 2nd Bundesliga and the third-placed team in the 3rd League. The results show a superiority of the Bundesliga teams: 14 out of 17 rounds went in favor of the first division teams. What is surprising, however, is that in recent years second division teams have repeatedly been able to make it into the upper house. wikipedia.org provides all historical data and facts about the relegation.

The excitement surrounding relegation not only reflects the clubs' sporting ambitions, but also the financial differences between the leagues. Critics complain that the quality of the games is often not of the highest standard and suggest a reform of the system, for example the introduction of a play-off round like in the English Championship. This would ensure that the best teams in the second division have the chance to qualify for the Bundesliga and thus increase the sporting excitement. wikipedia.org deals intensively with the discussions surrounding this topic.

The next few weeks will show how the teams prepare for the challenges ahead. What is certain is that relegation will remain a hot topic in German football in the future.