The Rugby-Bundesliga is the highest level of the league system for rugby union in Germany, organised by the German Rugby Federation.
The league has a mix of professional, semi-professional and amateur players, with four club in the league being officially professional outfits.Getränke-Hersteller gegen Gold-Händler Offenbach-Post, published: 28 May 2011. accessed: 21 August 2011
From 2012 to 2015 the Bundesliga was expanded from ten to 24 and the league divided into four regional divisions of six teams each. Below the Bundesliga the 2. Bundesliga was organised in a similar fashion. From 2015 onwards the league returned to sixteen clubs.
History
The German rugby championship was first played in 1909 and, with the exception of 2002, has always been determined by a final.Die Deutschen Meister der Männer List of German rugby championship finals, accessed: 25 December 2008
The Rugby-Bundesliga was first played in two divisions in the 1971-72 season and soon consisted of six teams in the North and ten teams in the South. However, of the eight southern teams, five were located in Heidelberg and after 1975 all northern teams were from Hanover. The founding members of the league were SV Odin Hannover, SV 1908 Ricklingen, DSV 1878 Hannover, TSV Victoria Linden, SC Siemensstadt and FC St. Pauli Rugby in the north and SC Neuenheim, RG Heidelberg, Heidelberger RK, Heidelberger TV, TSV Handschuhsheim, RC Hürth, Bonner SC, ASV Köln Rugby, SC 1880 Frankfurt and Eintracht Frankfurt Rugby.Geschichte DRV website – History, accessed: 9 October 2014
The league has changed its format a number of times over the years. In 1997-98, it played as a single-division league with eight teams. From 1998 to 2001, it was divided into two regional divisions again. The top-three teams from each of the two divisions then qualified for the finals round, held in a home-and-away format. The top two teams out of this round then played the German Final in a home-and-away format. The bottom three teams in each division played a spring round together with the top three teams of the 2nd Rugby-Bundesliga to determine the clubs who would play in the Bundesliga in the next season.
Since 2001, the Bundesliga has been organised as a single division again with eight teams playing each other in a home-and-away season. The top two teams play each other in the championship final. In its first season, 2001–02, no final was held and the regular season winner was also the German champions. In the first 34 editions of the Final, there was always a team from Hanover present. Only in 2006 did this stop, and no team from Hanover has played in the final since.
Below the Bundesliga, two 2nd Bundesligas, north and south, form the second tier of the league system, with the winners promoted to the Bundesliga. The third tier of rugby is formed by the nine Regionalligen, regional leagues.
SC 1880 Frankfurt, the 2007-08 champions, had to wait 83 years for its fifth title, having last won the championship in 1925.SC Frankfurt 1880 Deutscher Meister, RK 03 Berlin steigt auf scrum.de, accessed: 26 December 2008In Deutschland müssen Profis dem Platzwart helfen Die Welt online, published: 5 September 2007, accessed: 29 December 2008
On 19 July 2008 at the annual general meeting of the German rugby association, the DRV decided to expand the Bundesliga and slightly change its modus. It was decided to expand the league to nine teams for 2008-09 and ten teams for 2009-10, meaning only one club will be relegated in 2009, and two promoted. Also, the play-off format was changed, with four teams qualifying for the finals. At the bottom end, in 2008-09, the last two teams would determine one relegated club via playoff. From 2009-10, the bottom four clubs will play-off to determine two relegated teams.DRT beschließt Reform des Spielbetriebs Rugby-Journal - Reforms 2008, accessed: 7 January 2009
The women's Rugby-Bundesliga consists of six teams in 2008 and also plays a final between the top two clubs at the end of the season.Rugby Spielpläne - Archiv 2007/2008 - 1. Frauenbundesliga , accessed: 29 December 2008
As a sign of the gap between the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga, TSV Victoria Linden, who only won the 2009-10 North/East division in the last round of the championship, declined promotion, citing the additional cost of travelling and the limited player pool as their reason. The South/West champion, Stuttgarter RC, has also indicated that it would not take up promotion, leaving the Bundesliga with only eight clubs for the next season. It also meant, for the first time ever, that no club from Hanover would compete at the top level of German rugby.Victoria Linden verzichtet auf den Bundesligaaufstieg , totalrugby.de, published: 27 May 2010, accessed: 29 May 2010RC gewinnt Zweitligameisterschaft - verzichtet aber dennoch auf den Aufstieg , totalrugby.de, published: 31 May 2010, accessed: 1 June 2010 DSV 78 protested the decision to reduce the league to eight teams again and thereby relegating the club.Abstieg von Hannover 78 besiegelt - Bundesligasaison 2010/2011 mit nur 8 Mannschaften totalrugby.de, published: 8 June 2010. accessed: 14 June 2010 The annual convention of the German Rugby Federation however decided in early July 2010 to allow DSV 78 to stay in the Bundesliga.Deutscher Rugby-Tag beschloss neuen Pokal-Austragungsmodus Rugby-Journal, published: 4 July 2010, accessed: 5 July 2010
In February 2011, the DRV decided that the league would continue to play with ten teams in the near future.Es bleibt bei 10 Vereinen in der Bundesliga totalrugby.de, published: 9 February 2011, accessed: 5 March 2011
In mid-July 2012 the Deutsche Rugby Tag, the annual general meeting of the DRV decided to approve a league reform proposed by German international Manuel Wilhelm. The new system saw the number of clubs in the Bundesliga increased from ten to 24, the league divided into four regional divisions of six clubs each and the finals series expanded from four to sixteen teams. One of the main aims of the reform was to reduce the number of kilometres travelled by individual teams and therefore reduce the travel expenses.DRT 2012: Ligareform kommt / Vertrag mit DRV-Vermarkter wird überprüft totalrugby.de, published: 16 July 2012, accessed: 24 July 2012DRT DRV website, published: 16 July 2012, accessed: 24 July 2012Rugby-Vizemeister TVPforzheim will 2013 den Titel holen Pforzheimer Zeitung, published: 9 May 2012, accessed: 24 July 2012 The system will remain mostly unchanged for the 2013-14 season. The only changes will be a play-off between the fourth and fifth placed teams in each group after the first stage to determine the clubs advancing to the second stage. The championship play-offs after the second stage will be reduced from sixteen to twelve clubs with the top two teams in each group advancing directly to the quarter-finals while the remaining eight will play a wild card round to determine the other four quarter finalists.Bundesligaausschuss beschließt Modifikation des Spielsystems totalrugby.de, published: 5 June 2013, accessed: 7 June 2013
At the annual general meeting of the DRV in July 2015 it was decided to return to a sixteen club format with two regional divisions of eight. The last placed in each division would be relegated while the seventh placed teams would have to play-off against the third and fourth best team of the 2. Bundesliga.Rugby-Verband modifiziert Spielsystem Frankfurter Neue Presse, published: 7 July 2015, accessed: 9 July 2015 The German championship in turn will be contested by the best two teams in each group.Rugby-Bundesliga startet am Wochenende in ihre 45. Saison - Spielmodus erneut reformiert totalrugby.de, published: 27 August 2015, accessed: 12 September 2015
Clubs participating in 2023-24 1. Bundesliga - 16 clubs North/East • FC St. Pauli • Berliner RC • Hamburger RC • DSV 78 Hannover • RC Leipzig • RK 03 Berlin • SC Germania List • Victoria Linden South/West • RG Heidelberg • München RFC • ASV Köln Rugby • RK Heusenstamm • SC Frankfurt 1880 • SC Neuenheim • TSV Handschuhsheim • Offenbacher SCR
Championship finals
The German rugby champions are determined by a final (except in 2001-02), currently contested by the two top teams of the Bundesliga:
Finals SeasonWinnerRunner–UpResult 1971–72 TSV Victoria Linden SC Neuenheim 17–16 1972–73 Heidelberger RK SV 08 Ricklingen 3–0 1973–74 SV 08 Ricklingen Heidelberger TV 15–9 1974–75 TSV Victoria Linden Heidelberger RK 12–4 1975–76 Heidelberger RK TSV Victoria Linden 35–0 1976–77 SC Germania List Heidelberger RK 16–9 1977–78 FV 1897 Linden TSV Handschuhsheim 24–16 1978–79 SC Germania List Heidelberger TV 9–0 1979–80 RG Heidelberg FV 1897 Linden 16–10 1980–81 SC Germania List Heidelberger RK 28–19 1981–82 DSV 78 Hannover RG Heidelberg 15–6 1982–83 DSV 78 Hannover RG Heidelberg 16–12 1983–84 DSV 78 Hannover TSV Victoria Linden 27–6 1984–85 DSV 78 Hannover RG Heidelberg 24–9 1985–86 Heidelberger RK DSV 1878 Hannover 15–9 1986–87 TSV Victoria Linden DSV 1878 Hannover 24–0 1987–88 DRC Hannover DSV 1878 Hannover 12–9 1988–89 TSV Victoria Linden Berliner RC 20–6 1989–90 DSV 78 Hannover SC Neuenheim 31–4 1990–91 DSV 78 Hannover TSV Victoria Linden 6–3 1991–92 TSV Victoria Linden SV 08 Ricklingen 59–3 1992–93 TSV Victoria Linden DSV 1878 Hannover 18–14 1993–94 TSV Victoria Linden Heidelberger TV 15–3 1994–95 SC Neuenheim TSV Victoria Linden 14–13 1995–96 TSV Victoria Linden RG Heidelberg 9–8 1996–97 RG Heidelberg TSV Victoria Linden 15–13 1997–98 DRC Hannover TSV Victoria Linden 25–20 1998–99 DRC Hannover RG Heidelberg 24–10 / 11–22 1. Rugby Bundesliga Results of the 1998–99 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 1999–2000 DRC Hannover TSV Victoria Linden 45–12 / 34–3 1. Rugby Bundesliga Results of the 1999–2000 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2000–01 DRC Hannover SC Neuenheim 28–16 / 8–13 Rugby Archiv – Endrunde Frühjahr 2001 Results of the 2000–01 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2001–02 DRC Hannover RG Heidelberg not held Rugby Archiv – Rugby Spielpläne – 2001/2002 Results of the 2001–02 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2002–03 SC Neuenheim DRC Hannover 18–9 Rugby Spielpläne – 2002/2003 Results of the 2002–03 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2003–04 SC Neuenheim DRC Hannover 23–18 Rugby Spielpläne – 2003/2004 Results of the 2003–04 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2004–05 DRC Hannover TSV Handschuhsheim 21–9 Rugby Spielpläne – Archiv 2004/2005 Results of the 2004–05 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2005–06 RG Heidelberg SC Neuenheim 13–9 Rugby Spielpläne – Archiv 2005/2006 Results of the 2005–06 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2006–07 RG Heidelberg SC 1880 Frankfurt 23–15 Rugby Spielpläne – Archiv 2006/2007 Results of the 2006–07 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2007–08 SC 1880 Frankfurt RG Heidelberg 28–13 Rugby Spielpläne – Archiv 2007/2008 Results of the 2007–08 season, accessed: 25 December 2008 2008–09 SC 1880 Frankfurt Heidelberger RK 11–8 Rugby–Journal – Bundesliga 2008–09 accessed: 26 December 2008 2009–10 Heidelberger RK SC 1880 Frankfurt 39–22 2010–11 Heidelberger RK SC 1880 Frankfurt 12–9 2011–12 Heidelberger RK TV Pforzheim 20–16 2012–13 Heidelberger RK SC Neuenheim 41–10 2013–14 Heidelberger RK TV Pforzheim 43–20 2014–15 Heidelberger RK TV Pforzheim 53–27 2015–16 TV Pforzheim Heidelberger RK 41–36 2016–17 Heidelberger RK TV Pforzheim 39–35 2017–18 Heidelberger RK RG Heidelberg 47–12 2018–19 SC 1880 Frankfurt TSV Handschuhsheim 22–12 2019–20Canceled due to COVID-19 2020–21Canceled due to COVID-19 2021–22 SC 1880 Frankfurt TSV Handschuhsheim 29–17 2022–23 SC 1880 Frankfurt SC Neuenheim 30-16 2023–24 SC 1880 Frankfurt SC Neuenheim 20–14 2024–25 SC 1880 Frankfurt TSV Handschuhsheim 43–5 2025–26 SC 1880 Frankfurt SC Neuenheim 35–10 Source:
Winners & Finalists As of 2026, this is the standing in the all-time winners list of the Bundesliga: