The South West Cup () is one of the 21 regional cup competitions of German football. The winner of the competition gains entry to the first round of the German Cup. It is limited to clubs from the Rheinhessen-Pfalz region of Rhineland-Palatinate, however, teams from the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga are not permitted to compete. It is one of two cup competitions in the state, the other being the Rhineland Cup, which covers roughly the northern half of the state.

The competition is sponsored by the Bitburger brewery and carries the name Bitburger-Verbandspokal. It is operated by the South West German Football Association, the SWFV.

History The Cup was established in 1973. The South West Cup is played annually.

From 1974 onwards, the winner of the South West Cup qualified for the first round of the German Cup.

Since the establishment of the 3. Liga in 2008, reserve teams can not take part in the German Cup anymore, but are permitted to play in the regional competitions. For the 2007–08 cup winner, 1. FC Kaiserslautern II, this meant the runners-up, SV Niederauerbach, was qualified instead for the 2008–09 DFB-Pokal.

Modus Clubs from fully professional leagues are not permitted to enter the competition, meaning, no teams from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga can compete.

All clubs from the South West playing in the 3. Liga (III), Regionalliga West (IV), Oberliga Südwest (V), Verbandsliga Südwest (VI) and the two Landesligas (VII) gain direct entry to the first round. Additionally, all clubs that have reached the quarter finals of the two Bezirkspokale, the two regional cup competitions staged for teams below the'Landesligas, also enter the competition. In 2007, for example, 129 clubs took part. The lower classed team always receives home advantage, except in the final, which is played on neutral ground.

Cup finals Held annually at the end of season, these were the cup finals since 1974:

Season Winner Finalist Result Location, Date Attendance 1973–74 FC Rodalben 1974–75 ASV Landau 1975–76 Wormatia Worms 1976–77 SG Eintracht Bad Kreuznach 1977–78 SG Eintracht Bad Kreuznach 1978–79 1. FC Kaiserslautern II 1979–80 1. FSV Mainz 05 1980–81 BFV Hassia Bingen 1981–82 1. FSV Mainz 05 1982–83 BFV Hassia Bingen 1983–84 SV Südwest Ludwigshafen 1984–85 SC Birkenfeld 1985–86 1. FSV Mainz 05 1986–87 SV Südwest Ludwigshafen 1987–88 Wormatia Worms 1988–89 TSG Pfeddersheim 1989–90 SV Südwest Ludwigshafen 1990–91 SV Viktoria Herxheim 1991–92 Wormatia Worms 1992–93 TSG Pfeddersheim 1993–94 SV Edenkoben 1994–95 TSG Pfeddersheim 1995–96 TSG Pfeddersheim 1996–97 1. FC Kaiserslautern II SV Viktoria Herxheim 2–1 29 May 1997 1997–98 SC Idar-Oberstein 1998–99 FK Pirmasens 1999–2000 TSG Pfeddersheim 1. FC Kaiserslautern II 2–2 (4–2 pen) Neustadt, 7 June 2000 400 2000–01 1. FSV Mainz 05 II VfR Grünstadt 1–0 Bad Kreuznach, 7 June 2001 400 2001–02 1. FSV Mainz 05 II 1. FC Kaiserslautern II 3–0 Alzey, 30 May 2002 1,500 2002–03 1. FSV Mainz 05 II 1. FC Kaiserslautern II 1–0 Worms, 3 June 2003 800 2003–04 1. FSV Mainz 05 II SC Hauenstein 3–1 Ludwigshafen, 3 June 2004 500 2004–05 1. FSV Mainz 05 II SC Hauenstein 2–0 Grünstadt, 25 May 2005 2005–06 FK Pirmasens 1. FSV Mainz 05 II 2–1 Alzey, 24 May 2006 1,150 2006–07 Wormatia Worms 1. FC Kaiserslautern II 1–0 Ludwigshafen, 1 May 2007 3,700 2007–08 1. FC Kaiserslautern II SV Niederauerbach 2–1 21 May 2008 2008–09 Wormatia Worms FSV Oggersheim 5–1 19 May 2009 2009–10 FK Pirmasens FV Dudenhofen 3–0 Offenbach, 26 May 2010 2010–11 SVN Zweibrücken SC Idar-Oberstein 2–1 pen 31 May 2011 2011–12 Wormatia Worms FK Pirmasens 4–1 Idar-Oberstein, 22 May 2012 2012–13 TSG Pfeddersheim Arminia Ludwigshafen 4–3 pen Bobenheim-Roxheim, 29 May 2013 2013–14 SV Alemannia Waldalgesheim SVN Zweibrücken 1–0 Mehlingen, 14 May 2014 1,005 2014–15 FK Pirmasens FV Dudenhofen 1–0 Offenbach, 13 May 2015 2,500 2015–16 SC Hauenstein TSV Schott Mainz 2–1 (aet) Römerberg, 28 May 2016 1,002 2016–17 SV Morlautern Wormatia Worms 2–1 Pirmasens, 25 May 2017 2,410 2017–18 Wormatia Worms SV Alemannia Waldalgesheim 3–1 Worms, 21 May 2018 3,393 2018–19 1. FC Kaiserslautern Wormatia Worms 3–1 Pirmasens, 25 May 2019 7,343 2019–20 1. FC Kaiserslautern SV Alemannia Waldalgesheim 5–3 pen Pirmasens, 22 August 2020 400 2021–22 Schott Mainz FK Pirmasens 3–0 Weingarten, 21 May 2022 1,008 2022–23 Schott Mainz Wormatia Worms 7–6 pen Pirmasens, 3 June 2023 2023–24 Schott Mainz SV Gonsenheim 4–1 Ingelheim, 25 May 2024 2,182 2024–25 FK Pirmasens Schott Mainz 2–1 Weingarten, 24 May 2025 1,628 2025–26 Schott Mainz FK Pirmasens 2–1 Weingarten, 23 May 2026 1,512

Winners Listed in order of wins, the Cup winners are:

Club Wins 1. FSV Mainz 05 II 1 8 Wormatia Worms 7 TSG Pfeddersheim 6 1. FC Kaiserslautern II2 5 FK Pirmasens 5 TSV Schott Mainz 4 SV Südwest Ludwigshafen 3 BFV Hassia Bingen 2 SG Eintracht Bad Kreuznach 2 Alemannia Waldalgesheim 1 SVN Zweibrücken 1 SC Idar-Oberstein 1 SV Edenkoben 1 SV Viktoria Herxheim 1 SC Birkenfeld 1 ASV Landau 1 FC Rodalben 1 SC Hauenstein 1 SV Morlautern 1 1 Includes three wins by 1. FSV Mainz 05 2 Includes two wins by 1. FC Kaiserslautern

References

Sources Deutschlands Fußball in Zahlen, An annual publication with tables and results from the Bundesliga to Verbandsliga/Landesliga, publisher: DSFS

External links Fussball.de: South West Cup South West Football association website: List of Cup winners