A Verbandspokal (English: "association cup") is a regional men's association football competition in Germany. There are 21 Verbandspokal competitions which function as qualifying tournaments for the following season's DFB-Pokal, the premier German Cup competition.Modus DFB website: Modus, accessed: 17 January 2015 Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga clubs are not permitted to enter as they are already directly qualified for the first round of the DFB-Pokal.
While no Verbandspokal winner has ever gone on to win the German Cup, two have reached the final. Hertha BSC Amateure won the Berlin Cup in 1992 and went on to lose the 1993 DFB-Pokal final against Bayer Leverkusen, and Energie Cottbus won the 1996 Brandenburg Cup and went on to lose the 1997 DFB-Pokal final against VfB Stuttgart.Historie DFB website: History, accessed: 17 January 2015
Apart from the 21 Verbandspokal champions, three more teams qualify from the regional football association, to bring the number of clubs in the first round of the DFB-Pokal to 64. These three teams come from the three regional associations with the most members, these currently being Bavaria, Lower Saxony and Westphalia.
The regional competitions, (plural:Verbandspokale) are generally open to all clubs in the 3. Liga and below, however regional rules vary between associations. 3. Liga clubs have a double chance to qualify for the first round of the DFB-Pokal, through the Verbandspokale and through finishing in the top four in their league.
The finals of the competitions can attract large numbers of spectators, like the 2014 Lower Rhine Cup between MSV Duisburg and TV Jahn Hiesfeld did, which was watched by 24,000 in Duisburg.Hiesfeld schnuppert am Pokal-Coup Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung, published: 16 May 2014, accessed: 18 January 2015
As of 2013–14, Werder Bremen II, reserve team of Werder Bremen, is the most successful team in any Verbandspokal competition, having won the Bremen Cup twenty times, followed by Tennis Borussia Berlin with sixteen Berlin Cup wins and Holstein Kiel with fifteen Schleswig-Holstein Cup wins.
Rules and regulations Rules and regulations for the Verbandspokale are set by the regional football associations and vary. Bavaria, the largest one, stipulates that reserve teams are not permitted to participate in the Bavarian Cup. Teams from lower divisions always have home advantage, if two teams of the same division are drawn against each other the team drawn first receives home advantage.
Bavarian clubs from the 3. Liga and Regionalliga Bayern, except reserve teams, are obliged to participate in the cup. Clubs from the two Bayernliga divisions and the five Landesliga Bayern divisions play a qualifying round. Additionally, the 24 regional cup winners in Bavaria, the Kreispokale, are also qualified for the first round of the Bavarian Cup. If a game is undecided after regular time a penalty shoot out follows, no extra time is played.Spielordnung BFV website: Rules & Regulations, accessed: 18 January 2015
In Lower Saxony, the third-largest association, clubs from the state playing in the 3. Liga and Regionalliga Nord play in the 3. Liga / Regionalliga Lower Saxony Cup, whilst the clubs playing in Oberliga Niedersachsen as well as the four Bezirkspokal winners are qualified for the first round of the Amateur Lower Saxony Cup. The winners of both Cups are qualified for the national cup.Krombacher Niedersachsenpokal NFV website: Spielbetrieb/Herren, accessed: 19 March 2026
History
The longest-running competition of the Verbandspokale is the Berlin Cup, first held in 1907.Berliner Pokalendspiele 1907–2006 www.die-fans.de: Berlin Cup finals since 1907, accessed: 17 January 2015 All other cup competitions originated after the Second World War.
In Southern Germany, the South Baden Cup was established in 1945,Ehrentafel Südbadische Pokalsieger DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015 the Hesse Cup in 1946,Hessenpokal DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015 the Bavarian Cup in 1947, with a long interruption from 1954 to 1998,Endspiele um den Bayerischen Pokal DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015Die Endspiele BFV website: Cup finals since 1998, accessed: 18 January 2015 the North Baden Cup in 1949,Ehrentafel Nordbadische Pokalsieger DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015 and the Württemberg Cup in 1950.wfv-Pokal-Ergebnisse der Herren seit 1951 Württemberg Football Association website, accessed: 17 January 2015Some sources state 1945 but the WFV website lists cup finals from 1950–51 onwards.
In Northern Germany, the Bremen Cup was established in 1950,Bremen: Meister und Pokalsieger DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015 the Schleswig-Holstein Cup from 1953,Schleswig-Holstein: Meister und Pokalsieger DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015 the Hamburg Cup was sporadically played from 1954 and permanently from 1981,Hamburg: Meister und Pokalsieger DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015 and the Lower Saxony Cup from 1955.Niedersachsen: Meister und Pokalsieger DSFS, accessed: 17 January 2015 The Lower Saxony Cup was split between the 3. Liga / Regionalliga clubs and the lower division clubs starting 2018.
In the former East Germany, the Verbandspokale, in the form of the Brandenburg Cup,Geschichte: 1991 Brandenburg Football Association website: History 1991, accessed: 17 January 2015 Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Cup, Saxony Cup, Saxony-Anhalt Cup,Saxony-Anhalt Cup statistics Saxony-Anhalt Football Association, accessed: 17 January 2015 and Thuringia Cup, were established in 1990.
In Western Germany, the Lower Rhine Cup was established in 1980,Endspiele und Titelgewinner im Niederrheinpokal Lower Rhine Football Association website, accessed: 17 January 2015 the Westphalia Cup in 1981,Pokalsieger auf Verbandsebene seit 1982 Football and Athletics Association of Westphalia website, accessed: 17 January 2015 and the Middle Rhine Cup in 1994.FVM-Pokalsieger Herren Middle Rhine Football Association website, accessed: 17 January 2015
In South Western Germany, the Rhineland Cup was established in 1953, the South West Cup in 1973,Sieger des Verbandspokals seit 1973 South West Football Association website, accessed: 17 January 2015 and the Saarland Cup in 1974.Geschichte des Pokals www.saarlandpokal.de, accessed: 17 January 2015
Current holders The winners of the 2025–26 Verbandspokal competitions:
Cup Winners Baden Cup Waldhof Mannheim Bavarian Cup Würzburger Kickers Berlin Cup VSG Altglienicke Brandenburg Cup VfB Krieschow Bremen Cup SV Hemelingen Hamburg Cup Hamburg-Eimsbütteler BC Hessian Cup Wehen Wiesbaden Lower Rhine Cup MSV Duisburg Lower Saxony Cup• SSV Jeddeloh• Lüneburger SK Hansa Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Cup Hansa Rostock Middle Rhine Cup Viktoria Köln Rhineland Cup Eintracht Trier Saarland Cup 1. FC Saarbrücken Saxony Cup Erzgebirge Aue Saxony-Anhalt Cup Hallescher FC Schleswig-Holstein Cup Phönix Lübeck South Baden Cup Bahlinger SC Southwestern Cup Schott Mainz Thuringian Cup Carl Zeiss Jena Westphalian Cup SC Verl Württemberg Cup Sonnenhof Großaspach
Broadcasting In February 2016 it was announced that German broadcaster ARD for the first time would show all 21 Verbandspokal finals live in a conference as well as live stream them and that all finals would be played on the same date, 28 May 2016.
References
External links Official DFB website The German Football Association Fussball.de Official results website of the DFB