DFB Cup: First round draw with Bayern and VfB - pure excitement!

DFB Cup: First round draw with Bayern and VfB - pure excitement!

The 2025/26 DFB Cup is just around the corner and the anticipation for the first games is already noticeable. The draw for the first round will take place on Sunday at 5:15 p.m. in the German Football Museum in Dortmund, as transfermarkt.de reports. The lottery fairy, athlete Owen Ansah, will draw the colorful balls together with DFB Vice President Peter Frymuth. The first round games are scheduled for August 15th to 18th. The only exceptions are the two heavyweights FC Bayern Munich and VfB Stuttgart, who will not compete until August 26th or 27th due to their participation in the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup on August 16th.

A total of 64 teams are taking part in the competition, including nine third division teams who can compete with the elite. The following teams are represented in the first round: SSV Ulm 1846, SSV Jahn Regensburg, 1. FC Saarbrücken, FC Energie Cottbus, FC Hansa Rostock, FC Viktoria Köln, Rot-Weiss Essen, SV Wehen Wiesbaden and 1. FC Schweinfurt 05. Last season there were even more in the competition with twelve third division teams, which is a record. Arminia Bielefeld even set new standards by becoming the first club in the single-tier 3rd division to reach the cup final. This took place in the Berlin Olympic Stadium on May 23, 2026.

A look at the third division teams

The DFB Cup is a great opportunity for many teams to prove themselves. Arminia Bielefeld has already made a name for itself and made it to the semi-finals last season, where they knocked three Bundesliga teams out of the competition. The club is currently back in its starting position and could even set a record number of eliminated Bundesliga teams if the success is repeated.

What would the DFB Cup be without its most exciting encounters? FC Augsburg will face SpVgg Unterhaching, the champions of the Bavarian Regional League, in the first main round, which should be a very special encounter for the Augsburg team. [augsburger- Allgemeine.de reports](https://www.augsburger- Allgemeine.de/sport/fc-augsburg/fc-augsburg-fca-treff-im-dfb-pokal-auf-einen-bayerischen-drittligisten-id66872401.html) that the journey to the venue takes around an hour. This tough competition always brings new emotions for the fans.

A review and expectations

The defending champion is RB Leipzig, who have already won the cup twice in a row. For FC Bayern Munich it will be an opportunity to bounce back after last season's quarter-final exit against SC Freiburg. In the first round, the record champions face Preußen Münster.

How will the 2025/26 DFB Cup go down in history? In the coming weeks it will be time to let spectators take a look behind the scenes and show what the teams can do. The tension is rising and the fans can look forward to exciting games. Stay tuned to see what surprises will arise in this traditional competition and which third division teams might make it to the next round!