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:''This article describes the men's football regional league in Germany. For the league of the same name in Austria, see: Austrian Regionalliga (football)''

The 'Fußball-Regionalliga' is the third tier of football in the German football league system; however, upon the introduction of the 3. Fußball-Bundesliga in 2008 it will become the fourth tier. In women's football it was, up until the 2003-04 season, the second tier, the 2nd Bundesliga only being introduced in the 2004-05 season.

Contents

Overview

League rules

League set-up

Licensing

Promotion

Relegation

Teams competing in the 2007/08 season

North

South

External links

Overview

From 1963 until 1974, the five Regionalliga conferences (west, south, north, southwest, Berlin) formed the second division in Germany. In 1974, a two-conference Bundesliga was formed and the Regionalliga as such was abolished. Instead, each federation's league comprised the third-highest league. In 1978, seven Oberligen that transcended the federation's borders were created in addition to the already-existing Oberliga Nord.
The modern Regionalliga was created in 1994 and replaced the Amateur-Oberligen as the third tier. The Amateur-Oberligen were kept as part of the pyramid, but now comprised the fourth tier. At first, the Regionalliga had four divisions: North, Northeast, West/Southwest and South. For the 2000-01 season, however, it was reduced to two divisions: North and South. When the 3rd Bundesliga is introduced, the Regionalliga will increase from two to three divisions.
Generally, the winners and runners-up of the two divisions are promoted to the 2nd Bundesliga, but the B-teams of clubs in the first two divisions are not allowed to be promoted. After the introduction of the 3rd Bundesliga the Regionalliga will have three divisions.
Between 1994 and 2000, promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga was regulated without much continuity. It was a problematic rule, as becoming champion of a division did not automatically mean promotion for that team. The champions of the South and West/Southwest divisions were automatically promoted, however, along with the two runners-up. The champions of the North and Northeast divisions had a play-off to decide who would get the fourth promotion spot. This rule was justified with their being more clubs in the southern part of Germany than the north.
In 1998, the promotion rule was changed again: the winner of the play-off between the North and Northeast division champions was promoted, while the loser faced the runners-up from the West/Southwest and South divisions in another play-off for the remaining promotion spot.

League rules

Matchday squads in the Regionalliga must include at least six players of German nationality and under the age of 24, two under the age of 21, and a maximum of three non-EU players.

League set-up

Licensing

A club that wishes to have a team play in the Regionalliga must meet two conditions: first, the team must qualify for the league. Second, the club must obtain a license from the DFB. This license is granted if the club can prove that they are financially sound, that their stadium conforms to the security regulations, and that they have a working youth section.

Promotion

The champions and the runners-up of each division are promoted to the 2nd Bundesliga at the end of the season. An exception is made, however: if among these teams is a B-team of a club that is already playing in 1st or 2nd Bundesligen, they will not be promoted. Instead, the next eligible club is promoted.
Starting from the 2008-09 season, the champion of each division will be promoted to the new 3rd Bundesliga. B-teams will also be eligible for promotion unless the respective A-team is playing in the 3rd Bundesliga.

Relegation

The Regionalliga North currently consists of nineteen teams, and the South eighteen. The bottom four teams in each division at the end of each season are relegated to their respective Oberligen. However, as teams are allocated to the Regionalliga divisions by their geographical location using a rough geographical boundary, and are not reallocated between the two divisions, it is possible for one division to have up to twenty teams. If that is the case, the number of relegation spots is increased by the number of additional spots, so that the division is reduced to eighteen at the end of the season. If, for example, three of the relegated teams from the 2nd Bundesliga are allocated to the Regionalliga North, the division would play with nineteen teams and the number of relegation spots increased to five.
As clubs in the Regionalliga must have their teams licensed by the DFB on a per-season basis, a team may also be relegated by having its license revoked. Teams are also relegated when their club files for bankruptcy. B-teams are also relegated when the respective A-team is relegated to the Regionalliga.

Teams competing in the 2007/08 season

''For more details on the 2007/08 Regionalliga season, see here.''

North

★ Rot-Weiß Ahlen

★ SV Babelsberg 03 (promoted from NOFV-Oberliga Nord)

★ 1. FC Union Berlin

★ Eintracht Braunschweig (relegated from 2. Bundesliga)

★ Werder Bremen II

★ Energie Cottbus II (promoted from NOFV-Oberliga Süd)

★ Borussia Dortmund II

★ Dynamo Dresden

★ Fortuna Düsseldorf

★ BSV Kickers Emden

★ FC Rot-Weiss Erfurt

★ Rot-Weiss Essen (relegated from 2. Bundesliga)

★ Hamburger SV II

★ VfB Lübeck

★ 1. FC Magdeburg

★ Rot-Weiß Oberhausen (promoted from Oberliga Nordrhein)

★ Vfl Wolfsburg II (promoted from Oberliga Nord)

★ SC Verl (promoted from Oberliga Westfalen)

★ Wuppertaler SV Borussia

South

★ VfR Aalen

★ SV Elversberg

★ FSV Frankfurt (promoted from Oberliga Hessen)

★ KSV Hessen Kassel

★ FC Ingolstadt 04

★ Jahn Regensburg (promoted from Oberliga Bayern)

★ Karlsruher SC II

★ TSV 1860 Munich II

★ Bayern Munich II

★ FSV Oggersheim (promoted from Oberliga South-West)

★ SC Pfullendorf

★ SSV Reutlingen

★ SV 1916 Sandhausen (promoted from Oberliga Baden-Württemberg)

★ Sportfreunde Siegen

★ Stuttgarter Kickers

★ VfB Stuttgart II

★ SpVgg Unterhaching (relegated from 2. Bundesliga)

★ SV Wacker Burghausen (relegated from 2. Bundesliga)

External links

★ Regionalliga on the official DFB website

★ Ergebnisdienst des DFB

★ Dritte-Liga.org