DFB-Pokal tickets and match breaks

DFB Cup tickets: the road to Berlin

"Berlin, Berlin, wir fahren nach Berlin" — no chant is heard more often in German grounds, and no destination is clearer. The DFB Cup final is played every year at the Olympiastadion in Berlin, whoever reaches it. The ground holds more than 74,000, and in the days beforehand tens of thousands of supporters fill the city, many without a ticket, simply for the occasion. The fan zones around Breitscheidplatz are part of the weekend.

If you want to see German football at its most uninhibited, the cup final is the fixture to travel for.

Next up: the second round on 27 and 28 October 2026

Sixteen ties across two evenings, kicking off at 18:00 and 20:45. Three of them are worth the journey in particular:

• The Bundesliga tie: Borussia Dortmund v Werder Bremen on the Tuesday at the Signal Iduna Park — the biggest fixture the draw produced.
• The eastern classic: Dynamo Dresden v FC Schalke 04 brings two of the loudest followings in the country together at the Rudolf-Harbig-Stadion.
• The cup story: SSV Jeddeloh v Hertha BSC — a fourth-tier side from rural Lower Saxony, moving the tie to the Marschwegstadion in Oldenburg for the occasion. Alongside it, Sonnenhof Großaspach v FC Augsburg, where a village of a few thousand hosts a Bundesliga club.

Also on the schedule: Bayern Munich v 1. FC Magdeburg, 1. FC Köln v Union Berlin, Hamburger SV v Eintracht Frankfurt, Borussia Mönchengladbach v Karlsruher SC, Bayer 04 Leverkusen v 1. FC Nürnberg, SC Freiburg v VfL Wolfsburg, SC Paderborn 07 v VfB Stuttgart, Holstein Kiel v TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, Hannover 96 v 1. FC Kaiserslautern, VfL Bochum v FSV Mainz 05, Rot-Weiss Essen v RB Leipzig and SV Elversberg v SV Darmstadt 98.

The first round makes the competition

Sixty-four teams start in mid-August, which means the DFB Cup opens the German professional season ahead of the Bundesliga itself. In the first round every amateur and lower-division side is drawn against a professional club, with home advantage going to the smaller team. Small grounds sell out, temporary stands go up, and every few years a Bundesliga club goes out.

The margins are thin. Fifth-tier FK Pirmasens took Hamburger SV to extra time before losing 2-1, while holders and record winners regularly survive by the narrowest margin — Bayern Munich beating third-division SV Wehen Wiesbaden 3-2, VfB Stuttgart needing penalties at Eintracht Braunschweig.

What is at stake

The cup winners qualify for the Europa League. If they have already secured European football through the Bundesliga, the sixth-placed league club takes the Conference League play-off place instead — which is why the final matters to several clubs who are not in Berlin at all.

Through the rounds

The first round in August is followed by the second at the end of October, the round of 16 in December, the quarter-finals in February and the semi-finals in April. Ties are played across two consecutive evenings, Tuesday and Wednesday. The final is held on a Saturday in May in Berlin.

Tickets and hotels

• Tickets for cup ties at the clubs we cover, from the early rounds to the semi-finals, plus the Berlin final
• Hotels in the host city, and in Berlin for the final
• A hotel-and-ticket package, or a ticket combined with a sightseeing element

Dates are confirmed late — plan for it

Rounds are drawn only a few weeks in advance, with days and kick-off times following afterwards. If you want to build a trip around a specific tie, contact us straight after the draw and book flexible flights. The final is the exception: the date is fixed a year ahead, only the two teams are not. If you want to be there regardless of who qualifies, book hotel and ticket early.

Where to read on

For league fixtures see our Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga pages; for European nights, the Champions League and Europa League pages.

How to book

Tell us the fixture, your travel dates and how many tickets you need — we will come back with a firm offer.