In this guide
The field includes regional routesOne tie produces one advancing teamThe draw can bring a leading club awaySix victories reduce sixty-four to oneBerlin identifies the final destinationKeep league and cup records apartThe DFB-Pokal is Germany’s national men’s football cup. Its opening field has 64 teams, including Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 clubs, qualifying third-tier teams and regional cup representatives.
The route is knockout football rather than another league table. A club’s Bundesliga position can provide background, but a Pokal match decides progression in a separate bracket.
The field includes regional routes
Regional association cup success supplies entrants alongside the professional league clubs. The DFB excludes reserve teams and multiple teams from the same club under its participation rules. A lower-league entrant is therefore part of a defined qualification route rather than an exhibition opponent.
One tie produces one advancing team
A match level after normal time uses two fifteen-minute extra-time periods and then penalties if required. These are decisive single-match ties, not a normal home-and-away aggregate series. A club losing one tie leaves the cup route.
The draw can bring a leading club away
The format gives lower-league or amateur clubs home advantage in specified pairings against the leading professional divisions. A major club appearing at a smaller ground is therefore consistent with the cup’s draw rules, not evidence that the fixture has been mislabelled.
Six victories reduce sixty-four to one
The clean knockout field reduces through 32, 16, eight, four and two before the winner is established. A champion progressing from the opening round wins six ties. This is bracket arithmetic, not a claim that every club plays six matches.
Berlin identifies the final destination
The DFB’s agreement keeps the men’s final at Berlin’s Olympiastadion through 2030. Earlier-round grounds remain tied to their own fixtures.
| Programme label | Cup context |
|---|---|
| First round | 64-team opening field |
| Achtelfinale | Round of 16 |
| Halbfinale | Semi-final |
| Finale in Berlin | Championship fixture |
Keep league and cup records apart
A cup win does not add Bundesliga league points. Preserve DFB-Pokal, season and round beside the clubs, especially when a domestic league rematch follows soon afterward. The same opponent can represent a completely different sporting task.