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The German Football Association (DFB) and the German Football League (DFL) announced the key dates for the 2026/27 season on Thursday. The first competitive fixtures of the new term for the Bundesliga clubs, the DFB Cup first round, will be played on the weekend of 21 to 24 August. As previously, the participants in the DFL Supercup on Saturday, 22 August 2026 will play their first round matches on 1 or 2 September 2026.
Bundesliga opener on 28 August 2026
The Bundesliga opener will be played on Friday, 28 August 2026. The league programme will be interrupted by two international breaks (21 September to 6 October and 9 to 17 November) before the German top flight heads into the winter break after Matchday 14 (18-20 December 2026). For the first time, FIFA's adjustment of the break periods will apply: Instead of two separate breaks in September and October, there will be a longer international break window with four games from the end of September to the beginning of October.
The Bundesliga kicks off in the new year with Matchday 15 (8-10 January 2027) followed by midweek fixtures. 1 May falls on a Saturday in 2027. In accordance with the agreement with the Conference of Interior Ministers, no league fixtures will be played that weekend. Instead, there will be some more midweek fixtures at the beginning of March (2-4 March 2027). The grand season finale will then take place on 22 May 2027, when all nine matches will once again be played simultaneously on Matchday 34.
Cup final on 29 May 2027
The DFB Cup final in Berlin's Olympiastadion will be played seven days later on Saturday, 29 May 2027. The relegation play-offs for the Bundesliga, Bundesliga 2 and third division are scheduled to take place between 26 May and 2 June.
The DFL has scheduled Matchdays 13 to 19 of the 2025/26 season:
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