2025–26 DFB-Pokal Frauen
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Country | Germany |
| Venue(s) | RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne |
| Dates | 27 September 2025 – 14 May 2026 |
Goals scored in penalty shoot-outs not included. | |
The 2025–26 DFB-Pokal will be the 44th season of the annual German football cup competition. Several teams participate in the competition, including all teams from the previous year's Frauen-Bundesliga and the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga, excluding second teams. The competition will begin on 27 September 2025 with the first of six rounds and will end on 14 May 2026 with the final at the RheinEnergieStadion in Cologne, a nominally neutral venue, which has hosted the final since 2010.[1]
Participating clubs
The following clubs qualified for the competition:
| Bundesliga the 12 clubs of the 2024–25 season |
2. Bundesliga 11 of the 14 clubs of the 2024–25 season[note 1] |
Regionalliga the 5 champions of the 2024–25 season |
|
| ||
| Verbandspokal the 21 winners of the regional association cups | ||
|
Baden Bavaria Berlin Brandenburg Bremen Hamburg Hesse |
Lower Rhine Lower Saxony Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Middle Rhine Rhineland Saarland Saxony |
Saxony-Anhalt Schleswig-Holstein South Baden Southwest Thuringia Westphalia Württemberg |
Format
This year will see a format change, as the 21 regional cup winners, the five promoted teams from the Regionalliga and six teams from the 2. Bundesliga compete in a play-off round. After that, the first round will be played by the remaining 32 teams without restrictions.[2]
Schedule
The rounds of the 2025–26 competition are scheduled as follows:[1]
| Round | Matches |
|---|---|
| Playoffs | 16–18 October 2025 |
| First round | 27–29 September 2025 |
| Round of 16 | 15–17 November 2025 |
| Quarter-finals | 11–12 March 2026 |
| Semi-finals | 4–6 April 2026 |
| Final | 14 May 2026 at RheinEnergieStadion, Cologne |
Times up to 26 October 2025 and from 29 March 2026 are CEST (UTC+2). Times from 27 October 2025 to 28 March 2026 are CET (UTC+1).
Notes
- ^ Second teams are not eligible.
References
- ^ a b "Rahmenterminkalender der Frauen für Saison 2025/2026 verabschiedet". DFB.de (in German). German Football Association. 4 April 2025. Retrieved 4 April 2025.
- ^ "Neues Format für DFB-Pokal der Frauen". DFB.de (in German). German Football Association. 26 April 2024. Retrieved 26 April 2024.