Football | Third League: The East in a celebratory mood
It was 1:46 a.m. when the SG Dynamo Dresden team bus pulled into the training academy at Sportpark Ostra on Sunday night. The headlights illuminated a black and yellow wall of hundreds of fans who had waited for hours to welcome their promoted heroes. With flares in hand, the Dynamo supporters waved to them. Despite a 1-0 defeat at SV Waldhof Mannheim, Dynamo Dresden has been promoted to the 2nd Bundesliga. A day for the history books. "No more 3rd division!" chanted players, coaches, and fans into the cool Dresden night air.
Dynamo is back in the second division; according to the fans' self-image, the club belongs there, at least, and even better, a league higher! The eight-time East German champions still have a huge fan base in Central Germany and can boast a gigantic average attendance of 28,899 fans at their Rudolf Harbig Stadium in the third division. Even for Dynamo away games, the away ticket quota in the 2024/25 season was always sold out quickly.
A remarkable 3,800 Dynamo fans traveled to Mannheim. Despite the defeat, there was no stopping them at the final whistle: They stormed the pitch within seconds, and a yellow and black wave of ecstasy flooded the Carl Benz Stadium. Bengal lights bathed the scene in thick smoke, while players and fans hugged each other, surrounded by mounted police and masses of emergency services trying to separate the Mannheim fans from the Dresden fans.
"We rocked it!" Dynamo midfielder Vinko Sapina enthused on "MagentaSport." Successful Swiss coach Thomas Stamm was also touched: "There's a lot of joy, especially when I see how many long-standing employees, including players who accompany the club, are bursting into tears." With his level-headed approach, Stamm achieved what Dynamo had dreamed of for three years in his first season: a return to the second tier of German football. After two failed attempts, they have now achieved promotion. For the Black and Yellows, this is the fifth promotion to the second division after 2004, 2011, 2016, and 2021. On Sunday, thousands once again celebrated the team with a promotion parade along the Terrassenufer.
Cottbus can continue to hope , Rostock too
Cottbus still dreams of promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga. The miraculous story of a Regionalliga newcomer who immediately storms through can still become reality thanks to the competition's blunders: After turbulent weeks, coach Claus-Dieter Wollitz's team has reopened the door to relegation. With a 3-1 win over direct rivals Hansa Rostock in front of 27,500 spectators, the Lusatian side overtook both Hansa Rostock and 1. FC Saarbrücken (2-4 in Aachen) into third place.
Previously, the Lusatian team had only earned four points from six games, and the dream of promotion seemed unattainable to many. Not so coach Wollitz: "I've always said that a lot can happen in football right up until the very end, and a lot will happen. I hope we have the conviction to give it our all in front of our home crowd next week."
The final game of the season is on Saturday at the Stadion der Freundschaft against FC Ingolstadt. A home win would secure third place and a place in the promotion play-offs, unless 1. FC Saarbrücken can make up their current two-goal deficit with a win against Borussia Dortmund II. Saarbrücken is currently level on points with third-placed Cottbus in fourth place.
Despite the disappointing defeat against Cottbus, Hansa Rostock hasn't yet lost all chances of relegation. The relegated second division team spent seven months climbing from 18th to fourth place in the 3. Liga table. After the defeat against Cottbus, Hansa is now within striking distance in 5th place, but would need a win in their final game against Hannover 96 II and some help from other teams: Only if Rostock and Saarbrücken both slip up at the same time could Rostock secure the relegation spot.
"We're down. This is a defeat that hurts terribly," said Hansa coach Daniel Brinkmann after the home debacle against Cottbus. "We'll need a day or two to digest the game. But anyone who knows us, anyone who knows me, knows that starting tomorrow, we'll be thinking positively," said Brinkmann. "We still have a chance to take a step forward on the last matchday." With agencies
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