3. Liga 2025/26 Season Preview | OneFootball

An hour and a half before the much-awaited 2. Bundesliga kickoff on Friday, the ball will also be rolling in Germany’s third-tier competition. Rot-Weiss Essen host 1860 Munich in the curtain-raiser fixture. Let's delve into our 3. Liga preview.

1860 Munich – will this be their year?

One of the founding members of Bundesliga, 1860 Munich is the club with the most followers in 3. Liga since their return in 2018. When Michael Köllner was at the helm, the Lions finished fourth in back-to-back seasons, but they couldn’t even crack a top-half finish in the last two campaigns.

However, there was undeniable progress under Patrick Glöckner since he took over from Argiris Giannikis at the start of the year. The club now backed the 48-year-old coach with an incredible transfer window.

With the sensational returns of Kevin Volland and Florian Niederlechner, 1860 Munich now have two strikers who scored a combined 125 goals in Bundesliga. They also signed a goalkeeper who played 9 Bundesliga games for Holstein Kiel last season, with the free transfer of Thomas Dähne.

Defensive midfielder Max Christansen also came with vital top-level experience. That’s not all, though. Siemen Voet, who has played in last season’s rebranded Champions League campaign with Slovan Bratislava, is now an 1860’s center-back. Meanwhile, they’ve signed a regular Austrian Bundesliga player with the arrival of Hartberg’s left-back Manuel Pfeifer.

With all the positive signs from the second half of last season and the active transfer window, 1860 Munich should at least compete for promotion this time around. However, the reemergence of the Hasan Ismaik controversy could still affect the team’s performance.

Two “Bundesliga II” teams

Unlike the English football structure, second teams compete in the main league pyramid in Germany. They can go as far as the third division, if the first team of the club aren't in there simultaneously. There will only be two II teams in the upcoming 3. Liga, following the relegations of Dortmund II and Hannover II.

TSG Hoffenheim II will play in 3. Liga for the first time, but they will start the season with a new coach as Vincent Wagner replaced Werder Bremen-bound Horst Steffen at SV Elversberg. Meanwhile, VfB Stuttgart II will look to improve on last season’s 15th-placed finish.

For these clubs, more than the results, the higher standard of the league (compared to Regionalliga and Oberliga) will help the development of young players immensely.

Ulm & Regensburg are back

SSV Ulm and Jahn Regensburg immediately return to 3. Liga after finishing bottom of 2. Bundesliga last season. The former are now building a youthful side by signing players from the youth teams of Bayern, Dortmund and Frankfurt. Meanwhile, Regensburg will hope for a more stable season with Michael Wimmer.

On the other side, MSV Duisburg, TSV Havelse and 1. FC Schweinfurt are the promoted teams from Regionalliga. Duisburg managed to pull an immediate comeback in their first-ever season in the fourth division, while the other two convinced experienced midfielders Johannes Geis (Schweinfurt) and Nassim Boujellab (Havelse) to join their ranks.

Promotion race

Saarbrücken, Energie Cottbus and Hansa Rostock will be expected to battle for promotion once again after the close race last term. The Saarland club missed out on 2. Bundesliga after an extra-time defeat to Eintracht Braunschweig in the playoff.

Players to watch

According to Transfermarkt, Regensburg’s Leopold Wurm is the most valuable player in the division. The center-back played every minute in this summer’s U19 Euros after Elias Decker suffered an injury in the opening game against eventual winners Netherlands.

Last season’s top-scorer Fatih Kaya (Wehen Wiesbaden) and assist-maker Berkan Taz (SC Verl) are also still with their respective clubs. Hansa Rostock’s new signing Andreas Voglsammer would most likely add competition in the scoring chart as the 33-year-old returns to 3. Liga for the first time since leaving Unterhaching in 2015.

Meanwhile, newly-promoted side Duisburg will expect big things from Conor Noß. The former Ireland U21 international played the past two seasons in the Austrian Bundesliga after leaving Borussia Mönchengladbach in 2023.

Waldhof Mannheim is another club that made intriguing signings, including the addition of 29-year-old attacker Adama Diakhaby, who played in the Champions League, Premier League and Ligue 1. The Waldhof Boys also signed Julian Brandt’s younger brother, Jascha.

Last but not least, Kwasi Wriedt is back in 3. Liga after playing last season in the Turkish second-tier. The former Ghanaian international scored a league-high 24 goals when Bayern II won the league, coached by Sebastian Hoeneß.

Jamal Musiala and Malik Tillmann, the new #10s for Germany’s top two clubs, were in that squad in the 2019/20 season. Wreidt, 31, penned a two-year contract for Alemannia Aachen, who also signed Gladbach’s young goalkeeper Jan Olschowsky on a loan deal.