The women's Bundesliga will be expanded from 12 to 14 clubs for the 2025-2026 season, the German Football Federation (DFB) said on Sunday after the majority of club representatives spoke in favour of the expansion.
The upcoming 2024-2025 season will work as a qualifying season, with only one instead of two teams being relegated from the Bundesliga, while the top three instead of the top two will be promoted from the second division.
If one of the promoted clubs forego the participation in the new 14-team Bundesliga, there will be no relegation.
"Broader competition and greater visibility for all teams will keep the focus on the league," said Sabine Mammitzsch, DFB vice president for women's and girls' football.
"Appropriate framework conditions should promote the development of our players and strengthen the loyalty of the fans," she added.
At the beginning of May, Ralf Kellerman, VfL Wolfsburg director of women's football, criticized the expansion plans. Among other things, he warned that this could lead to scheduling problems for clubs playing at international competitions, such as Wolfsburg and Bayern Munich.
In addition, the income from the current broadcasting deal, which runs until 2026-2027, will have to be shared by more clubs.
The second division remains unaffected by the expansion, with 14 teams, three of which will be relegated.
For the 2024-2025 season, in which three teams will be promoted to the Bundesliga, but only one team will be relegated, all champions from the five regional leagues will be promoted directly to the second division.
