Match schedule published - Steffen Baumgart meets his old love: How the Bundesliga 2 starts the season
Before the complete schedule is released, the German Football League announced the first two matches of the 1. and 2. Bundesliga. The first matchday in the 2. Bundesliga starts with a real cracker: relegated Cologne faces long-time second division side Hamburger SV. Steffen Baumgart, now coach of HSV, is a familiar face to 1. FC Cologne. He coached the team from the Rhine in the last Bundesliga season.
Fans of both second division relegated teams can look forward to the first matchday, as their teams start with a home game. Besides Cologne, Darmstadt can try to collect the first points for the table against Duesseldorf on their home turf.
Moreover, Schalke's team around Karel Geraerts can look forward to a reception at their home Veltins-Arena. The traditional club from the Ruhr area can prove themselves against Eintracht from Braunschweig on the first matchday.
Second Bundesliga: How the Promoted Teams Start the Season
Two of the three promoted teams must start away. Jahn Regensburg can start in the Heinz von Heiden Arena in Hannover, while Preussen Munster's players can lace up their shoes in Fueth.
The reigning third-league champions Ulm can begin with a home game against the cup semi-finalists of the last season from Kaiserslautern.
The exact kickoff times of the games from the first two matchdays in the 2. Bundesliga will follow in the second week of July. The matchdays 3 to 7 should be scheduled in the third week of July.
You can find the 2. Bundesliga schedule here (PDF).
- Steffen Baumgart, the new coach of Hamburger SV, is eager to impress in their opening game against 1. FC Cologne, a team he knows well from his previous coaching stint in the Soccer Bundesliga.
- The DFL's decision to pit Hamburger SV, a stalwart of the 2. Bundesliga, against relegated Cologne promises a love-hate affair filled with intensity and rivalry on the Rhine.
- The first Bundesliga match for HSV, under Baumgart's guidance, will be a tough challenge, as they face Cologne, a team that has previously competed in the 1st FC Cologne.
- As the second Bundesliga season kicks off, Steffen Baumgart's Hamburger SV will aim to secure a positive result against their geographical rival, 1. FC Cologne, located on the Rhine.
- The clash between HSV and 1. FC Cologne is just one of the thrilling encounters in the 2. Bundesliga's inaugural matchday, with both teams sharing a rich soccer history along the Rhine.
