The Regionalliga Nordost is the fourth tier of German football in the states of Berlin, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, Saxony-Anhalt, Saxony and Thuringia. These comprise the states of former East Germany as well as West Berlin.
It is one of five leagues at the fourth tier, together with the Regionalliga Bayern, Regionalliga Südwest, Regionalliga Nord and the Regionalliga West. From 1994 to 2000 it was part of the third tier, until the first of many re-structurings of the league system. The last of these occurred in 2012, which saw the Regionalliga Nordost reinstated.
Overview The Regionalliga Nordost was formed in 1994 to form a regional third level of play between the 2nd Bundesliga and the NOFV-Oberligas Nord, Mitte and Süd. The league was made up of 18 clubs, with two coming from the 2nd Bundesliga and six each from Mitte and Nord while the south only sent four. It was formed alongside three other Regionalligas, the Regionalliga Nord, West/Südwest and Süd. With the introduction of the Regionalliga also went the disbanding of the central division of the NOFV-Oberligas. Its clubs were spread between the remaining two.
The founding members of the Regionalliga Nordost were:
From the 2. Bundesliga:
Carl Zeiss Jena (Süd) Tennis Borussia Berlin (Mitte)
From the NOFV-Oberliga Nord:
BSV Brandenburg Eisenhüttenstädter FC Stahl Reinickendorfer Füchse FC Berlin Spandauer SV FSV Optik Rathenow
From the NOFV-Oberliga Mitte:
1. FC Union Berlin Energie Cottbus Türkiyemspor Berlin Lok Altmark Stendal Hertha BSC Berlin II Hertha Zehlendorf
From the NOFV-Oberliga Süd:
Rot-Weiß Erfurt Erzgebirge Aue Sachsen Leipzig Bischofswerdaer FV 08
The league contained 18 teams throughout its original six years.
The league winner was not always promoted to the 2nd Bundesliga. The champions of the Regionalligas Nord and Nordost had to play-off for a spot in the 2nd Bundesliga from 1996 to 2000. The winner of this contest was promoted, the loser faced the runners-ups of the Regionalligas Süd and West/Südwest for another spot in the second division.
In 1997, Energie Cottbus became the first club from the Regionalliga to reach a German Cup final, losing 2–0 to VfB Stuttgart.
The league was disbanded after six seasons. In 2000, the number of Regionalligas was reduced from four to two. Most clubs from the league went to the Regionalliga Nord, some clubs from the south went to the Regionalliga Süd.
With the changes in the German league system in 2008, the number of Regionalligas was extended to three, with the formation of the Regionalliga West, a league which essentially is a reformation of the Regionalliga West/Südwest. The Regionalliga Nordost was not recreated, however. Instead, its clubs remained in the Regionalliga Nord. Teams from its region playing in the Regionalliga Süd moved to the northern group as well, unless they qualified for the 2nd Bundesliga or 3rd Liga.
Disbanding When the league was discontinued in 2000, the top seven clubs in the league went to the two remaining Regionalligas, five to the north and two to the south, these being the two clubs from the state of Thuringia. The other eleven league teams were relegated to the NOFV-Oberligas.
To the Regionalliga Nord:
1. FC Union Berlin Dresdner SC Erzgebirge Aue SV Babelsberg 03 Sachsen Leipzig
To the Regionalliga Süd:
Carl Zeiss Jena Rot-Weiß Erfurt
Reestablishment In October 2010, another reform of the Regionalligas was agreed. The number of leagues was again expanded to five. The defunct Regionalliga Nordost was reestablished and a Regionalliga Bayern was established. Also, the Regionalliga West lost the clubs from the south west to a new league, formed out of those clubs and clubs from Regionalliga Süd outside Bavaria. The new system came into operation at the beginning of the 2012–13 season. The number of reserve teams per Regionalliga was limited to seven.DFB-Bundestag beschließt Reform der Spielklassen DFB website. 22 October 2010. Retrieved 15 May 2012
The five league champions, plus the runner-up of the Regionalliga Süd/Südwest, entered play-offs for the three promotion spots. The new leagues consisted of up to 22 clubs in their inaugural season, but were then reduced to between 16 and 18 clubs. The Regionalligas are not administered by the DFB, but rather by the regional football associations. The reorganisation of the Regionalligas, so soon after the last changes in 2008, became necessary because of a large number of insolvencies. These were caused by a lack of media interest in the leagues, large expenses and infrastructure demands.DFB weitet die Spielklassenreform aus kicker.de. 29 April 2011. Retrieved 15 May 2012
As four teams were relegated from the 3rd Liga starting at the end of the 2018–19 season, the champions of the Regionalliga Nordost (Chemnitzer FC), the Regionalliga Südwest and the Regionalliga West were promoted directly to the 3. Liga. The remaining two champions, from the Regionalliga Bayern and Nord, played a two-legged promotion play-off for the last promotion spot. In 2020, the three direct promotion spots will go to the champions of the Regionalliga Südwest, Regionalliga Bayern and Regionalliga Nord, and the champions of the Regionalliga Nordost and Regionalliga West will participate in the play-off. This format was installed initially as a temporary solution until the DFB-Bundestag was unsuccessful on a format that could have enabled all Regionalliga champions to be promoted. In September 2019, the Bundestag delegates voted to grant the Südwest and West champions two direct promotions indefinitely starting in 2021. A third direct promotion place will be assigned according to a rotation principle among the Regionalliga Nord, Nordost and Bavarian champions. The representatives from the two remaining Regionalligen will determine the fourth promoted club in two-legged playoffs.
Overview of football in the Nordost region
Pre–19901990–19911991–19941994–20002000–20082008–2012Since 2012Tier 1DDR-OberligaNOFV-OberligaBundesligaTier 2DDR-LigaNOFV-Liga2. BundesligaTier 3BezirksligaBezirksliga (B/MV)Landesliga (SN/TH)Verbandsliga (BB/ST)NOFV-Oberliga NordNOFV-Oberliga MitteNOFV-Oberliga SüdRegionalliga NordostRegionalliga NordRegionalliga Süd3. LigaTier 4BezirksklasseBezirksklasse (B/MV)Bezirksliga (BB/ST)Landesklasse (SN/TH)LandesligaVerbandsligaNOFV-Oberliga NordNOFV-Oberliga SüdRegionalliga NordRegionalliga NordostTier 5KreisligaBezirksklasse (BB/ST)KreisoberligaLandesligaVerbandsligaNOFV-Oberliga NordNOFV-Oberliga Süd
Winners and runners-up of the Regionalliga Nordost The winners and runners-up of the league: SeasonWinnerRunner-up1994–95Carl Zeiss Jena Sachsen Leipzig1995–96Tennis Borussia Berlin Union Berlin1996–97Energie Cottbus Erzgebirge Aue1997–98Tennis Borussia Berlin Dynamo Dresden1998–99Chemnitzer FC VfB Leipzig1999–2000Union BerlinDresdner SC2012–13RB Leipzig Carl Zeiss Jena2013–14TSG Neustrelitz 1. FC Magdeburg2014–151. FC MagdeburgFSV Zwickau2015–16FSV ZwickauBerliner AK 072016–17Carl Zeiss JenaEnergie Cottbus2017–18Energie CottbusFSV Wacker 90 Nordhausen2018–19Chemnitzer FCBerliner AK 072019–20Lokomotive LeipzigVSG Altglienicke2020–21Viktoria BerlinVSG Altglienicke2021–22BFC DynamoCarl Zeiss Jena2022–23Energie CottbusCarl Zeiss Jena2023–24Energie CottbusGreifswalder FC2024–25Lokomotive LeipzigHallescher FC2025–26Lokomotive LeipzigCarl Zeiss Jena
Promoted teams in bold.
League statistics The top goalscorers and spectator statistics for the league since it reformed in 2012: SeasonTotal attendanceAverage attendanceBest supported clubAverage attendanceTop goalscorerGoals2012–13 434,272Regionalliga Nordost 2012/2013 .:. Zuschauer .:. Heimspiele Weltfussball.de. Retrieved 28 May 2013 1,809RB Leipzig7,563Daniel Frahn Regionalliga Nordost 2012/2013 .:. Torschützenliste Weltfussball.de. Retrieved 28 May 2013 202013–14 369,841Regionalliga Nordost 2013/2014 .:. Zuschauer .:. Heimspiele Weltfussball.de. Retrieved 22 May 20141,5411. FC Magdeburg5,482 Christian Beck Regionalliga Nordost 2013/2014 » Torschützenliste Weltfussball.de. Retrieved 22 May 2014 222014–15 404,920Regionalliga Nordost 2014/2015 .:. Zuschauer .:. Heimspiele Weltfussball.de. Retrieved 20 May 20151,694 1. FC Magdeburg 8,576 Christian Beck Regionalliga Nordost 2014/2015 » Torschützenliste Weltfussball.de. Retrieved 20 May 2015 202015–16 296,828 970 Carl Zeiss Jena 3,531 Jonas Nietfeld Andis Shala Marc-Philipp Zimmermann 152016–17 393,375 1,286 Energie Cottbus 5,433 Federico Palacios Martínez 222017–18363,472 1,188 Energie Cottbus 5,263Rufat Dadashov 262018–19355,121 1,161 Chemnitzer FC 4,885 Daniel Frahn 242019–20305,421 1,468 Energie Cottbus 6,218 Felix Brügmann 162020–2187,431 723 BSG Chemie Leipzig 1,571 Marc-Philipp Zimmermann 112021–22468,364 1,233 Energie Cottbus 4,129 Christian Beck 232022–23646,791 Energie Cottbus6,025Ziane Djamal (Lokomotive Leipzig)18
League record
Placings in the Regionalliga Nordost The following clubs have played in the league and achieved the following final positions: Club 95 96 97 98 99 00 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 RB Leipzig1 3L 2B 2B B B B B B B B B B 1. FC Union Berlin 3 2 5 6 6 1 2B 2B 2B 2B 2B 2B 2B B B B B B B 1. FC Magdeburg 12 3 10 6 2 1 3L 3L 3L 2B 3L 3L 3L 2B 2B 2B Erzgebirge Aue 9 5 2 7 7 3 2B 2B 2B 3L 2B 2B 2B 2B 2B 2B 3L 3L 3L Dynamo Dresden B 4 7 2 11 8 2B 2B 3L 3L 2B 2B 2B 2B 3L 2B 3L 3L 3L Energie Cottbus 7 3 1 2B 2B 2B 2B 2B 3L 3L 2 1 3L 3 9 3 1 1 3L 1. FC Lokomotive Leipzig2B2B2B2B 2 9 10 15 10 6 6 1 7 6 4 10 1 Hallescher FC 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 2 Rot-Weiß Erfurt2 5 7 3 5 10 7 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 5 18 3 13 3 FSV Zwickau 2B 2B 2B 2B 4 18 3 6 2 1 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 12 4 Carl Zeiss Jena 1 2B 2B 2B 9 4 2 3 4 7 1 3L 3L 3L 4 2 2 7 5 Greifswalder FC 14 2 6 Chemnitzer FC 2B 2B 4 8 1 2B 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 3L 1 3L 10 5 8 9 7 BFC Dynamo 11 13 13 11 8 17 5 4 15 4 12 6 6 1 6 4 8 VSG Altglienicke 15 14 2 2 4 5 6 9 Hertha BSC II 13 18 11 5 12 6 10 9 8 4 5 12 8 9 14 10 ZFC Meuselwitz 7 10 14 14 14 10 10 10 18 14 15 11 11 Hertha Zehlendorf 10 12 15 15 12 SV Babelsberg 03 14 15 53L 14 11 6 5 5 7 16 11 11 10 5 13 BSG Chemie Leipzig 16 12 3 9 7 8 14 FSV 63 Luckenwalde 16 16 18 14 12 13 15 15 FC Eilenburg 16 16 16 FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin 8 15 12 4 13 11 8 1 3L 12 3 17 VFC Plauen6 10 10 5 13 13 9 16 18 Hansa Rostock II 18 17 Berliner AK 07 4 11 7 2 6 3 2 7 5 7 11 18 SV Lichtenberg 11 13 13 16 Germania Halberstadt 9 13 9 17 7 8 15 17 15 17 Tennis Borussia Berlin 4 1 6 1 2B 2B 16 10 18 FSV Union Fürstenwalde 13 9 13 4 8 17 FSV Optik Rathenow 15 17 11 16 18 17 14 19 18 VfB Auerbach 14 7 12 9 12 11 9 9 15 19 SV Tasmania Berlin 20 Bischofswerdaer FV 08 12 16 16 17 20 FSV Wacker 90 Nordhausen1 11 12 17 5 3 3 7 2 3 13 FC Oberlausitz Neugersdorf 5 8 12 15 FSV Budissa Bautzen 13 13 17 14 18 TSG Neustrelitz 81 8 8 18 17 RB Leipzig II3 11 3 FC Schönberg 954 15 11 Union Berlin II5 12 4 10 Energie Cottbus II 15 Torgelower SV Greif 16 Dresdner SC 13 2 Sachsen Leipzig 2 6 9 4 14 6 Eisenhüttenstädter FC Stahl 8 14 8 3 17 12 VfL Halle 1896 14 Tennis Borussia Berlin II 15 Lok Altmark Stendal 16 8 11 9 12 16 Spandauer SV 14 10 16 13 16 SD Croatia Berlin 18 Reinickendorfer Füchse 6 9 14 16 SC Charlottenburg 17 FSV Velten 15 18 BSV Stahl Brandeburg 17 Türkiyemspor Berlin 18 1 Wacker Nordhausen withdrew for financial reasons at the end of the 2019–20 season. 2 Rot-Weiß Erfurt declared insolvency during the 2019–20 season and was automatically relegated. 3 RB Leipzig II was withdrawn from competition at the end of the 2016–17 season. 4 FC Schönberg withdrew from the league also for financial reasons at the end of the 2016–17 season. 5 1. FC Union Berlin II was withdrawn from competition at the end of the 2014–15 season. 6 VFC Plauen also declared insolvency during the 2014–15 season and was automatically relegated.Der Fall VFC Plauen - Chronologie einer Posse Mitteldeutscher Rundfunk. Retrieved 24 February 2015
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