The Format

The “Bundesliga Talent Series” has been concieved as a voluntary additional competition offering flexibility for the clubs, and complementing the existing league system with the participants relying upon already existing squads. Each team can also field up to four older players, however, not only enabling the promotion of young talents but also providing a platform for players returning from injury to re-enter competitive play. 

The following clubs have officially registered for the competition:  

Bundesliga: 1. FC Union Berlin, SV Werder Bremen, Borussia Dortmund, SV Elversberg, Eintracht Frankfurt, Hamburger SV, RasenBallsport Leipzig, Borussia Mönchengladbach, FC Bayern München, SC Paderborn, FC Schalke 04 

2. Bundesliga: Hertha BSC, DSC Arminia Bielefeld, VfL Bochum 1848, Eintracht Braunschweig, FC Energie Cottbus, SV Darmstadt 98, SG Dynamo Dresden, SpVgg Greuther Fürth, Hannover 96, 1. FC Heidenheim 1846, Holstein Kiel, 1. FC Magdeburg, 1. FC Nürnberg, FC St. Pauli, VfL Wolfsburg 

“By participating in the newly created Bundesliga Talent Series, we are continuing along a path that we initiated a few years ago with the U21 perspective team,” explained Lutz Munack, Union's director of youth and amateur football.  “We want to provide our biggest talents with as many challenging matches as possible, for both their personal and athletic development. In the past, we have done this through matches against international opponents with different playing styles and mentalities. We are now complementing this comparison of performance on a national level in the U-21 league.”