Mainz fails at Federal Court: Dresden match will not be rescheduled

For 1. FSV Mainz 05, the start of the 2024/25 season is turning into a logistical and physical nightmare.

A club that was already facing a demanding fixture list has now been dealt a major blow with the confirmation that their appeal to reschedule the DFB-Pokal first-round match against Dynamo Dresden has been rejected even at the highest level of sporting jurisdiction within German football. As a result, Mainz is now staring down the barrel of five official matches in just 14 days, a brutal stretch that threatens to derail their early-season rhythm before it even begins.

The crux of the issue lies in the timing of the cup fixture. The DFB (German Football Association) scheduled the match for Monday, August 18, at 6 p.m., just three days before Mainz are due to play the first leg of their UEFA Conference League play-off tie. The timing was not arbitrary Dresden’s traditional “Canaletto” city festival is set to take place from August 15 to 17. Due to binding security requirements from local authorities, staging a football match in the city over the weekend was deemed unfeasible. As a result, Monday became the only available option.

Mainz, however, argued that this scheduling puts them at a significant disadvantage, given their European commitments and the tight turnaround between high-stakes matches. Their appeal sought a rescheduling of the DFB-Pokal match, ideally to a date after the play-off tie, but this required the consent of their opponents Dynamo Dresden and ultimately, the approval of the DFB’s Competition Operations Committee. Both were not granted.

In its ruling, the DFB Federal Court stated that the committee had acted within its discretion and had not made a procedural or judgmental error in setting the match date. The court emphasized that its role was limited strictly to evaluating whether due process had been followed not whether the decision was optimal from a sporting perspective.

In an official statement, Mainz explained that even the Competition Operations Committee acknowledged the sporting logic of rescheduling the fixture but cited an inability to do so without Dresden’s approval. According to DFB policy, changes to the official fixture calendar against the will of one club can only occur under exceptional circumstances circumstances which, in this case, were not deemed sufficient by the governing body.

Christian Heidel, Mainz’s long-serving sporting director, did not hold back in his criticism of the outcome. “This is very disappointing,” he said. “We are the only German club competing in the Conference League this season, and this ruling clearly puts us at a competitive disadvantage. The physical demands on our players and the short recovery times between matches will severely hamper our ability to compete during the crucial first two weeks of the campaign.”

Heidel also pointed out the inconsistency in how such scheduling conflicts have been handled in the past. “Other clubs have had matches moved under similar or even less pressing circumstances. This clearly shows a double standard. Our players deserve the same protection and consideration,” he argued, referencing a notable precedent from the 2020/21 season.

Back then, Bayer Leverkusen successfully pushed for the rescheduling of their DFB-Pokal match against Eintracht Frankfurt after Bayern Munich had already been granted a similar request for their match against Holstein Kiel. In that instance, Bayern cited the overload of fixtures prior to Christmas as justification a scenario that closely mirrors Mainz’s current situation.

Heidel went further, directly criticizing the Competition Operations Committee. “The committee is not presenting itself well at all in this matter. Given the known scheduling limitations in Dresden and our qualification for the Conference League, a solution should have been identified in advance immediately after the draw. Instead, they failed to act, and since then, we've had no indication that the committee has been working constructively to find a solution that prioritizes sporting fairness.”

The situation became even more complicated following Monday’s Conference League play-off draw. Mainz must begin their two-legged tie with an away game, either in Stockholm (Sweden) or Trondheim (Norway), depending on the outcome of the previous qualifying round. That means, just three days after traveling to face Dresden in the cup, they’ll have to embark on another demanding international trip. Then, only 72 hours later, they kick off their Bundesliga season with a home match against 1. FC Köln.

This congested calendar leaves Mainz with minimal time for recovery, tactical preparation, or even travel logistics. For a club with limited squad depth and a relatively new head coach in Bo Henriksen, the situation poses both a sporting and operational challenge. It also raises broader questions about how German football supports or fails to support its clubs in European competition.

The outcome may also have knock-on effects later in the season. Should Mainz suffer injuries, early eliminations, or a slow start in the Bundesliga, the seeds of those problems will have been planted in these first chaotic two weeks. Heidel’s warning is clear: without equal treatment, clubs like Mainz may struggle to uphold Germany’s reputation on the European stage.