The Lilies have won three games in a row and are therefore traveling to Schleswig-Holstein with considerable confidence. SV Darmstadt 98 will be visiting Holstein Kiel on Matchday 8. Kickoff on Saturday (October 4th) is at 1pm. Before the ball rolls at the Holstein Stadium, we've compiled the facts and figures for the match.
In their last five second-division matches against Holstein Kiel, the South Hesse side remained undefeated and even picked up an impressive eleven points – three wins and two draws. Darmstadt’s record at the Holstein Stadium is similarly good. Of their last three away games, the Lilies have won two and shared the points once. In April 2023, they secured a commanding 3-0 victory thanks to goals from Jannik Müller, Phillip Tietz, and an own goal. Things went similarly well in May 2021, when SV 98 won 3-2 on the Kiel Fjord – Serdar Dursun scored twice and Immanuel Höhn scored for the Blue-Whites. Dursun even crowned himself the 2. Bundesliga’s top scorer. Luca Pfeiffer scored for SVD in the 1-1 draw in October 2021.
In the 2025/26 season, no team has scored as many goals as SV Darmstadt 98. The Lilies scored a total of 13 goals in the first seven matchdays. Isac Lidberg, in particular, played a significant role in that haul. The Swede has found the net in his last four consecutive matches and leads the 2. Bundesliga’s top scorer list with seven goals. This means the Darmstadt native has scored seven times in the first seven matchdays of the second division. Only Bruno Labbadia has previously achieved that feat – 40 years ago. Eight goals in the first eight second division matches would be a new record, which Lidberg could set with another goal in Kiel…
Kiel’s Marathon Men. That could also be the headline for this fact. On average, the Storks run 123.5 kilometres per game and complete an average of 707 intensive runs per match. Two figures that are only topped by Arminia Bielefeld in the 2. Bundesliga. In terms of sprints in the direction of play, Kiel even lead the league with 690.
Darmstadt’s strong defence to date is evident in the low number of goals conceded. With just five goals conceded, the Lilies are among the three teams with the best defence in the league. Only Schalke 04 and SC Paderborn are ahead of them, with four goals each. Darmstadt 98 last conceded so few goals after seven matchdays in the 2014/15 season. It’s also noteworthy that Darmstadt have already collected as many clean sheets after seven matchdays as they did in the entire last season—four. Marcel Schuhen has also gone over four hours without conceding a goal.
For the third time this season, Holstein Kiel hosts a league leader in the 2nd Bundesliga. On Matchday 2, Kiel lost 2-0 to Arminia Bielefeld, and on Matchday 4, the Storks suffered a 2-1 defeat against then-league leaders Hannover 96. However, the team turned things around in their next home game: a decisive 3-0 victory over Karlsruher SC, who were second at the time, marked their first home win. It’s also notable that Holstein hasn’t shared a point this season – all of their matches have ended in either a win or a loss.
After Elversberg, Kiel has the second-most big chances (16) in the league. However, despite their many promising opportunities, the Storks have only been able to capitalise on four of them so far – twelve missed big chances are the most in the league. The Lilies‘ record is quite different. While the statistics show only six big chances for Darmstadt, SV 98 capitalised on five of them.
| Games | Wins | Draws | Losses | Goals | |
| Home | 8 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 9:13 |
| Away | 7 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 10:11 |
| Overall | 16 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 21:25 |
Autographs, photos, and personal encounters with the Lilies: You'll have the opportunity to do so on Thursday (May 7th) from 5pm to 6pm. As part of an autograph session presented by Merck, Patric Pfeiffer, Kai Klefisch, and Fynn Lakenmacher will be at the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor. You'll also receive a ten percent discount in the fan shop during this time.
Darmstadt's 2-1 defeat at Karlsruher SC also ended any remaining theoretical hopes the South Hessian club had of finishing the season in the top three. The loss at the Wildpark stadium served somewhat as a symbol for the past few weeks, during which SV 98 had only managed one point from five matches since the international break in March. Following the game on Sunday afternoon, the Darmstadt players addressed the assembled media representatives with mixed feelings.
Three points! SV Darmstadt 98's U21 team secured a victory in the Lotto Hessenliga on Saturday afternoon (May 2nd). In their match against Hünfelder SV, the young Lilies overcame an early deficit to clinch a convincing 3-1 win. This result puts the U21 team currently outside the relegation zone. "Our trend is clearly upward," said a delighted U21 coach Sebastian Schmitt.
The successful collaboration between the Hessian Disabled and Rehabilitation Sports Association (HBRS) and SV Darmstadt 98 will continue long-term: Both partners have extended their existing agreement to promote inclusive sports indefinitely. This sends a clear signal for the sustainable development of inclusion and disability sports in Hesse.
A bitter end in Karlsruhe: After 90 entertaining minutes in which both teams sought salvation in attack, Darmstadt suffered a narrow defeat. The final score was 2-1 after a late goal from the home side, following Isac Lidberg's earlier equaliser. After the match, the players were particularly frustrated with the missed opportunities in the first half.
The away form continues to be poor: SV 98 suffered a 2-1 (0-0) defeat against Karlsruher SC. Lidberg scored the equaliser for the team from southern Hesse in the 70th minute.
Darmstadt 98 visit Karlsruher SC on matchday 32 (May 3rd, 1:30 PM). Florian Kohfeldt has made five changes to his starting lineup. Killian Corredor replaces the injured Fraser Hornby, Aleksandar Vukotic comes in for the suspended Patric Pfeiffer, and Fabian Holland starts in place of Matej Maglica, who is sidelined with an ankle injury. Merveille Papela and Niklas Schmidt also join the team, replacing Sergio Lopez and Yosuke Furukawa. In addition to Hornby, Pfeiffer, and Maglica, Darmstadt will also be without the injured Matthias Bader, Fabian Nürnberger, and Luca Marseiler.
Finally, the weekend is here, finally Sunday! On Sunday afternoon (May 3rd, 1:30pm), SV Darmstadt 98 will face Karlsruher SC away. What do the two coaches have to say about the match, who will be refereeing, and where can you watch it if you're not at the stadium? All the important information about the Lilies' 32nd matchday is compiled for you here in "Matchday Guide".
Continuity in sporting management: SV Darmstadt 98 has extended Paul Fernie's contract early and for the long term. As part of the contract extension, the current sporting director will move into the club's management board and will now serve as managing director of sport.
Our head coach spoke at the press conference before the away game against Karlsruher SC (May 3rd/1:30pm) about the mental freshness of his team, the course of action for the remaining games and his coaching colleague, whose commitment to KSC will end after six years this season.
Left hook, 'One hundred and eightyyyyyyy', and hand over the baton. Doesn't sound like football – and that's true. KSC is often associated with professional football, but with the sheer number of titles the club has won, it's worth looking beyond the pitch. Titles from Baden-Württemberg to Rome.
In a rescheduled Lotto Hessenliga match, SV Darmstadt 98's U21 team hosted SV Hummetroth at their youth academy on Wednesday evening (April 29th) but unfortunately came away empty-handed. Despite a spirited performance and playing with one man less, the score after 90 minutes was 3-1 in favour of Hummetroth.