For many Fortuna fans from Düsseldorf, May 27, 2024 will certainly remain an unforgettable date for a long time. However, in connection with a negative experience. Because that evening, their favourite team's almost certain promotion to the Bundesliga was snatched out of their hands. Daniel Thioune's team won the relegation first leg in Bochum 3-0, but the Bochum team managed a sensational comeback in the second leg and Fortuna remained in the second division. And the new season now begins with the away game at the Böllenfalltor. The goal for the upcoming season? To be just a little bit more successful than last year. Because that would automatically mean promotion. We take a closer look at our opening opponent.
| Arrivals | Departures |
| Noah Mbamba (Defensive Midfield, Bayer Leverkusen) | Christos Tzolis (Club Brügge) |
| Tim Rossmann (Left Midfield, Karlsruher SC) | Yannik Engelhardt (Como) |
| Danny Schmidt (Attacking Midfield, Mainz 05 II) | Benjamin Böckle (Rapid Wien) |
| Florian Schock (Goalkeeper, VfB Stuttgart) | Karol Niemczycki (SV Darmstadt 98) |
| Dzenan Pejcinovic (Striker, VfL Wolfsburg) |
Humanity is most important to him. That was already the case when he was still standing on the lawn. And it still is today. “Mutual respect and mutual appreciation are always important,” emphasised Daniel Thioune in an interview with the online portal mopo.de. Common ground. That’s what the head coach of Fortuna Düsseldorf is all about. Work together. Working together to make dreams come true. That’s what he stands for. “I always want to achieve the maximum – wherever I am at the moment. So I also want to make my dreams come true with this club,” said the coach of Fortuna Düsseldorf in an interview with kicker.
And the coach is holding on to what is probably one of his biggest dreams: to get a taste of football in the Bundesliga and compete with the best teams in Germany. But this dream has (still) been denied him. In his previous coaching career, Thioune managed to make the jump from the third division to the second highest German league. With VfL Osnabrück he won the 3rd league championship in the 2018/19 season. He then took over Hamburger SV with the aim of getting promoted to the 1st Bundesliga – a goal that he narrowly missed with the Hanseatic League. At the end of the 2020/21 season, the team finished the season in fourth place.
However, Thioune never gave up his ambitions. Since he took over as coach at Fortuna Düsseldorf in March 2022, he has continued to pursue the goal of achieving the maximum. Under his leadership, the team showed significant improvement and ended the 2022/23 season in a solid place in the upper mid-table of the 2nd Bundesliga. As is well known, Thioune’s team missed out on promotion to the Bundesliga last season. Daniel Thioune and Fortuna are now starting the new season with fresh momentum and some new faces in the squad. They want to work together to make their dreams come true. And their head coach will set an inspiring role model.
The Rhinelanders are characterised by their attacking power – at least that was the case impressively last season. With 72 goals in the last season, the Düsseldorf team took top spot in the 2nd Bundesliga. Above all, Christos Tzolis was a guarantee for goals and scored 22 goals. However, the top scorer is no longer available to Fortuna and instead joined Club Bruges in the summer. The load must therefore be distributed across several shoulders. Düsseldorf has a few to choose from: Vincent Vermeij, for example, scored twelve goals last season, while Ao Tanaka (7), Felix Klaus (6) and Isak Johannesson (4) were particularly dangerous.
Isak Johannesson. The 21-year-old has been passionate about football since he was a child. Growing up with the ball at his feet, his role models were Argentine legend Lionel Messi and Icelandic midfielder Aron Elís Thrándarson. “Football is the best thing you can do,” said the Icelandic international, who initially moved to Fortuna on loan in 2022 and has been permanently employed by the 95ers since this summer. At the age of 17, Johannesson made his debut for Iceland’s national team and played 27 games in which he scored three goals.
The central midfielder was part of the FC Copenhagen squad for two years before moving to Fortuna, where he gained numerous experiences in the Danish league: two championship titles, as well as Danish Cup winners and participation in the Champions League with games against Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund and FC Seville on his CV. And yet Johannesson couldn’t really leave his mark in Copenhagen. He played 61 competitive games for the Danes, but was only on the field for 2,398 of a possible 5,490 minutes. In short: he rarely had the opportunity to show his skills in his favorite position.
The move to Fortuna, on the other hand, gave him a boost and more scope in his position to finally let his talent blossom. With success. Goals and assists piled up. Last season he made 36 competitive appearances, scoring seven goals and providing nine assists. Coach Daniel Thioune also noticed this positive development and described Isak Johannesson to the kicker sports magazine as “a little diamond”. And further praised: “It’s fun to work with him.”
As Florian Kohfeldt approached the team's dressing room at halftime, the Darmstadt head coach heard exactly one sentence: "It's not finished." Fraser Hornby had uttered it, setting the tone for his teammates and himself. What followed was a remarkable second half from Darmstadt 98 and a point against SV Elversberg, a point that, while likely insufficient for their promotion hopes in southern Hesse, nonetheless filled the Darmstadt fans with pride.
For every home goal scored by the Lilies, SV Darmstadt 98 fans will be doubly rewarded in the 2025/26 season. In addition to the joy and excitement, the Lilies' supporters will also receive 98 litres of Krombacher Pils for every home goal scored by Darmstadt at the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor.
They fought to the very end, playing with ten men, and tried everything. But in the end, Darmstadt had to settle for a 3-3 draw against SV Elversberg in the sold-out Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor. How do the Darmstadt players and staff assess the passionate 90 minutes at the Bölle? What did both head coaches have to say about the match? We've compiled all the reactions for you.
No winner in the clash of the pursuers: Darmstadt 98's home game against SV Elversberg ended in a 3-3 (2-3) draw. After three consecutive defeats, SV 98 managed to secure at least a point and now has 51 points this season. Pfeiffer (14th minute) and Hornby (15th and 51st minutes) scored for the team from southern Hesse.
It's home game day at the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor. On Saturday evening, the 31st matchday of the 2. Bundesliga, SV Darmstadt 98 hosts SV Elversberg. Head coach Florian Kohfeldt has made two changes to his starting eleven compared to last week. Raoul Petretta replaces Fabian Nürnberger (thigh injury). Yosuke Furukawa also starts in place of Killian Corredor against the team from Saarland.
A new match under the floodlights awaits! On Saturday evening (April 25th, 8:30pm), Darmstadt 98 play against SV Elversberg. What are the coaches' opinions before the game? Who will referee, broadcast, and commentate the match? And what kind of weather can Darmstadt fans expect at the stadium? All the information is compiled for you in "Matchday Guide."
What are Florian Kohfeldt's thoughts on Saturday evening's match (April 25th/8:30pm) against SV Elversberg? Where does he see the strengths of their upcoming opponent? And how does his team plan to get back on track after three consecutive defeats? The Darmstadt head coach answered these and other questions at the press conference on Friday (April 24th) in the catacombs of the Merck Stadium at Böllenfalltor. We've summarised Kohfeldt's key statements from the press conference for you.
On Saturday evening (April 26th/8:30pm), SV Darmstadt 98 will host the team from SV 07 Elversberg and asks you to take note of the following information.
In the world of football, a yo-yo team is a team that oscillates between two leagues – too good for one league, but not quite at the level of the next higher one. The result is usually many promotions and many relegations. But SV Elversberg is currently redefining the term. For several years now, the yo-yo has been taking SVE almost exclusively upwards.
Saturday evening at the Böllenfalltor, the seventh edition! This time, SV Darmstadt 98 hosts SV Elversberg at the Merck Stadium. Both teams are strong offensively and convincing defensively. But where do the differences lie? And in which statistics do both the team from southern Hesse and the Saarlanders lead the pack? We've compiled all the facts and figures for this match right here for you.
The news that Fabian Holland will no longer play for Darmstadt at the end of this season affected everyone at the club. We take a look at it. Also exciting this week: The U17s host Eintracht Frankfurt's youth team in Pfungstadt today, Wednesday (April 22nd/5pm) for the Hessian derby in the Hesse Cup; the Darmstadt first team will wear members' jerseys against SV Elversberg next Saturday (April 25th/8:30pm); and the Darmstadt VIP box has been temporarily converted into a yoga camp. "Darmstadt Across the Board" on Wednesday is available here.
The end of an era. Fabian Holland's twelfth season in the Lilies' jersey will be his last with SV 98. The 35-year-old's contract, which expires at the end of the season, will not be renewed. The club informed Holland of this decision in a confidential meeting. Both club and player agree to focus entirely on achieving the best possible end to the season until the final match and that any plans for a farewell celebration will depend on how the rest of the season unfolds.