The SV Darmstadt 98 U21 team suffered a 0-2 defeat against Hessenliga leaders Eintracht Frankfurt II. Despite the loss, the young Darmstadt side displayed impressive fighting spirit, but missed several opportunities to pull a goal back in crucial moments.
Darmstadt traveled to Dreieich knowing they would be facing the strongest team in the Hessenliga. In the first half, Frankfurt pressed with tremendous intensity, varied attacks, and a multitude of set pieces. Darmstadt defended deep and had their work cut out for them, especially with Frankfurt’s powerful set pieces. The sheer number of corners repeatedly caused the Lilies problems. Both goals conceded came from dead-ball situations. In the 16th minute, Maluze headed on a corner, and Sonnenwald tapped it in from close range to give Frankfurt a 1-0 lead. Shortly before halftime, another corner led to Eintracht’s second goal, with Kirchhoff heading the ball on and Dills tapping it in at the far post (45+1). Thus, Darmstadt went into the break trailing 2-0.
After the break, Darmstadt 98 showed a different side. The team played with more courage, repeatedly creating attacking opportunities and having two great chances to make the game exciting again. Twice the Lilies found themselves one-on-one with Siljevic, but were thwarted by the Frankfurt goalkeeper or their own lack of precision. A potential penalty for a foul on Mika Schlosser was not awarded – a decision that sparked much debate. Daniel Petrowsky, coach of the Lilies‘ U21 team, summed it up later. „What striker goes down when he’s through on goal?“ he asked, adding: „We’re going through a difficult period, but the lads didn’t give up. We didn’t fall apart here.“
And that was precisely the point: Despite falling behind, despite Frankfurt’s sharp set pieces, Darmstadt showed resilience, remained solid, and never gave up. As the second half progressed, Darmstadt increasingly neutralised Frankfurt’s attacks, found better solutions in possession, and repeatedly pushed forward. Frankfurt remained dangerous, especially through Ochojski’s precise crosses, but Darmstadt’s defense now held firm. The Blue-Whites ultimately had to concede defeat to the league leaders, but they displayed remarkable character, particularly in the second half.
The winter break comes at just the right time: time to recharge, clear their heads, hit the reset button – and then come back strong in the second half of the season.
The lads fought back, they didn't give up. That was really positive. Now we're going into the winter break and we need to use the time to recover so we can come back strong in the second half of the season.
Line-Up: Börner, Kunstmann (Schnerring, 86′), Görtler, Karakaya (Maier, 86′), Arnold, Ballmert, Klappich (Jaadar, 90′), Rebner, Alagi (Alagi, 46′), Schlosser (Zaatan, 67′), Kadrijaj
The Bundesliga finalised the match schedules for matchdays three through six on Wednesday (July 15th): Darmstadt's home game against Hannover 96 on matchday three will take place on Sunday. This will be followed by their away game against 1. FC Kaiserslautern on Saturday at 1pm. The home game against Arminia Bielefeld on Friday evening and the away game in Wolfsburg, also on Friday evening, have also been confirmed.
The Lilies can welcome another new arrival at the Böllenfalltor: Florian Kleinhansl will now wear the SV 98 jersey. The 25-year-old joins on a free transfer following the expiration of his contract with 1. FC Kaiserslautern on June 30th.
Third test, third clear victory. SV 98 won the match against FC 08 Homburg 5-1 (3-0).
SV Darmstadt 98 and the fusion energy company Focused Energy are entering into an official partnership. The aim of the collaboration is to more closely link top-level football and high technology from the Darmstadt region and to jointly generate momentum for innovation and future societal issues.
Killian Corredor will be playing in his home country again in the future. SV 98 has reached an agreement with FC Nantes on the transfer of the Frenchman.
On Tuesday (July 14, 6pm), SV Darmstadt 98 hosts Regionalliga side FC Homburg and asks fans to take note of the following information.
A home game against KSV! SV Darmstadt 98 hosts Holstein Kiel for the opening matchday of the 2. Bundesliga season this Saturday (August 8 at 1pm). Here’s how you can be there: the member pre-sale for the new season's first home game begins this coming Wednesday (July 15) at 12pm —available online and at the ticket shop at the Merck-Stadion, as usual. You can find all further details in this announcement.
For every home goal scored by the "Lilies," SV Darmstadt 98 fans were doubly rewarded during the recent 2025/26 second-division season. Beyond the joy and excitement, supporters received 98 litres of Krombacher Pils for every goal Darmstadt scored at the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor.
In recent days, various media outlets have published reports and graphics regarding the distribution of TV revenue for the 2026/27 season. Some of these reports included not only specific figures but also a comparison to the previous season. This comparison indicates a supposed revenue increase of €1.4 million for SV 98 compared to the 2025/26 season.
SV Darmstadt 98 successfully completed their second pre-season friendly, defeating Verbandsliga side VfR Fehlheim 8-0 (4-0).
