The season finally continues! While the U17, U19 and the professional team of SV Darmstadt 98 have already started the new competitive season, the U21 had a longer break in the Hessenliga. Now this Junglilien team is returning to the pitch and will play their first competitive game of 2025 next Sunday (February 16th) at the youth performance centre in Darmstadt.
Not on freshly mown lawn, but on artificial turf in Kastanienallee. The U21 of SV Darmstadt 98 will meet VfB 1905 Marburg on Sunday (2.30pm) at the Lilien NLZ site. In the first leg, the South Hesse team narrowly lost 0-1. But towards the end of last year things were going really well for the Darmstadt team – and the team now wants to build on these strong performances before the winter break. The U21 of SV 98 is currently in sixth place in the table with 35 points.
However, an easy start to the new year looks different. “The first three games against Marburg, Alzenau and Eddersheim will be equally big tests. “We still hope that we can pick up where we left off in the first half of the season,” explains U21 coach Daniel Petrowsky to sv98.de. His team made good use of the winter break to prepare themselves well for these challenges.
Several players from the U19 completed the preparation for the Hessenliga team. In addition, Marcello Maier was added to the defense from TSG Hoffenheim. Overall, the U21 head coach has had a broader squad at his disposal since the winter break, which has noticeably increased competition. “Of course, this also raises the level of training enormously,” emphasizes Petrowsky and adds. “In the end I’m spoiled for choice because there are significantly more than eleven players at a good level.”
The goal in the remainder of the second half of the season remains to prove that the team can compete at the level of the Hessenliga. At the same time, the focus is on developing the players individually. The positive approaches from the preparation gave us courage and self-confidence: out of five test games, the team only narrowly lost one, 2-1 against SV Gonsenheim. In the other games, the Junglilien always left the pitch as winners.
“If you compare it with the summer preparation, you can clearly see how the team has developed in these six months. “We are much more stable defensively and play more dominant football overall – we had some difficulties with that at the beginning, especially against men’s teams,” says Petrowsky with satisfaction. The last test before the start of the competitive game in particular should have given the team a lot of self-confidence: with a clear 7-1 win against the association league team VfB Bodenheim, the U21 warmed up for the start of the Hessenliga. “The anticipation is huge. We haven’t had any competitive games for two and a half months and were in preparation for six weeks, during which we had a lot of intensive training sessions.“ The Junglilien want to continue their positive trend against VfB 1905.
SV Darmstadt 98 invites all its members to come to the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor on November 1st, 2026, starting at 11:30am. Together, we aim to once again create the largest team photo in our club’s history—with the professional players in the front and the entire Lilies family behind them.
On Sunday (Oct 18th), SV Darmstadt 98 will visit Karlsruher SC. The side from Baden differs from the Lilies in several key respects. Furthermore, the match will see SV 98 cross paths with a former player once again. Find out here about other connections between the two clubs, as well as some particularly interesting statistics ahead of the encounter.
On Tuesday evening (October 13th), the SilberLilien took part in SV Darmstadt 98’s Stolperstein tour for the first time. Along the approximately six-kilometre route, the participants made several stops to learn more about the fates of Jewish club members who were persecuted and driven out during the Holocaust.
From new grassroots sports offerings and a look back at the club's history to birthdays and the latest updates from the media briefing—there is plenty to report from SV Darmstadt 98 again this week. In "Lilien Across the Board," we round up the news, insights, and stories from life at the club.
Tickets for the home match against 1. FC Heidenheim on November 22nd are available for purchase now.
SV Darmstadt 98's U21 team proved their mettle at home against KSV Hessen Kassel II in the Hessenliga on Sunday (Oct. 11th). After a convincing 90-minute performance, the Young Lilies secured another three points, finishing with a decisive 4–0 victory that lifts them to sixth place in the standings.
The Lilies overturned an early deficit to celebrate a 3–1 home victory against Energie Cottbus—a win that boosts confidence and confirms the progress being made. Read our analysis to find out why there is still work to be done and what positives SV 98 takes away from the match.
This season, too, Lilien fans will be doubly rewarded for every home goal scored by SV Darmstadt 98. In addition to the joy and excitement of the goals, the team's supporters will receive 98 litres of Krombacher Pils for every home goal scored by Darmstadt at the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor.
After the international break, Darmstadt 98 returned to the Bölle with a home win! Against Energie Cottbus, SV Darmstadt 98 put on a spirited performance in front of their home crowd and rewarded themselves with three points after an intense match. We've compiled the post-match reactions for you here:
Despite falling behind, Darmstadt secured their second consecutive home win! Darmstadt defeated Energie Cottbus 3-1 (1-1). The home side equalised after conceding an early goal in the four-minute period through Weißhaupt before halftime. Vukotic headed his team into the lead in the second half, before Lührs sealed the victory with the third goal. This home win brings Darmstadt's season total to seven points.
Homegame at Böllenfalltor (10/10, 1pm): Florian Kohfeldt has made two changes to his starting XI compared to the away match in Wolfsburg three weeks ago. Richter and Mikelbrencis come into the starting lineup for Sickinger (calf issues) and Lannert (illness).
On Saturday afternoon (October 10th, 1pm), SV 98 hosts Energie Cottbus at the Merck-Stadion am Böllenfalltor for Matchday 7. What do the two head coaches have to say ahead of kick-off? Who is officiating the match, and where can you follow the action live? As always, we have compiled all the key information regarding the game against Cottbus in our "Matchday Guide" feature.