2023/24 Bundesliga 2 permutations: Who can be promoted? Who can be relegated?
Hamburg's win over city rivals St. Pauli on Friday means nobody can be promoted this weekend, but the first team could face the drop. bundesliga.com runs you through the Matchday 32 permutations…
Predict the remaining matches and see how they would impact the table
Promotion
St. Pauli are top, for now, with a two point advantage going into the weekend, but their defeat by HSV, coupled with third-place Fortuna Düsseldorf's victory over Nuremberg, means they cannot secure automatic promotion on Matchday 32.
Watch: Hamburg 1-0 St. Pauli - Matchday 32 highlights
Holstein Kiel in second are just two points ahead of Fortuna, but face relegation-threatened Wehen Wiesbaden on Sunday. If they win, they could go top of the table, one point above Pauli, heading into the final two games of the campaign.
Third place/play-off spot
Pauli are assured of at least a crack at the play-off in the worst-case scenario.
Kiel will finish no lower than third if:
- they avoid defeat in Wiesbaden
Fortuna's victory means fifth-placed Karlsruhe can no longer secure a top-three finish. As such, it is now a two-horse race between HSV and Düsseldorf.
Read more about the promotion race here
Watch: St. Pauli beat Hannover to move closer to promotion
Want more Bundesliga Action?
Relegation
Osnabrück are seven adrift of the play-off spot at the bottom end, eight from outright safety. Their fixture at home to Schalke has been postponed until the following Tuesday. They could be relegated without kicking a ball this weekend if both Wiesbaden and Kaiserslautern (vs. Magdeburg) win and Eintracht Braunschweig lose at Greuther Fürth.
If that scenario doesn't play out, then they will be the first team relegated from the Bundesliga 2 on Tuesday if:
- they lose at home to Schalke
- they draw after either Hansa Rostock beat Karlsruhe on Saturday or Wiesbaden get a point against Kiel on Sunday
Safety
Of the teams above them, nine points separate Rostock in 17th and Elversberg in 10th going into the final three rounds of fixtures. All teams from ninth up are safe.
Since many teams at the bottom have to play each other, Elversberg cannot finish in the bottom two and will confirm safety with a draw against Hertha Berlin.
Magdeburg, Schalke and Nuremberg can also ensure their survival at this level if they can create a seven-point cushion over 16th. Six points or fewer could also become enough given the games to come between teams at the very bottom.
Read more about promotion and relegation in Germany
Related news
Bundesliga 2 promotion race
St. Pauli are agonisingly close to confirming a long-awaited Bundesliga return, but dropped points for Kiel and Düsseldorf have made things interesting for the chasing pack...
Matchday 32 overview
St. Pauli will have to wait to confirm their promotion after losing to city rivals HSV, while Fortuna took another step towards the top flight...
Matchday 32 probable teams
What knocks and niggles does Thomas Tuchel have to manage as Bayern Munich visit Stuttgart between their two Real Madrid fixtures?