Bochum to host Hertha Berlin in opening Bundesliga 2 game of 2026/27
The start of the Bundesliga 2 season on 7 August marks the launch of elite domestic football in Germany for 2026/27. And it all kicks off with two of the second tier’s biggest teams as Bochum host Hertha Berlin at the iconic Ruhrstadion looking to set the tone for the campaign.
Both clubs come off relatively disappointing campaigns amidst aspirations to return to the Bundesliga. Hertha, in their third straight season at this level, finished seventh after a chastening 6-1 defeat to Arminia Bielefeld on the final day. Bochum, meanwhile, came ninth after Uwe Rösler led a recovery following a poor start following top-flight relegation.
It’s far more than just a difficult 2025/26 that links these Matchday 1 opponents. Their recent fates have in fact been closely intertwined.
Go back to May 2023 when Keven Schlotterbeck headed in an equaliser for Bochum to snatch a 1-1 draw in Berlin. It was the goal that confirmed Hertha’s relegation from the Bundesliga and kept the Ruhr club up.
The latter’s top-flight stay lasted two more years before also falling through the trapdoor. And after earning only three points from the first eight games last season, they looked likely to make it back-to-back relegations. But then came the turnaround at home to Hertha, earning a 3-2 win on Rösler’s debut at the helm to kickstart Bochum’s campaign and push for Bundesliga 2 safety.
Rösler also has a connection with his opposite number, having been teammates with Stefan Leitl at Unterhaching when they were relegated from Bundesliga 2 in 2001/02. A quarter of a century later, they will face each other as coaches for a fifth time as they look to get their current teams off to a good start in 2026/27.
It will be the latest chapter in a fixture that has seen 56 matches across the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2. But they are in the past. Attentions now turn to the 2026/27 campaign and building for a better future.
It all starts at the Ruhrstadion as Hertha head to Bochum with both teams looking to lay down a marker for the 34 games ahead.
