Darmstadt's busy week in Texas has come to an end. - © Björn Hebel

Darmstadt return to Germany after their visit to the USA

01.10.20261 min read

Bundesliga 2 club Darmstadt have returned from their week-long club trip to San Antonio, Texas, where the Lilies visited their sister city and played partner club San Antonio FC in a friendly.

Recap Paderborn's trip to Washington D.C here!

Darmstadt were in Texas from 25 September to 1 October and concluded their trip with a 7-0 win over San Antonio. Alongside the match, the team and delegation, including members of the executive board and management, attended a series of events and engagements. Fusion energy company Focused Energy was the main partner for the US trip as part of its premium partnership.

Darmstadt worked closely with the Bundesliga on the US trip as part of the league's international marketing strategy to strengthen its global presence and support its clubs' international growth.

Revisit all that happened on the tour here:

Darmstadt head for home

On Thursday morning, American time, the Lilies left Darmstadt's sister city by bus for Hosuton, from where their flight back to Germany departs in the afternoon.

The Lillies' Soccer Clinic

Both Darmstadt and San Antonio players put on a session for young children, giving them tips on passing, tackling, and dribbling. Photos and autographs were also on the agenda after the session.

0:49

Watch: Milian Herbst delights young fans after the game

Florian Kohfeldt on the friendly win

"I view the result positively, even though we naturally know it isn't the level of opposition we usually expect. All in all, however, we kept a clean sheet and secured a well-deserved win by a big margin. By combining the match with our training sessions, we’ve put in a solid block of work during the international break."

1:08

Watch: All the goals from Darmstadt's friendly win

Darmstadt dominate in friendly

Darmstadt won their friendly encounter with co-operation partners San Antonio FC 7-0 on Tuesday evening. Scoring for the Lilies were Ho-Jae Lee, Milan Smit (x2), Lance Duijvestijn, Lars Kehl, Ibrahim El Kadiri and Milian Herbst.

'Football that unifies'

That's the motto of Paderborn's visit, and it was exemplified by a meeting between businesses and local representatives of San Antonio and Darmstadt, who met on Monday along with figures from the club. The connections continued as the squad then went on a city bus tour.

29 September: Matchday

The Sister City Showdown, as it is being billed, kicks off at 7.30pm local time on Tuesday evening (2.30 am CEST on Wednesday).

28 September: Preparing on the pitch

The Bundesliga 2 side held a public training session at San Antonio FC's Toyota Field on Monday ahead of their friendly match there on Tuesday.

Darmstadt head downstream

The squad then took a boat trip along the iconic San Antonio River on Sunday afternoon.

27 September: Lilies pound The Rock

Darmstadt visited the Performance Center of the San Antonio Spurs, known as The Rock, on Sunday. The facility is part of an ultra-modern $510m complex. R.C. Buford, CEO of Spurs Sports & Entertainment said: "We are delighted that you are stopping by the Rock. We look forward to your feedback and extend a warm welcome to our city on behalf of the San Antonio Spurs."

Hard at work

In the afternoon, the Darmstadt players switched from spectators to participants, as Florian Kohfeldt put his players through their paces for the first time under the Texan sun, with the focus of the training session on build-up play.

1:11

Watch: Darmstadt squad choose football positions

The Lilies players revealed which position they would play if they pivoted to a career in American football.

0:15

Watch: Schuhen learning something new

Goalkeeper Marc Schuhen gets to grips with an American Football during the visit to UTSA.

26 September: Football meets American Football

First up on the agenda for Darmstadt on Saturday morning was a visit to the Alamodome in downtown San Antonio. It is the home of the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) American Football team. The Roadrunners play Colorado State later today.

25 September: Darmstadt arrive in San Antonio

The group landed in Houston on Friday 25 September and made their way to the Monarch Hotel, where they will be staying for the duration of their stateside stay. Saturday's schedule is busy; in the morning, they will head to a University of Texas American football game, before a training session in the afternoon. Then, in the evening, they will watch San Antonio FC in action against Tampa Bay Rowdies.

Sisters for years

San Antonio and Darmstadt became sister cities back in 2017, which is the basis for the partnership between Darmstadt and San Antonio FC, which was formalised into a comprehensive cooperation agreement in 2024.

Pfitzner: "A special collaboration"

"We're delighted that both teams are now facing each other in a true friendly match, marking another milestone in this special collaboration and providing a sporting highlight," said Darmstadt president Markus Pfitzner. "During the delegation trip this past March, I could sense at every meeting the close bonds that have formed over the two years since the partnership began. While sport served as the initial connecting element, the collaboration has since expanded to include economic partnerships and social engagement."

2:14

Watch: Darmstadt 2-1 Bielefeld - Matchday 5 highlights

The best of the action as Darmstadt picked up their first league win of the season against Arminia Bielefeld.

Tough start

Darmstadt find themselves in a somewhat precarious position after six rounds of Bundesliga 2 fixtures this season. Florian Kohfeldt's charges remain bottom of the table a 5-1 defeat at Wolfsburg, but only three points separate the Lilies from St. Pauli up in eighth place.

Welcome!

Bundesliga 2 club Darmstadt are in San Antonio, Texas during the first international break of the 2026/27 season. Keep abreast of all the latest news, events and friendlies from the Lilies' trip to the US from 25 September to 1 October.

Darmstadt return to Germany after their visit to the USA

Summary