Arminia Bielefeld have made it to the DFB Cup final. What will happen if the third-tier side win the whole thing?

Bielefeld beat last season's Bundesliga and DFB Cup double winners Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 in the semis, with Jonathan Tah's opener cancelled out by strikes from Marius Wörl and Maximilian Großer, setting up a final against the VfB Stuttgart after their victory over RB Leipzig.

If they can overcome another Bundesliga adversary in Berlin, Bielefeld would become the first 3. Liga team ever to win the DFB Cup. But what would happen next? 

Watch: All of Bielefeld's goals on the way to the final

European qualification 

Bielefeld, if victorious, would go straight into next season's UEFA Europa League's league phase, guaranteeing Mitch Kniat's team European football until at least January. Currently second in the 3. Liga, they could still be navigating the third tier at the same time or have secured a place back in Bundesliga 2.

But what impact might that have on the teams racing for European qualification in the Bundesliga?

It used to be the case that a losing DFB Cup finalist would advance to European competition if the winner qualified by other means, but that was abolished in 2015, when Wolfsburg beat Borussia Dortmund 3-1 in Berlin.

So now, the worst-case scenario for Bundesliga clubs would be that six European places are up for grabs instead of seven. The top four - currently Bayern Munich, Leverkusen, Eintracht Frankfurt and RB Leipzig - would remain UEFA Champions League-bound. Fifth would join Bielefeld in the Europa League, while sixth would qualify for the UEFA Conference League play-offs.

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Five or even six Champions League places?

A fifth Champions League place can be earned each year based on UEFA coefficient, as happened last season. However, this year Germany are fourth in that ranking and will not be able to claim one of the extra positions, which have gone to England and Spain.

The other more plausible route would have been for a team that finishes outside of the top four to win a European title, as the Champions League and Europa League holders qualify automatically for the former competition. That was a possibility with Dortmund currently sitting in eighth but through to the Champions League quarter-finals. However, they were knocked out by Barcelona.

The same would have applied to Frankfurt, should they have gone on to win the Europa League but also finish fifth or below in the Bundesliga. Again, they were also eliminated in the quarter-finals.

If both teams had won their respective European competitions and finished outside the top four, there would have been six Bundesliga teams in the Champions League. However, a continental triumph does not mean an extra Champions League berth if the respective winner has already finished in the top four.