Mainz appeal unsuccessful: Cup match in Dresden on Monday

Football Bundesliga club FSV Mainz 05 has been unsuccessful with its administrative appeal to the DFB Federal Court regarding the postponement of the match in the first round of the cup. The match at Dynamo Dresden will therefore kick off as planned on August 18 (6:00 p.m.), as Mainz announced.

The reason for this is that FSV have to travel away for the first leg of the Conference League play-off just three days later. Their opponents will be the winner of the clash between Rosenborg Trondheim from Norway and Swedish club Hammarby IF. Who Mainz will face will be decided on August 14.

Heidel: "Very disappointing"

Christian Heidel, Chief Sports Officer, was disillusioned by the decision. "The decision is very disappointing for us and to the clear competitive disadvantage of the only club representing German soccer in the Conference League," criticized Heidel. "The heavy workload and the short recovery times for our players will restrict us considerably in the first two weeks of the competition."

The Mainz team had already voiced criticism in June, after the cup fixtures were decided. According to the club, the DFB justified the scheduling with the binding requirements of the local security authorities. The "Canaletto", Germany's largest city festival, will take place in Dresden on the weekend of August 15-17.