Darmstadt 98 has played 13 seasons in the divisions covered here since 1992/93: 3 in the Bundesliga and 10 in 2. Bundesliga. It has been in 2. Bundesliga since 2024/25 (2 seasons), after 1 season in the Bundesliga. Its best finish was 14th in the Bundesliga, in 2015/16. It has been promoted 3 times and relegated 3 times.
Darmstadt 98
2025/26: 5th in 2. Bundesliga
How high can Darmstadt 98 realistically go?
Based on finishing 5th in 2. Bundesliga in 2025/26
About 4 in 10
Of the 112 times a club finished in the top half of 2. Bundesliga without going up between 2004/05 and 2020/21, 44 went up within five seasons.
44 of 112 (39%); likely range 28%–50%, 34 different clubs.
| Reached the top flight within ten seasons | about 5 in 10 40 of 78; range 32%–71% |
Darmstadt 98 itself: 2 of the last 10 seasons in the Bundesliga.
How do we know?
We took every season since 2004/05 in which a club finished in the same part of the same league, and followed each club forward. The figure is the share that reached each goal. Ten-year goals use finishes from 2004/05 to 2015/16, five-year goals from 2004/05 to 2020/21, so every case has had the full time to play out; results run to the end of 2025/26.
It describes what happened to clubs in this position, not a forecast for one club. A club with much more money or history than is usual for its position has better chances than the figure suggests, which is why the club's own record is shown underneath.
The likely range is a 95% interval worked out by resampling clubs rather than seasons, because the same club often appears several times. It is wide where only a few clubs have been in a position, and two leagues whose ranges overlap may not really differ. Reserve teams such as Barcelona B or Real Madrid Castilla are left out of these counts, because they cannot be promoted into their first team's division.
Counts: went up within five seasons: 44 of 112; reached the top flight within ten seasons: 40 of 78.
The story so far
Final position each seasonRinged dots are titles
How to read this chart
Every club in the divisions covered is placed on one ladder each season: the champions are 1st, and the top club of the second division comes straight after the bottom club of the first. Shaded bands are the divisions. Hover over or tap a dot for the season.
13seasons since 1992/93
3seasons in the Bundesliga
0league titles
0top-four finishes
3promotions
3relegations
Against the money
Not available for Germany: wage bills are not published club by club in one place there, so this is shown for England and France only.
Clubs with a similar path
Clubs whose finishing positions over the last 15 seasons were closest to Darmstadt 98's, with recent seasons counting more.
In Germany
1. FC HeidenheimGermany · 17th in the Bundesliga, 2025/26VfL BochumGermany · 9th in 2. Bundesliga, 2025/26FC St. PauliGermany · 18th in the Bundesliga, 2025/26Hamburger SVGermany · 13th in the Bundesliga, 2025/26
Elsewhere in Europe
FrosinoneItaly · 2nd in Serie B, 2025/26MiddlesbroughEngland · 5th in the Championship, 2025/26Las PalmasSpain · 5th in the Segunda División, 2025/26
Compare Darmstadt 98 with another club
Sources
- Final tables to 2025/26. Positions are worked out from match results.
- Relegations include dropping out of the divisions covered.
- All figures can be downloaded on the data page. Spotted a mistake? Report it with a source.