Nine “English weeks” left this calendar year? That’s what some Bundesliga clubs are facing due to the combination of league play, the DFB Cup, and the Champions League. Here’s an overview of how the “English weeks” are scheduled.
Four German teams in the Champions League, two Bundesliga clubs in the Europa League, and SC Freiburg competing in the Conference League: Nearly half of the Bundesliga is back in international competition this season. Combined with the DFB Cup and the domestic league, this results in a tightly packed schedule for many teams.
On paper, FC Bayern and BVB—who still have to make up their first-round DFB Cup matches—face the prospect of nine “English weeks” alongside their regular Bundesliga schedule by the end of the current calendar year. An overview of the “English weeks” for the 2026–27 season:
Bundesliga, Champions League, and more: English Weeks in September 2026
The very first week of September presents a unique situation: The Munich and Dortmund teams will not play their first-round DFB Cup matches until between Matchdays 1 and 2 of the Bundesliga (Dortmund at HEBC Hamburg on September 1 and Bayern in Osnabrück on September 2) —The reason is the Franz-Beckenbauer Super Cup, which the double champions and the runners-up contested in August, while all other teams were in action in the first round of the cup.
A week later, between the second and third Bundesliga matchdays, the first matchday of the Champions League group stage is scheduled, at which point things will get serious midweek for Stuttgart and Leipzig as well as for BVB and Bayern. Another week later (on September 16 and 17), the Europa League group stage kicks off with Leverkusen and Hoffenheim. After that, the provisional schedule at least provides a short break for some of the Bundesliga pros: between September 21 and October 6, the international break—which is longer this fall for the first time—is scheduled to include four international matches instead of the usual two.
An overview of the “English weeks” schedule:
September 1–2: DFB Cup, 1st round—affects only Bayern and Dortmund
September 8–10: Champions League, Matchday 1 (Bayern, Dortmund, Stuttgart, Leipzig)
September 16–17: Europa League, Matchday 1 (Leverkusen, Hoffenheim)
Busy Weeks in October 2026
After the international break ends, there are still four Bundesliga weekends scheduled for October, as well as three additional busy weeks for some clubs. That means up to seven competitive matches within 24 days.
An overview of the dates for the back-to-back match weeks:
October 13–15: Champions League, Matchday 2 – Europa League, Matchday 2 – Conference League, Matchday 1 (Freiburg)
October 20–22: Champions League, Matchday 3 – Europa League, Matchday 3 – Conference League, Matchday 2
October 27–28: DFB Cup, Round 2
Triple-Headers in November 2026
In November, there will be “only” two double-header weeks for the German European Cup participants, in addition to three Bundesliga matchdays—interrupted by an international break featuring the “usual” two international matches. The call-up window for national team players runs from November 9 to 17.
An overview of the double-header week dates:
November 3, 4, 5: Champions League, Matchday 4 – Europa League, Matchday 4 – Conference League, Matchday 3
November 24, 25, 26: Champions League, Matchday 5 – Europa League, Matchday 5 – Conference League, Matchday 4
Back-to-back match weeks in December 2026
The Bundesliga winter break begins this year on December 21. Before that, most teams competing in European competitions face three Bundesliga matchdays and two back-to-back match weeks in the last month of the year—depending on whether the respective teams reach the round of 16 in the DFB Cup. In that case, SC Freiburg would even have six matches to play before Christmas, as the Conference League also reconvenes in mid-December for the final matchday of the group stage.
An overview of the double-header weeks:
December 1–2: DFB Cup, Round of 16
December 8–10: Champions League, Matchday 6 – Europa League, Matchday 6 – Conference League, Matchday 5
December 17: Conference League, Matchday 6
Busy Weeks in January 2027
The group stage of the Champions League and the Europa League, on the other hand, will continue into January. That’s also when the first “English week” in the Bundesliga kicks off. For Bundesliga clubs competing in the Champions League and Europa League, the action resumes right after the winter break with seven competitive matches in January.
An overview of the “English week” dates:
January 12, 13, 14: Bundesliga, Matchday 16
January 19, 20, 21: Champions League, Matchday 7 – Europa League, Matchday 7
January 27, 28: Champions League, Matchday 8 – Europa League, Matchday 8
When is the next midweek Bundesliga matchday?
By the end of January, it will be clear which Bundesliga teams have potentially qualified directly for the round of 16 in the Champions League or Europa League, which teams will have to go through the playoffs—and for which teams the European campaign is over for the season. The DFB-Pokal quarterfinals will take place as early as February, followed by the first and second legs of the international competition playoffs at the end of the month.
The next “English week” in the Bundesliga will then take place from March 2 to 4 as part of Matchday 24. The round of 16 in the Champions League and other competitions are also scheduled in the provisional calendar for March 2027, as are a total of four Bundesliga matchdays and another international break.
