Sixteen Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga clubs meet on Saturday 14 November at XPERION Berlin, on Alexanderplatz, for the knockout stage of the second Showdown of the Virtual Bundesliga Club Championship. RBLZ Gaming, winners of the first Showdown in Munich, chase a double, Holstein Kiel topped the online stage, and defending champions Borussia Dortmund did not make the cut.
VBL Club Championship 2026-27, Showdown #2
How a Showdown works
The Club Championship brings together 35 clubs from Germany's top two divisions on EA Sports FC 27. It is played over five Showdowns, one a month, from October to February. Each one starts with an online stage: every club plays six matchups, and each matchup adds up the goals from two one versus one games. A win is worth 3 points, a draw 1 point. The top 16 qualify for the knockout stage, played in front of an audience.
All points go into an overall table. On Saturday, every round won adds two more: 8 points for the Showdown winner, 6 for the runner-up, 4 for the semifinalists and 2 for the quarterfinalists. After the five Showdowns, the top eight of the overall table go straight to the finals on 12 and 13 March 2027, at XPERION Hamburg. Clubs ranked 9th to 24th go through playoffs. The season is worth €87,500, with DFB-ePokal places and qualification chances for the eChampions League.
RBLZ Gaming, winners in Munich, want more
On 25 October, at the Allianz Arena, RBLZ Gaming won the first Showdown by beating SC Paderborn 07 in the final, 12-11 on aggregate. Paderborn won the first leg 5-4, before RBLZ turned the tie around in the second.
Both Munich finalists are back. RBLZ Gaming open against Eintracht Frankfurt, Paderborn against VfL Bochum 1848.
Holstein Kiel on top, Dortmund and Leverkusen missing
Holstein Kiel finished first in the online stage and face 1. FSV Mainz 05, the last qualifier, in the round of 16. On the other side, Borussia Dortmund, the reigning Club Championship winners, will not be in Berlin. Bayer Leverkusen, already 17th and first team out at the first Showdown, also miss the knockout stage, level on points with 16th place. Hertha BSC, the host city's club, have not got past the online stage in either Showdown.
Saturday's round of 16
| Club | Club | |
|---|---|---|
| Holstein Kiel | vs | 1. FSV Mainz 05 |
| Werder Bremen | vs | FC St. Pauli |
| SC Freiburg | vs | TSG Hoffenheim |
| 1. FC Magdeburg | vs | FC Bayern München |
| HSV eSports | vs | FC Augsburg |
| 1. FC Köln | vs | Borussia Mönchengladbach |
| SC Paderborn 07 | vs | VfL Bochum 1848 |
| RBLZ Gaming | vs | Eintracht Frankfurt |
See you on Saturday in Berlin: RBLZ Gaming will go for a second straight win, and the winner will take the Showdown's 8 points before the third stop, on 20 December in Dresden.
