53 hours until the Bundesliga: Cologne's game transfer request is rejected

1.

53 hours until the Bundesliga: Cologne's game transfer request is rejected

1. FC Köln is in a busy schedule. The Bundesliga soccer club plays twice within 53 hours. Contrary to what was hoped, the league game against TSG Hoffenheim will not be postponed after the game in the Conference League can only be played a day late due to heavy fog.

1. FC Köln's Bundesliga game against TSG Hoffenheim goes ahead as planned next Sunday, although the Rhinelanders have little time to recover after a chaotic European Cup trip. That's what Cologne coach Steffen Baumgart said after winning the Conference League at FC Slovacko (1-0) in the Czech Republic.

"A lot of people tried to get the game rescheduled," said Baumgart, "but it won't. We'll see when the game is over whether it will be a disadvantage that we play again on Sunday."

The game in the Czech Republic was canceled on Thursday evening due to heavy fog and only continued on Friday. Due to the tight schedule, the Cologne team then hoped that the league game would be postponed and sought contact with the German Football League (DFL) and with the opponent. Hoffenheim was also willing to talk and was "cooperative", as coach André Breitenreiter had explained, but the date on Sunday evening (7.30 p.m. / DAZN and in the ntv.de live ticker) is still available.

"At some point some clever people decided that it was enough if there were 48 hours between two games," said Baumgart. In a similar case, the DFL had recently postponed a game: In February 2020, a Europa League game by Eintracht Frankfurt in Salzburg was postponed from Thursday to Friday due to a storm. The DFL reacted at the time and rescheduled the Eintracht game scheduled for the following Sunday.

You are following the line of "granting Bundesliga clubs at least two full days of regeneration time before the next Bundesliga game after appearances in the Europa League," it said. At that time, however, there were less than 48 hours between the two games, in the case of 1. FC Köln it was now almost 53 hours due to the kick-off on Friday afternoon.