DDR-Liga
 |
|
| Country | East Germany |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1950 |
| Folded | 1991 |
| Replaced by | 2nd Bundesliga |
| Level on pyramid | Level 2 |
| Promotion to | DDR-Oberliga |
| Relegation to | Bezirksliga (15 regional leagues) |
| Last champions |
1. FC Union Berlin FSV Zwickau (1990-91) |
The DDR-Liga (English:East German League or GDR-League) was, prior to German reunification in 1990, the second level of football competition in the DDR (Deutsche Demokratische Republik or German Democratic Republic, commonly East Germany), being roughly equivalent to the Bundesliga in West Germany.
The league was established with two divisions of ten teams each in 1950 as the level of play below the DDR-Oberliga, and as such was the second tier of the East German football league system. It remained the second tier in various configurations throughout its existence until it was disbanded in 1991.
The champion of each division was directly promoted to the Oberliga. While not having geographical "tags" attached to the division, Staffel 1 was originally equivalent to a Northern Division while Staffel 2 was the Southern Division. The system was not static however, clubs were often moved between groups to balance out league numbers, and sometimes also for political reasons. In the same way, clubs were also moved between cities out of a variety of reasons.
In its second season, the divisions were expanded to twelve teams each, the year after to thirteen and in 1953 to fourteen.
The year 1954 saw the creation of a third group, Staffel 3, making geographical categorizing more difficult, but essentially One was north, Two was south and Three was central.
The league system changed completely in 1955. East Germany followed the example of the Soviet Union and switched to a calendar year system, resulting in a shortened autumn competition for 1955 only with a single division, fourteen-team format. From the 1956 season the league continued to operate as a single division format with the top two teams gaining promotion.
After the 1960 season, the league reverted to the traditional system of playing from autumn to spring. This meant that the 1961-62 season, as a transition season, went through three rounds and each of the fourteen clubs played 39 games.
The year after, the league returned to two divisions, North and South, still with fourteen clubs each and the winners gaining promotion.
In 1963, the two divisions were expanded to sixteen clubs each.
After a lengthy period without changes to the system, the DDR-Ligas were revamped in 1971 when their number was increased to five with eleven teams in the C and D group and twelve teams in the other three. The year after, all five divisions had twelve clubs. The new system meant that not all league winners could be directly promoted. Instead, the five champions played a promotion round with the top two teams gaining entry to the Oberliga.
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