DDR-Oberliga
| Country | East Germany |
|---|---|
| Founded | 1948 |
| Folded | 1991 |
| Replaced by | Bundesliga |
| Level on pyramid | Level 1 |
| Relegation to | |
| Last champions |
(1990–91) |
The DDR-Oberliga (English:East German Premier League or GDR-Premier League) was the top level football league in East Germany.
Following World War II, separate sports competitions emerged in the occupied eastern and western halves of Germany, replacing the Gauligas of the Nazi era.
In East Germany, a top-flight football competition, the highest league in the East German football league system, was established in 1949 as the DS-Oberliga (Deutscher Sportausschuss Oberliga or German Sports Association Upper League). Beginning in 1958, it carried the name DDR-Oberliga and was part of the league structure within the DFV (Deutscher Fussball Verband der DDR or German Football Association of the GDR).
In its inaugural season in 1949/50 the DDR-Oberliga was made up of 14 teams with 2 relegation spots. Over the course of the next four seasons the number of teams in the division varied and included anywhere from 17 to 19 sides with 3 or 4 relegation spots. Beginning with the 1954/55 season up until merger of the East and West German football associations in 1991/92 the league was made up of 14 teams with 2 relegation spots.
Initially the DDR-Oberliga was operated on an autumn-spring schedule as was traditional in Germany. From 1956 to 1960 a Soviet-style spring-autumn (calendar year) schedule was in place. This required a transition round in 1955 and, although no champion was formally declared that season, Wismut Karl-Marx-Stadt finished atop the division. 1961/62 saw the return of an autumn-spring season and an extended schedule (39 matches vs. 26 matches) was played with each club meeting the others a total of three times – once at home, once away, and once at a neutral venue.
After German reunification the last regular DDR-Oberliga season was played in 1990/91 under the designation NOFV-Oberliga (Nordostdeutsche Fußballverband Oberliga or Northeast German Football Federation Premier League). The following year the East German league structure was merged into the West German system under the German Football Association (Deutscher Fussball Bund or German Football Association) and the top two NOFV-Oberliga clubs – and Dynamo Dresden – joined the first division Bundesliga.
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