Pokal

Nuremberg and the entire table tennis world are ready for a premiere. On Saturday and Sunday, the Kia Metropol Arena will host the Leapmotor Cup Grand Opening—for the first time, the round of 16 and quarterfinals of the German Table Tennis Cup will be held in a single weekend and in one central location. Sixteen teams, twelve matches, four tickets to the Liebherr Cup Final4: The entire event will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Ahead of the Leapmotor Cup Grand Opening, Dang Qiu sums up what makes the German Table Tennis Cup so special: “The best players don’t always come out on top as a matter of course,” says the world No. 11 from Borussia Düsseldorf ahead of the season’s first major event. Qiu knows what he’s talking about—the record-holding cup champion has recently missed the Liebherr Cup Final4 twice in a row. And the road won’t be easy this time either: the 29-year-old and Borussia face one of the toughest matchups in the round of 16 in Nuremberg.

With the Leapmotor Cup Grand Opening, the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) is breaking new ground this season. Instead of home matches spread out over weeks, all teams will compete in one location for a spot in the final four. This coming Saturday, the cup round of 16 will be played in two sessions starting at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. simultaneously on four tables; the quarterfinals will follow on Sunday on two tables. The four winning teams will ultimately advance to the Liebherr Cup Final4, which will be held this winter. Anyone who wants to attend at the Kia Metropol Arena in Nuremberg at the last minute can secure a ticket through the official TTBL ticket shop—all tickets are currently 20 percent off, and the weekend ticket in the lowest price category starts at just 26 euros.

The start: A blockbuster match and three historic showdowns

Two of the biggest names in German table tennis will face off right in the first session on Saturday. Borussia Düsseldorf, bolstered by Olympic champion Fan Zhendong, will take on TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen starting at 11 a.m. This wasn’t a dream draw for either team. “Ochsenhausen is, of course, an absolute blockbuster and a tough match to start with,” says Qiu, warning against premature title predictions: “In sports, nothing is ever certain—not even with Fan Zhendong on the team.” On the other side, Iulian Chirita sees Ochsenhausen’s underdog status as an opportunity: “The pressure on us is lower, and we can play more freely.” A potential matchup with the Chinese superstar would be exactly “what you hope for as a pro” for the TTF’s rising star.

At the same time, there will be a rematch of a 2012–13 Final4 clash: Second-division team SV Union Velbert will take on last year’s finalist, TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell—just as they did in Stuttgart in 2012. Back then, Fulda prevailed 3–1, with Jonathan Groth scoring alongside Wang Xi. Velbert’s new signing, Borgar Haug—who won the cup with Düsseldorf in 2024—is taking an offensive approach: “We can play without pressure and try to give our best performance, and then see what happens.” Fanbo Meng rejects the underdog narrative: This isn’t a David-versus-Goliath match, he says, because Velbert has strengthened its roster too much for that. Nevertheless, he clearly states Fulda’s goal: the quarterfinals.

In the afternoon: David vs. Goliath and unfinished business

Also starting at 11 a.m., two TTBL semifinalists from last season—SV Werder Bremen and TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt—will face off. “That’s a really tough matchup,” says Mattias Karlsson, whose Bremen team is still waiting for its first cup victory. Bergneustadt’s coach, Frederik Duda, counters: “This is exactly the kind of match the cup is for.” For him, the competition has its own appeal—few matches, a lot of pressure, and the chance to achieve something special early in the season. Rounding out the morning session is the only matchup without any TTBL teams: ASC Grünwettersbach II, which only on Sunday became the final qualifier to complete the field, will face SV Union Velbert II in a clash between third-division teams.

The most surprising matchup of the weekend kicks off at 3 p.m. Third-division team TTC immoXone Bietigheim-Bissingen takes on 1. FC Saarbrücken TT—the defending champion, Champions League winner, and reigning triple crown winner. “It’s truly David versus Goliath,” says Matthias Grünenwald, president of the Swabian club, who hopes above all that Saarbrücken will field its best lineup and that his team will have the chance to prove itself against the top stars. Patrick Franziska accepts the role of favorite but recalls last year’s quarterfinal at Union Velbert, which Saarbrücken didn’t win until the final doubles match: “We saw again in Velbert just how quickly things can change.” The FCS captain says the cup is the shortest route to a title—so they’ll give it their all to lift the trophy for the fourth time, following victories in 2012, 2022, and 2026.

“Fifty-fifty match” between Grünwettersbach and Mühlhausen

The team that faces Saarbrücken will be decided at the same time: ASC Grünwettersbach, the sensational 2020 cup champion, will take on Post SV Mühlhausen. ASC coach Kilian Ort doesn’t see his team as the favorite. Mühlhausen won both TTBL matchups last season, and Grünwettersbach is looking to pull off an upset. “It’ll be tough enough. If we win the match, I’m looking forward to preparing for our quarterfinal opponent,” says Ort. Steffen Mengel sees the matchup a bit differently: Mühlhausen versus Grünwettersbach are “actually always fifty-fifty matches.” For the 38-year-old from Post SV, a Final4 appearance would hold special significance—he was sidelined by injury during his only appearance with Mühlhausen in January 2022.

In the third afternoon match, it’s just a short trip for the TSV Bad Königshofen fans: the small town in Grabfeld is only about 100 kilometers from Nuremberg. Daniel Habesohn is accordingly counting on loud support. “Our fans are known for their cheering and for the noise they can make,” he says. Is that a slight advantage against TTC OE Clarity Telefonie-Systeme Bad Homburg, which has reached the semifinals twice in a row? The new TTC coach, Slobodan Grujic, remains calm: “We’re going into the match relaxed and confident, but without any pressure.”

Watch the entire event live on Dyn

In the fourth afternoon match, Borussia Dortmund is looking to go on the offensive. Wim Verdonschot, who pushed Saarbrücken to the brink of defeat last year with Velbert thanks to two singles victories, is now playing for BVB and will face TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau. Dortmund is still waiting for its first Final4 appearance in club history. “If we play to our full potential, I think it’s very possible that we’ll make it to the Final4,” says Verdonschot. Grenzau, one of the competition’s record-holding champions with four titles, has been waiting to return to the Final4 since 2019. Sam Walker emphasizes the team’s overall development: “For us, it’s about performing as well as possible in every game, helping to build the club, and leading it back to its former successes. I believe we’re on the right track.”

Things will finally come down to the wire on Sunday: Eight winners will be whittled down to four, and whoever comes out on top will secure a spot in the Liebherr Cup Final4. The format demands everything from the players—and offers fans an unforgettable table tennis event with twelve matches over two days. Fan Zhendong, Hugo Calderano, Dang Qiu, Patrick Franziska, Dimitrij Ovtcharov, Shunsuke Togami: Rarely has the international elite been so closely gathered in one place over a single weekend. Those who can’t be there in Nuremberg can follow the entire event on TTBL’s media partner, Dyn.

The Leapmotor Cup Grand Final at a glance

Saturday, August 29 (Round of 16, two parallel sessions on four tables)
Starting at 11 a.m.:
Match 1: Borussia Düsseldorf vs. TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen (Table 1)
Match 2: SV Union Velbert vs. TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell (Table 2)
Match 3: ASC Grünwettersbach II vs. SV Union Velbert II (Table 4)
Match 4: SV Werder Bremen vs. TTC Schwalbe Bergneustadt (Table 3)

Starting at 3 p.m.:
Match 5: TTC immoXone Bietigheim-Bissingen vs. 1. FC Saarbrücken TT (Table 1)
Match 6: ASC Grünwettersbach – Post SV Mühlhausen (Table 4)
Match 7: TTC OE Clarity-Telefonie Systeme Bad Homburg – TSV Bad Königshofen (Table 3)
Match 8: Borussia Dortmund – TTC Zugbrücke Grenzau (Table 2)

Sunday, August 30 (Quarterfinals, two parallel sessions on two tables)
Starting at 11 a.m.:
Winner of Match 5 – Winner of Match 6 (Table 2)
Winner of Match 7 vs. Winner of Match 8 (Table 3)

Starting at 3:00 p.m.:
Winner of Match 1 vs. Winner of Match 2 (Table 2)
Winner of Match 3 vs. Winner of Match 4 (Table 3)

All matches will be broadcast live on Dyn.

Header photo by BeLa Sportfoto