The Under 17 Bundesliga (German: B-Junioren Bundesliga) is the highest level of play in German football for male juniors between the ages of 15 and 17.[1] It was formed in 2007 and operates in three regional divisions with 14 clubs each. At the end of season, the three division champions and one of the runners-up determine the German champions for this age group.
The league was formed in 2007, when the five U 17 Regionalligas merged to form the three Bundesligas as follows:
As such, the German Football Association followed the example it had set with the Under 19 Bundesliga in 2003, which were reorganised in the same fashion.
The Regionalligas themselves had only been formed in 2000, to replace an even more regionalised system with separate leagues for every regional football association.[2]
The clubs in each of the three divisions play a home-and-away round whereby there is no inter-league play. Every club plays therefore 26 regular season games. The bottom three teams in each division are relegated to the next level below, in turn, the best three teams from the region are promoted.
The winner of each league plus the runners-up of the South/Southwest region play in the finals round for the German Under 17 championship. The semi-finals are played in a home-and-away format. If the two semi-final teams playing each other are level on points and goals after the second game, there will be a penalty shoot-out. No extra time will be played.
The two semi-final winners reach the final, which is held at the location of the winner of the predetermined semi-final A, unless the team's stadium does not comply with DFB requirement, in which case an alternative venue will be determined. In the final, which is one game only, in case of a draw after normal time, a 20-minute extra time will be played. If the game is still a draw, a penalty shoot-out will determine the winner.[2]
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The three Bundesligas are not geographically balanced, North/Northeast covers a large area while West a rather small one, but in population terms, the arrangement is much more level. The three leagues cover the following states:
Below the three Bundesligas, a number of second-tier leagues exist which teams are promoted from and relegated to. The league system operates as follows for the 2008–09 season.[3]
The league has two second divisions as the tier below, these being:
The league champions are directly promoted while the two runners-ups play each other for a third promotion spot
The league has four second divisions as the tier below, these being:
The winners of the Oberliga Baden-Württemberg and Bayernliga are directly promoted. A third promoted team is determined between the winners of the Hessenliga and the Regionalliga Southwest.
The league has three second divisions as the tier below, these being:
The three league champions are directly promoted.
German football recognises seven levels of junior football, determined by age and labeled with letters, whereby A is the oldest. In the A level, mixed teams of male and females are not permitted while in B and C mixed teams are allowed if the parents or guardians of the children permit it. Below the C level, mixed teams are generally permitted without restrictions.[4]
The champions of the three divisions:
The German under 17 football championship begun in 1977, with the first final being played on 3 July 1977 in Niefern.[5]
As of 2024, this is the standing in the all-time winners list:
The clubs and their league finishes in the Under 17 Bundesliga since 2007–08. Also shown are the final placing of the qualifying season 2006–07 and the Regionalliga or region, in color, the clubs qualified from:
The league's top scorers:
The top scorers of the North/Northeast division:[6]
The top scorers of the South/Southwest division:[7]
The top scorers of the West division:[8]