Heidenheim win ensures relegation for Darmstadt
Darmstadt will return to Bundesliga 2 after only one season in the top flight after suffering a last-gasp 1-0 defeat to Heidenheim, which secured its status for another year in the Bundesliga as a result of the win.
Nikola Dovedan scored in the 90th minute to grab all three points for Heidenheim, the Bundesliga 2 champion in 2022/2023.
With only four wins across this season to date, Darmstadt's fate was almost inevitable, and it conceded the 73rd goal of the campaign in this defeat. Heidenheim has fared much better by comparison, and sits 10th on the table with 37 points.
Having been promoted as the runner-up to Heidenheim in the second tier last season, Darmstadt will hope for a swift return to Germany's top table in 2024/2025.
But this is the third time in the club's history that it has suffered an immediate return to the second tier, after winning promotion in 1978 and 1981.
Cologne, Mainz, Bochum and Union Berlin are among the other teams hoping not to join Darmstadt before the season ends.
Cologne is currently sitting in the remaining relegation spot after drawing its six-pointer against Mainz 1-1. Mainz is five points better off in the play-off berth, two behind Bochum and Union Berlin.
Borussia Moenchengladbach, which drew 0-0 with Union to go to 32 points, is not mathematically safe yet, along with Wolfsburg on 34.
The team finishing 16th in the 18-team division will face the third-placed side across two legs in the post-season, with the victor earning a welcome to the Bundesliga for the 2024/2025 season.
