The Landesliga Bayern-Mitte () was the sixth tier of the German football league system in southern Bavaria. Until the introduction of the 3. Liga in 2008, it was the fifth tier of the league system, until the introduction of the Regionalligas in 1994 the fourth tier.
The winner of the Landesliga-Mitte automatically qualified for the Bayernliga, the runners-up needed to compete with the runners-up of the other four Landesligas and the 15th placed teams of the Bayernligas for another promotion spot.
The league was disbanded in 2012, when the Regionalliga Bayern was introduced as the new fourth tier of the German league system in Bavaria. Below this league, the Bayernliga was expanded to two divisions while the number of state leagues grew from three to five divisions. A new Landesliga Bayern-Mitte was formed but the territory it now covers varies from the old league, with the clubs from northern Middle Franconia and Upper Palatinate as well as the clubs from southern Lower Bavaria now playing in other leagues.Auf- und Abstiegsregelung der Bayernliga und der Landesligen für das Qualifikationsspieljahr 2011/2012 Bavarian FA website - Regulations for promotion and relegation in 2012, accessed: 16 July 2011Die neue Landesliga-Einteilung fupa.net, Map of the new Landesligas with all 2012-13 clubs, accessed: 13 June 2012
Overview
The Landesligen in Bayern were formed in 1963, in place of the 2nd Amateurligas, which operated below the Bayernliga until then. In the region of the Landesliga Mitte, the 2nd Amateurligen were split into three groups, Niederbayern, Oberpfalz and Mittelfranken. The league was formed from eighteen clubs, six of them from the Amateurligas (III) and twelve from the 2nd Amateurligas (IV).Die Bayernliga 1945-1997 publisher: DSFS, published: 1998, page: 55 & 56, accessed: 29 June 2009
In the first eighteen seasons, up until 1980, only the league champions were promoted to the Bayernliga. This was altered in 1981, when the three Landesliga runners-up were given the opportunity to earn promotion, too, via a promotion round.Die Bayernliga 1945-1997 publisher: DSFS, published: 1998, page: 116, accessed: 26 June 2009 The Bavarian football association actually stipulates in its rules and regulations that every league champion has to be promoted, unless it declines to do so, and every runners-up has to have the opportunity to earn promotion, too.
Below the league, the Bezirksligas were set as the fifth tier of league football, until 1988, when the Bezirksoberligas were formed. In the first year, three teams were promoted from the Bezirksligas, one from each region; from 1966, it was four clubs. The Landesliga Mitte was fed by the three Bezirksoberligen of Mittelfranken, Oberpfalz and Niederbayern from 1988 onwards. The winner of those were automatically promoted, the runners-up played-off for another promotion spot with the 15th placed team of Landesliga to determine the winner of the last available spot in the Landesliga. The Landesliga Mitte is the only one of the three Bavarian Landesligas to have had three Bezirksoberligas as feeder leagues, the other two only have two each.
For the most part of its history, the league has operated on a strength of eighteen clubs, only occasionally diverting from this when the number of teams relegated from the Bayernliga to it was more than one. With the change in the league system in 1994 and 2008, the introduction of the Regionalliga and the 3. Liga, there were two automatic promotion places available to each of the Landesligen in those seasons.
Disbanding
The Bavarian football federation carried out drastic changes to the league system at the end of the 2011–12 season. With the already decided introduction of the Regionalliga Bayern from 2012–13, it also placed two Bayernligas below the new league as the new fifth tier of the German league system. Below those, five Landesligas instead of the existing three were set, which would be geographically divided to limit travel and increase the number of local derbies.Attraktive Gegner, regionale Einteilung, weniger Fahrtkosten BFV website, published: 12 February 2011, accessed: 29 April 2011
The clubs from the Landesliga Bayern-Mitte joined the following leagues: Champions and runners-up: Promotion round to the Regionalliga, winners to the Regionalliga, losers to the Bayernliga. Teams placed 3rd to 8th: Directly qualified to the Bayernliga. Teams placed 9th to 15th: Promotion round to the Bayernliga, winners to the Bayernliga, losers to the Landesliga. Teams placed 16th or worse: Directly qualified to the Landesliga.
Founding members When the league was formed in 1963 as the new fourth tier of the Bavarian league system in Middle Franconia, Upper Palatinate and Lower Bavaria, in place of the 2nd Amateurligas, it consisted of the following eighteen clubs from the following leagues:
From the Amateurliga Südbayern SpVgg Weiden 1. FC Amberg SpVgg Landshut From the Amateurliga Nordbayern ESV Nürnberg-West TSV 04 Schwabach ASV Nürnberg-Süd From the 2nd Amateurliga Mittelfranken-Nord TV Erlangen 1. FC Hersbruck SpVgg Erlangen
From the 2nd Amateurliga Mittelfranken-Süd 1. FC Nuremberg II FC Stein ASV Neumarkt From the 2nd Amateurliga Niederbayern SV Saal FC Dingolfing SpVgg Deggendorf From the 2nd Amateurliga Oberpfalz TuS Rosenberg FC Maxhütte-Haidhof 1. FC Schwarzenfeld
The clubs in the two Amateurligas placed seventh or better were admitted to the new Amateurliga Bayern, all others went to the new Landesligas. The top-three teams in the four regional 2nd Amateurligas were each admitted to the Landesliga.
Top-three of the Landesliga The following teams have finished in the top-three in the league:Tables and results of the Landesliga Bayern-Mitte Manfreds Fussball Archiv, accessed: 4 February 2011 Season Champions Runners-up Third 1963–64 SpVgg Weiden ESV Nürnberg-West FC Stein 1964–65 1. FC Nuremberg II 1. FC Amberg FC Dingolfing 1965–66 SSV Jahn Regensburg 1. FC Passau SpVgg Landshut 1966–67 ESV Nürnberg-West TuS Rosenberg FC Stein 1967–68 1. FC Passau TuS Rosenberg SpVgg Vohenstrauß 1968–69 SpVgg Vohenstrauß 1. FC Amberg FC Herzogenaurach 1969–70 FC Herzogenaurach ASV Neumarkt ASV Herzogenaurach 1970–71 ASV Neumarkt TSV Straubing FC Schwandorf 1971–72 ASV Herzogenaurach TSV Roth SC Zwiesel 1972–73 TSV Roth 1. FC Amberg TSV Straubing 1973–74 ASV Neumarkt SpVgg Plattling SpVgg Deggendorf 1974–75 1. FC Amberg FC Herzogenaurach SpVgg Vohenstrauß 1975–76 SpVgg Plattling SpVgg Vohenstrauß FC Herzogenaurach 1976–77 FC Herzogenaurach TSV Straubing 1. FC Nuremberg II 1977–78 FC Vilshofen ASV Herzogenaurach TSV Südwest Nürnberg 1978–79 FC Herzogenaurach ASV Herzogenaurach FC Schwandorf 1979–80 1. FC Nuremberg II ASV Herzogenaurach SSV Jahn Regensburg 1980–81 FC Vilshofen TSV Straubing SSV Jahn Regensburg 1981–82 TSV Straubing SpVgg Landshut SSV Jahn Regensburg 1982–83 SSV Jahn Regensburg 1. FC Amberg ASV Burglengenfeld 1983–84 1. FC Nuremberg II FSV Bad Windsheim 1. FC Amberg 1984–85 SpVgg Weiden SpVgg Plattling 1. FC Amberg 1985–86 1. FC Amberg FSV Bad Windsheim TSV Vestenbergsgreuth 1986–87 TSV Vestenbergsgreuth FSV Bad Windsheim FC Vilshofen 1987–88 SpVgg Weiden 1. FC Miltach SpVgg Fürth 1988–89 SpVgg Plattling SpVgg Fürth 1. FC Passau 1989–90 SSV Jahn Regensburg 1. FC Passau SpVgg Fürth 1990–91 SpVgg Fürth 1. FC Nuremberg II 1. FC Miltach 1991–92 1. FC Passau SpVgg Landshut 1. FC Kötzting 1992–93 SpVgg Plattling BSC Erlangen TSV 04 Schwabach 1993–94 Jahn Forchheim 1. FC Amberg SpVgg Weiden 1994–95 SG Quelle Fürth SpVgg Weiden SG Post/Süd Regensburg 1995–96 SG Post/Süd Regensburg TSV 04 Schwabach TuS Landshut-Berg 1996–97 1. SC Feucht SSV Jahn Regensburg SC 04 Schwabach 1997–98 SC 04 Schwabach 1. FC Nuremberg II SSV Jahn Regensburg 1998–99 SSV Jahn Regensburg SpVgg Ansbach ASV Neumarkt 1999–2000 ASV Neumarkt 1. FC Kötzting SG Post/Süd Regensburg 2000–01 SpVgg Greuther Fürth II Linde Schwandorf ASV Vach 2001–02 SG Post/Süd Regensburg SpVgg Landshut ASV Cham 2002–03 SpVgg Landshut 1. FC Passau ASV Neumarkt 2003–04 1. FC Kötzting SG Quelle Fürth DJK Vilzing 2004–05 SG Quelle Fürth ASV Neumarkt SpVgg Landshut 2005–06 SpVgg Weiden TuS Regensburg FSV Erlangen-Bruck 2006–07 SpVgg Ansbach SV Schalding-Heining FSV Erlangen-Bruck 2007–08 FSV Erlangen-Bruck SV Seligenporten DJK Vilzing 2008–09 SV Schalding-Heining SpVgg Landshut ASV Neumarkt 2009–10 Freier TuS Regensburg TSV Neustadt/Aisch SSV Jahn Regensburg II 2010–11 SC Eltersdorf SSV Jahn Regensburg II SpVgg Landshut 2011–12 SpVgg Landshut SV Schalding-Heining SSV Jahn Regensburg II Promoted teams in bold. The Bavarian football association requires deciders to be played when two teams are on equal pointsSpielordnung: § 14 (2) Feststellung des Meisters BFV website - Rules of the game: § 14 (2) How to determine the league champion, accessed: 7 February 2011 at the end of the season to determine promotion/relegation. Championship deciders were necessary in the following years: For first place: 1964: SpVgg Weiden defeated ESV Nürnberg-West. 1970: FC Herzogenaurach defeated ASV Neumarkt. 1976: SpVgg Plattling defeated SpVgg Vohenstrauß. 1990: SSV Jahn Regensburg defeated 1. FC Passau. 1991: SpVgg Fürth defeated 1. FC Nuremberg II. For second place: 1989: SpVgg Fürth defeated 1. FC Passau. 1997: SSV Jahn Regensburg defeated SC 04 Schwabach 3–2. 2006: TuS Regensburg defeated FSV Erlangen-Bruck 3–2 aet. 2007: SV Schalding-Heining defeated FSV Erlangen-Bruck 1–0. 2009: SpVgg Landshut defeated ASV Neumarkt 1–0.
Multiple winners The following clubs have won the league more than once: Club Wins Years SpVgg Weiden 4 1964, 1985, 1988, 2006 SSV Jahn Regensburg 4 1966, 1983, 1990, 1999 ASV Neumarkt 3 1971, 1974, 2000 SpVgg Plattling 3 1976, 1989, 1993 1. FC Nuremberg II 3 1965, 1980, 1984 FC Herzogenaurach 3 1970, 1977, 1979 SpVgg Landshut 2 2003, 2012 SG Quelle Fürth 2 1995, 2005 SG Post/Süd Regensburg 2 1996, 2002 1. FC Passau 2 1968, 1992 1. FC Amberg 2 1975, 1986 FC Vilshofen 2 1978, 1981
All-time table 1963–2012 The SpVgg Landshut holds the top spot in the all-time table of the Landesliga Mitte, with the 1. FC Nuremberg II being second, 319 points behind, SpVgg Jahn Forchheim is third. The last place, number 133, goes to TSV Ergoldsbach on eight points.All-time table of the Landesliga Mitte 1963-2010 , publisher: Manfred Herzing, accessed: 7 February 2011 The 2011–12 season, the leagues last, saw three new teams in the league who had not played at this level before, SV Buckenhofen, FC Ergolding and Dergah Spor Nürnberg.
Pos. Club Seasons M W D L GF GA P 1SpVgg Landshut28922440199283179613411518 21. FC Nuremberg II2170434616019813078531198 3Jahn Forchheim26848323206321144214261175 4-130 127 clubs 131VfB Regensburg1302622248312 132TuS Grafenwöhr13425274612011 133TSV Ergoldsbach1341528281048
League placings 1988–2012
The complete list of clubs and placings in the league from the 1988–89 until 2011–12 seasons:Das deutsche Fussball Archiv: Landesliga Bayern-Mitte Historic German league tables, accessed: 7 February 2011