Pokal

Four teams, three matches, one goal: the four best teams of the cup season will compete against each other in the Liebherr Cup Final Four on 4 January 2026. 1. FC Saarbrücken-TT, TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen, TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell and TTC OE Bad Homburg will battle it out in front of 5,200 fans at the ratiopharm arena in Ulm/Neu-Ulm for the first title of the year – an exciting and compact event with the semi-finals and final taking place on the same day. The Liebherr Cup Final Four will be broadcast live on Dyn.

The ratiopharm arena is ready for a table tennis extravaganza: in the Liebherr Cup Final Four, the four best teams of the season will compete against each other in the first top event of the year, and the conditions are once again setting new standards. 5,200 spectators have announced their attendance, meaning that the showdown in the German Table Tennis Cup is once again sold out. In addition to an outstanding atmosphere, all fans can of course look forward to world-class sport on 4 January 2026, as numerous top stars are expected to attend.

First and foremost is Fan Zhendong: the superstar from China not only sparked a table tennis hype in Saarland and throughout Germany with his move to 1. FC Saarbrücken TT, but he also personifies the promise of a title for FCS. Fan was at the top of the world rankings for almost four years between April 2020 and March 2024, winning the World Championship title in singles twice (2021, 2023), followed by the highlight of his career in August 2024 with Olympic victory in Paris. With FCS, the 28-year-old has now set his sights on the triple of cup, championship and Champions League – the first stop on the road to success is set to be the ratiopharm arena on 4 January 2026.

Live at Dyn: Semi-finals from 11 a.m.

In the semi-finals, Fan and 1. FC Saarbrücken TT will face TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen on Sunday from 11 a.m. At the same time, TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell and TTC OE Clarity-Telefonie Systeme Bad Homburg will face each other on the other table. After a short break for set changes, the two winners will then face each other in the grand final and battle it out for the first title of the year. Those who are not at the ratiopharm arena can of course follow the action from home: the entire Liebherr Cup Final Four will be broadcast live on Dyn.

‘We are of course the big favourites,’ says Saarbrücken's Patrick Franziska ahead of the showdown. With him, Fan and Darko Jorgic, the FCS is fielding three international top stars. Franziska admits that the team is aware that the pressure is ‘greater than usual’: ‘But from my point of view, our whole team has adjusted well to this in recent weeks and months and is drawing additional energy from it.’

Ochsenhausen hopes Shunsuke Togami is in top form

Seven trophies adorn the Saarland club's trophy cabinet to date: two cup victories (2012, 2022), one German championship (2020), one ETTU Cup title (2014) and, most recently, three consecutive Champions League titles (2023–2025). Last year, Saarbrücken lost 1:3 to Ochsenhausen in the final, but they will be looking for revenge when the two teams meet again in the semi-finals on Sunday. ‘It's definitely a whole new game,’ says Franziska, who celebrated a 3:0 victory over Ochsenhausen with FCS in the Table Tennis Bundesliga (TTBL) shortly before Christmas. ‘Basically, we just hope that we can somehow win this difficult game and take the first step towards the cup.’

Meanwhile, Ochsenhausen's hopes rest on Shunsuke Togami. In the first season after the departures of Hugo Calderano and Simon Gauzy, who led the club to the double in 2019 and 2025 respectively, the double world champion is the team's leader. ‘Of course, the attention has increased,’ says Togami about his new role in the team, ‘and there are perhaps more expectations. But I try not to let that influence me too much.’ In the TTBL, the Japanese player suffered only one defeat in the entire first half of the season, but it was against Saarbrücken's Darko Jorgic, of all people.

Hesse derby in the semi-finals: Fulda and Bad Homburg want to reach the final

With five cup wins to date (2025, 2019, 2004, 2003, 2002), Ochsenhausen is the second most successful team in cup history behind record winner Borussia Düsseldorf (28). The matches in Neu-Ulm are traditionally a kind of home game for TTF – after all, Ochsenhausen and the ratiopharm arena are only about 35 kilometres apart as the crow flies. Quite a few fans are therefore expected to be cheering on TTF on Sunday. ‘As the local heroes, we hope for the support of the crowd, which can be an additional factor,’ says Togami: ‘I am convinced that we will go into this semi-final with fresh energy and a lot of motivation.’

Things are likely to be just as exciting at the neighbouring table when Fulda and Bad Homburg face each other in the Hessian derby. Bad Homburg was already there last year: in 2025, the Taunus team competed in the Liebherr Cup Final Four for the first time and was defeated 1:3 by Ochsenhausen in the semi-finals. Jo Yokotani and his teammates have proven time and again that Bad Homburg is capable of springing a surprise. This was evident in the cup quarter-finals, where they defeated Düsseldorf 3-2, achieving a coup that few thought possible. Yokotani admits that the entire team was ‘really surprised’ by this success: ‘We had previously thought that we only had a slim chance – but it was enough. We are also very happy that this means we are in the Cup Final Four.’

Fulda dreams of its first title in club history

Bad Homburg will once again be the underdog in Sunday's match against Fulda. The East Hessians are hungry for the first title in the club's history: Fulda has been runner-up in the TTBL three times (2014, 2015, 2017) and was also defeated by Düsseldorf in the cup final four times in a row between 2013 and 2016. After narrowly missing out on a place in the Liebherr Cup Final Four last year, Dimitrij Ovtcharov and his teammates are now looking to go on the offensive.

‘I do think Fulda is a slight favourite,’ says Saarbrücken's Franziska, looking at the match on the neighbouring table. However, Bad Homburg has proven time and again that it thrives in the role of underdog. ‘Maybe the underdog role is really better for us,’ Yokotani speculates. The answer will be revealed on Sunday in the Liebherr Cup Final Four.

The semi-finals (from 11 a.m.) and the final (immediately afterwards) will be broadcast live by TTBL media partner Dyn. The broadcast of the semi-finals will start at 10.30 a.m.

Liebherr Cup Final Four on 4 January 2026

Semi-finals, 11 a.m.
TTC RhönSprudel Fulda-Maberzell – TTC OE Clarity-Telefonie Systeme Bad Homburg (live on Dyn)
TTF Liebherr Ochsenhausen – 1. FC Saarbrücken TT (live on Dyn)

Final, afterwards
Winner of semi-final 1 – Winner of semi-final 2 (live on Dyn)