Oberliga - Niedersachsen (Germany)

Oberliga Niedersachsen is the top state league of Lower Saxony and the fifth tier in the German men’s league system, organized by the Lower Saxony Football Association (NFV). Regulations: the competition is played as a league with a double round-robin home-and-away schedule, awarding 3 points for a win, 1 for a draw and 0 for a loss, and if teams are level on points in promotion or relegation positions they are ranked by goal difference, then goals scored, and if still level a neutral-venue deciding match is played. The champion, or the highest-placed club that is eligible and admitted for promotion, is directly promoted to Regionalliga Nord, and the next admitted club from Oberliga Niedersachsen can be involved in the NordFV promotion procedure for the remaining places together with the eligible representatives from Bremen, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein. Relegation goes to the Lower Saxony Landesligen, with the number of relegation places and any play-offs set by the season’s official promotion and relegation framework and influenced by movement to and from Regionalliga Nord. There is no direct UEFA qualification via league placing, while access to the DFB-Pokal can be achieved via the Lower Saxony state cup route (Niedersachsenpokal).