Schalke 04 in the crisis: New defeat brings descent closer!

Schalke 04 in the crisis: New defeat brings descent closer!

On April 18, 2025, Schalke 04 suffered a painful 0: 2 defeat against Jahn Regensburg. Despite this defeat, the association remains in the second place in the second Bundesliga. The distance to the 16th place that the MSV Münster has is nine points. This is particularly important because it shows that Schalke is initially on relatively safe terrain in the relegation battle, even if the gap to the relegation place is now ten points.

The next games for Schalke 04 are a serious challenge. In the remaining program, the Gelsenkircheners meet some of the most placed teams in the league. On April 19, the home game against Hamburger SV, which is currently leading the table. This is followed by an away game at the 1st FC Kaiserslautern, which is in sixth place behind the relegation place. In addition, Schalke will play against SC Paderborn on May 2, who is also represented in the promotion race.

Schalke in the promotion battle

For Schalke 04, the pressure increases because you can officially no longer act as a candidate for ascent. With only five remaining games and a solid starting point compared to the relegation places, the team is responsible for making at least the remaining games positively. On May 10, the game against Fortuna Düsseldorf, who is tied with the relegation place, will be particularly crucial. Finally, on May 18, the end of the season will take place against SV Elversberg, which could also have hopes for the promotion according to the current achievements.

However, the competition does not sleep. Current trends in the 2nd Bundesliga show that over half of the teams still have realistic promotion opportunities. An example is Holstein Kiel, who won 1-0 on the 21st matchday against Schalke 04 and thus advanced in second place in the table. Steven Skrzybski scored the decisive goal in the 55th minute, while Hamburger SV and FC St. Pauli are fighting for the top ranges.

Current developments in the league

The table of the 2nd Bundesliga is extremely narrow, with only nine points between the teams in the first ten places. As a result, every defeat can have drastic effects on the placements. This is an example of this in the basement duel between VfL Osnabrück and Hansa Rostock, which ended with a 0-0 and did not lead to the desired turn for both teams.

While the nervousness in the promotion struggle grows, the first division is all the more aggressive. The teams have no winning people, with Hamburg, Düsseldorf and Hanover being able to remain unbeaten in the last five games. The next match day will be crucial for the distribution of the promotion places, such as the duel between Fortuna Düsseldorf and the SpVgg Greuther Fürth. The dynamics are further complicated by the upcoming games, and it remains to be seen how Schalke 04 will beat in this tense situation.

Overall, the 2nd Bundesliga offers an exciting picture that is characterized by the close table and teams authorized to promote. Schalke 04 will have to observe closely in the next few weeks how the situation develops to successfully complete the season.

For more information and developments, read the complete reports on Ruhr24 , Ran and Sportschau .