Holstein (Kiel) won promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time in history, after a round before the bottom of Germany's second tier of football is out of reach at the top with 65 points. This happened after the home draw 1:1 against Fortuna (Dusseldorf), BTA reports.
As early as the 2nd minute, Benedikt Pichler gave the northern club nicknamed "The Storks" the lead, marking a dream start for the local fans. But after just three minutes, Fortuna had to be angry with referee Sven Jablonski, who, despite a review using the video replay system (VAR), did not see a handball and a penalty. By the end of the first half, the guests from Fortuna had the better chances, but they never managed to equalize.
In the 70th minute, referee Jablonski again ruled out a foul after substitute Jonah Nijmitz went down after a collision with Lewis Holtby. This time, however, the VAR made him reconsider and he pointed to an 11-meter shot by Tsiolis.
Otherwise, Fortuna controlled the match, but without significant chances. And instead of achieving victory, it almost came to 2:1 for Holstein in the 90th minute, when reserve Nikolay Remberg almost scored.
So the point was more than enough for the hosts to take one of the two direct quotas for the elite. Only one point away from promotion is St. Pauli, who have 60 so far. Fortuna will almost certainly play a play-off against the 16th in the Bundesliga to take his place.
In fact, although entering the Bundesliga for the first time, Holstein Kiel was national champion in 1912 in the all-German championship, which was held on the principle of elimination. However, promotion to the elite division is not a quick process, but a set strategy since 2013, when they entered from fourth to third league. In 2017, they entered the Second Bundesliga for the first time in 36 seasons. The club from Kiel will be the 58th club in the Bundesliga since its inception in 1963 and the first from the northern state of Schleswig-Holstein.