THE BETTER BUNDESLIGA: UNCOVERING GERMANY'S TEAM TENNIS SCENE

Reigning Tennis Bundesliga champions, TC Großhesselohe. (Ruben Talberg/X)

As the saying goes, there's more than one way to skin a cat. In the tennis world, there's more than one way to make a dollar. One of those ways is playing club competitions.

Arguably, the best in the world is the German Bundesliga... the lesser-known, but far more interesting Bundesliga!

The Tennis Bundesliga, Germany's premier team tennis competition, is a celebration of everything team tennis should be. Founded by the Deutscher Tennis Bund (DTB), the German Tennis Federation, this professional league, established in 1972, brings together elite players, coaches, and passionate fans in a unique team-based format.

Played on clay courts during the European summer, the Bundesliga merges high-level tennis with a local setting, attracting both homegrown talent and international stars.

The First Serve spoke exclusively to former Australian player and coach, Rameez Junaid, and former German player and coach, Philipp Marx. Both played on the ATP Tour and have competed for 15 years in the Bundesliga before turning their hands to team coaching.

The structure of the Tennis Bundesliga

The Tennis Bundesliga is Germany's top-tier team tennis league, featuring separate men's and women's competitions. Launched in 1972, it operates during July and August, taking advantage of the end of the European clay court season.

The league comprises two divisions for both genders: the 1. Tennis Bundesliga (top tier) and the 2. Tennis Bundesliga (second tier), with promotion and relegation ensuring a competitive structure. Typically, 10 teams compete in the top tier, representing tennis clubs from cities such as Mannheim, Weinheim, Berlin and Frankfurt.

In the top tier, each tie consists of four singles matches and two doubles matches, with the first team to secure four points winning the tie. For the second tier, and the women's league, teams will play six singles and three doubles. Clubs assemble diverse squads, combining local players, rising stars and international professionals, creating a genuine mix of talent and personalities.

Prominent teams include TC Blau-Weiss Neuss, with a record 10 men's titles, TK Grün-Weiß Mannheim, and TC Amberg am Schanzl for men, alongside TC Zamek Benrath and TC 1899 Blau-Weiss Bocholt for women.

The Bundesliga's structure allows clubs to sign marquee players for the season, giving fans the chance to experience top-ranked professionals competing alongside local favourites in intimate club settings.

A magnet for local fans

The Tennis Bundesliga enjoys a devoted following in Germany, due to the country's deep tennis culture and the league's accessibility. With the DTB overseeing over 1.4 million members – the largest tennis association in the world, and with more than 8,000 clubs, tennis is a keystone of the German sports scene.

The Bundesliga taps into this passion, drawing thousands to club courts each summer. Australian player John Millman captured the league's electric atmosphere in a 2018 post on X:

“DTB (German Tennis Federation) Bundesliga never ceases to amaze me. If it weren’t for it, I would never have been able to start playing professionally 10 years ago. Today nearly 5000 people came to watch the Mannheim-Weinheim derby. Team tennis is so good," wrote the former world No.33.

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Unlike ATP or WTA tournaments held in large arenas, Bundesliga matches take place at community clubs, creating an intimate fan experience. Philipp Marx, a former German player and coach of TC Palmengarten since 2017, emphasised this connection.

“In Bundesliga for example, we have a lot of guys that played for many years already. So the spectators and members have a kind of relationship with the players. They are much closer. They might even drink beer with some Club members, so that’s a different energy as a spectator. I think you are much closer to the action, and watching the matches, you really support the players," Marx stated.

It's not unusual to see players and club members sharing a chat or a meal after a match or practice session. This kind of access is unheard of at an ATP/WTA event, but in the Bundesliga setting, it's all part of the experience.

Marx contrasted the Bundesliga with ATP events.

“You can’t really compare it, because if you go to a tournament, and see a German player, then you probably support the German player, but you don’t really know him," he explained. "You just go there to watch the tennis. There is much more distance between the players and the spectators.”

The league's summer schedule, coinciding with school holidays, draws families and young players eager to see their idols up close. Clubs enhance the experience with festivals, food stalls, and youth clinics, creating a festive atmosphere.

Rameez Junaid, who played 15 seasons for Wolfsburg-Pforzheim in the 2. Tennis Bundesliga, and now coaches the team, backed up Marx's observations:

“The main difference between playing on tour and playing Bundesliga matches is that you’re playing Bundesliga on a team. The locals, and club members come, they support, they’re up close. So you get to see them at practice, you see them in the club. If you’ve played there a few years, you get to know them a little bit and you really play for them," he said.

Why players love the Bundesliga

For players, the Tennis Bundesliga offers a contrast to the individual grind of the professional tour. The team format nurtures camaraderie, allowing athletes to compete for a collective goal. It also ensures players get guaranteed match practice, and more importantly for some, guaranteed payments.

Marx confirmed this, stating: "First and foremost, players are going to make some money. Most of them are playing tournaments in Europe, and they come for the Bundesliga on the weekend if they’re not in the tournament anymore.”

For some players, the earnings from a four to six-week Bundesliga season can surpass months of income on the Challenger Tour. Especially players ranked between 120 and 300, or those without major personal sponsors, the Bundesliga provides crucial financial support.

Marx noted that for German players, the incentives are even greater.

“Some of the top German players play Bundesliga because they are Germans, and they get paid even more, compared to a foreign player with the same ranking," he shared. "So for them it’s not a big effort to get to the matches, and they are even more related to some of the clubs and the fans.”

While the financial incentives are great and can help to subsidise the back end of the year for a lot of players, it's not the only motivation.

The league's hospitality enhances its appeal. Players are often billeted with local club members during match weekends or practice sessions, which can develop into personal connections and friendships. Marx highlighted the close atmosphere at TC Palmengarten.

“We try to have kind of a family thing here. Most of them (players) are friends with each other. We have a WhatsApp group with all the players that runs throughout the whole year. We try to do that little extra, and hopefully it pays off.”

This sense of belonging, combined with the flexibility to balance Bundesliga commitments with tour schedules, makes the league attractive to players.

So attractive, that there are often plenty of top-100 players gracing the local courts throughout Germany. While not everyone takes the court for every match, and some may not play at all, depending on their tournament schedule, the list of players on Club rosters for Season 2025 is impressive.

Top-100 players include:

Jakub Menšík

Tallon Griekspoor

Flavio Cobolli

Sebastian Baez

Luciano Darderi

Alejandro Tabilo

Roberto Carbellés Baena

Damir Dzumhur

Tomás Etcheverry

Alexandre Müller

Sebastian Ofner

Add to that, German players including Jan-Lennard Struff and Dustin Brown, it's no wonder the Bundesliga is as popular as it is.

The clubs' perspective

For clubs, however, the Bundesliga is more a labour of love than profit-making, as Marx explained.

“I wish we could make some money of this. For every club in the Bundesliga it’s a huge loss. You make some money from the tickets, but that’s just peanuts. The main thing is reputation, prestige, and to get the club name out," he said passionately.

Clubs rely heavily on sponsors, with Marx noting: “Most clubs in Bundesliga are really depending on just a few sponsors, so that’s a big risk for the club. If one big sponsor pulls out for example, then the whole story is over. You need one, two, three really passionate people to pump the money in and then support it with some other smaller sponsors to reduce the risk.”

The non-profit status of German clubs complicates finances, requiring separate companies aligned to the club to manage funds.

The primary benefit is prestige and membership growth. By hosting high-level tennis, clubs attract new members and elevate their profile, as Marx emphasised: "The benefit is, you can generate new members. Your name gets more popular and that’s basically it.”

Junaid backed that up, explaining how player payments and a club's inclusion in the league is reliant on outside donors.

“The financial side for player payments come from local sponsors, some bigger sponsors, and some private sponsors. People who like tennis, who play in the club - they also come together and make a contribution.”

The coaching perspective

Both Junaid and Marx are full-time coaches during the year, but love the change-up of coaching in a team environment.

Coaching in the Bundesliga requires balancing individual and team goals, as Junaid and Marx explain. Junaid, now coaching Wolfsburg-Pforzheim, with whom he played for 15 years, described the challenge.

“When working with an individual, you work for an athlete for their best interest. But here you have 6 to 8 players. You’re trying to do the best for each one of them, but also the best interest of the club and the team. So some of those decisions don’t always go down as well with the players," he noted.

Recruitment is a collaborative process, with Junaid’s manager scouting players while he ensures team chemistry.

“Some teams have their coach recruit the players, but myself, I am a coach and I do the coaching," he said.

"I do the match days and training, and we have a manager who recruits the players. He runs the players by me and we see if he would fit in our team, the team chemistry and team harmony, and if he’s willing to play and is motivated to play the Bundesliga.”

Marx, coaching Palmengarten TC, views his role as more supportive than instructional.

“I’m the coach of the team, but to be honest and to be fair, I don’t really ‘coach’ them. I might sit on the bench during the match and support them a little bit, but it’s more like making the guys feel home, feel welcomed, and just make sure they have a good time, and they’re motivated to play," he said.

"Since I was a player before, I probably have a better understanding of what the players need and what they want during a Bundesliga match than some other managers that just see it as a business.”

His passion for the league stems from its connection to his playing days: “Coaching a team. For me, it’s a great change-up to the daily routine in the club. The Bundesliga team is a special thing for me. It’s a project that I do with passion and my heart. It’s a bit like coming back to my old life (when I used to play).”

Should players join the Bundesliga?

Marx offered a nuanced view on whether players should participate. While he doesn't believe an upcoming superstar would benefit greatly from playing Bundesliga, he does think juniors and players outside that top tier can make it worthwhile.

“If you are a 16, 17, 18-year-old junior that can benefit from that environment, I would definitely recommend it," he said.

He also highlighted the developmental benefits for younger players, adding: “We had one younger guy who was at the top in Germany as a 16-year-old. He was also taught in Europe, and he really benefited from hanging around with the team, training with them, because it can really lift your game if you are in a professional environment.”

For mid-ranked players, the financial incentive is key, as Marx noted: “For the players that are not making the big bucks, like those guys ranked between, let’s say 120 to 300, it’s good extra money during that summer period when they play tournaments in Europe.”

Could Australia host a Bundesliga-style league?

Victoria has its Premier League competition during March, where some of the best clubs compete in a similar format, but could we take it to the next level here?

Junaid thinks it can be done by springboarding off the back of the Australian summer, and using February and early March.

“I think it can work at home. Melbourne and Sydney, 10 big clubs. You play a couple of matches after the Aussie Open. Then structure some Challenger and ITF events, so you have some international players staying here. Follow that with a couple of ties after those," he explained.

"As long as you have the sponsors, of course. There's a lot of support and a lot of sponsors around at that time of year, so that would be a really good time.”

The Tennis Bundesliga is another pathway for players to not only make money in tennis, but also improve as a player and make connections that can last for years. Creating a strong link between grassroots tennis and the professional tier is something that benefits everyone with a stake in the sport.

Whether Australian club tennis can ever get to the German level is yet to be seen, but for now, the Tennis Bundesliga is the premier competition, which is worthwhile exploring for tennis professionals.

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