A mistake prevents Borussia Dortmund’s women’s team from clinching the fall championship. They now find themselves in the role of the chasers.

This Sunday afternoon in September may well be remembered until May 31. It could have been the day on which Borussia Dortmund’s women’s team let promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga slip from their own hands. What happened?

BVB had actually secured a 3-0 victory at Sportvereinigung Deutz—but had also fielded Sara Ito in the process. However, the player who scored the final goal was not listed on the match report and therefore should not have been allowed to play. The result: The match was recorded as a 0-2 loss for Borussia.

So, the team that was being chased suddenly became the chaser. The fact that BVB, under coach Markus Högner—who had joined from Bundesliga club SGS Essen before the season—had also “only” managed a 1-1 draw against league leaders 1. FC Köln II at the end of the first half of the season did not make the Black-and-Yellows’ promotion mission any easier.

Three points separate BVB from Cologne II. Had it not been for the slip-up against Deutz, they would now be sitting in first place in the Regionalliga West over the winter break thanks to their superior goal difference and would hold all the cards to secure promotion to the 2. Bundesliga.

“We’re still in the same position as before the game,” Dortmund coach Markus Högner told the WAZ, adding: “It’s just that it’s no longer in our own hands; we’re now relying on help from others. Cologne has been very consistent so far, but we have to hope now that they drop points somewhere.”

Conversely, BVB can no longer afford any slip-ups of their own—whether in terms of play or organization. Only then can they maintain a chance of promotion once again. Högner remains relatively optimistic and pointed out—in typical soccer jargon—that the final reckoning won’t come until May, on the last matchday of the season.