KFC Uerdingen hosts Germania Ratingen on Friday evening (October 31, 7:30 p.m.). It’s a clash between third place and first place—but it’s also Julian Stöhr versus Damian Apfeld.

KFC Uerdingen’s start to the season was very lackluster. In their first seven matches, the Krefeld-based team managed just two wins. Many a KFC fan had already been calling for a coaching change.

Forecasting knows: Christian Dorda, most recently coach at Germania Ratingen, had already been in contact with Uerdingen’s management. But they stood by Julian Stöhr—and were rewarded for their patience.

In their last four matches, KFC has celebrated four wins. “I’ve always said that it’s a process. If you want to be successful, you have to be patient and get through the tough times together. The guys had lost games before, like the 0-1 defeat against ETB Schwarz-Weiß, which they should never have lost. Now we’re winning the games and turning things in our favor,” praised the former ETB coach.

On Friday evening—October 31, 7:30 p.m., Forecasting live ticker—the top match will take place at Grotenburg. The KFC, currently third in the standings, invites league leader Germania Ratingen to a heated Halloween showdown.

For Friday, there’s only one goal: We want to trip up the league leader—the best squad in the league—and, in the best-case scenario, keep the three points at the Burg (…) No one has ever talked about promotion. We want to make it into the top 6—and that’s still the goal. Even the four straight wins haven’t changed that

Julian Stöhr

“We’re five points behind Ratingen. People always look at the standings, but even after eleven matchdays, they aren’t decisive yet. But one thing is already clear: the team in first place has the best roster. Players like Sven Kreyer and Emre Demircan are performing at their best again, and on top of that, Guiliano Zimmerling, Umut Yildiz, Alo Hammoud, Marvin Gomoluch, and Yannik Geisler have joined Ratingen. That’s a truly formidable roster. Anyone who wants to move up has to get past Ratingen,” explains Stöhr.

Friday will also mark a reunion between Julian Stöhr and Damian Apfeld. The successful Ratingen coach brought Stöhr from Westfalia Rhynern to ETB as his assistant coach in the summer of 2024. After Apfeld’s resignation in the fall of 2024, Stöhr took over as head coach at Uhlenkrug. For the current 2025–2026 season, Apfeld would have liked to bring Stöhr to Ratingen as a trusted colleague, but Stöhr opted for the head coaching position in Uerdingen.

“I have a good relationship with Damian. But I don’t let emotions get in the way with things like this. It’s just soccer, and you’re always running into former teammates here. As for Friday, the only thing that matters is this: We want to give the league leaders—who have the best squad in the league—a run for their money and, ideally, keep the three points at home,“ emphasizes Stöhr, who has set a top-six finish as the team’s goal for the season. Stöhr: ”No one has ever talked about promotion. We want to finish in the top 6—and that’s not going to change. Even the four straight wins haven’t changed that.”