The first set of 15:30 kickoffs in the 2023/24 German Bundesliga’s “Rück-runde” literally had everything. Widespread protests across the Bundesrepublik against the new DFL licensing deal lead to match interruptions that ensured that none of the concurrent kickoffs finished at the same time. As of this piece’s filing, Stuttgart and Bochum remains ongoing thanks to protests that delayed the start of the second-half for nearly 45 minutes. There was plenty of late drama in the matches that did wrap up around the scheduled time. Darmstadt was able to snatch a late draw against visiting Frankfurt while shorthanded Freiburg beat back a Hoffenheim comeback attempt. Heidenheim nearly upset Wolfsburg in a match that ended in a 1-1 draw. In the only conclusive result, Dortmund rolled over Köln 4-0.
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