• VfL Osnabrück will play in the 2. Bundesliga next season after securing automatic promotion with two games to spare
• SSV Ulm have suffered back-to-back relegations and will compete in the fourth-tier Regionalliga next term
• Ecuador striker Jeremy Arévalo scored a hat-trick, becoming only the second foreign player to achieve this feat in the league this season

VfL Osnabrück are heading back to the 2. Bundesliga. The Lower Saxony club secured their place in Germany’s second tier before kicking a ball on matchday 36.

Their promotion was confirmed when Rot-Weiss Essen lost 6-1 to VfB Stuttgart’s reserve side. This result meant Timo Schulz’s team could no longer be caught in the automatic promotion places. It marks the third time the club has gone up since 2019.

Ecuador international Jeremy Arévalo stole the spotlight with a superb hat-trick. He became only the second non-German player to score three goals in a single 3. Liga match this term.

Reserve teams VfB Stuttgart II and TSG 1899 Hoffenheim II both avoided the drop to the Regionalliga. They will remain in the third tier next campaign.

The news was not good for SSV Ulm. The Bavarian side have been relegated to the fourth division after suffering a second straight demotion. They join TSV Havelse, Erzgebirge Aue and 1. FC Schweinfurt in dropping to the Regionalliga.

The battle for the final promotion spot continues. Six clubs, including Energie Cottbus and Rot-Weiss Essen, remain in the race for one automatic place and a playoff position with two games left.

Meanwhile, Alemannia Aachen forward Lars Gindorf leads the scoring charts. The former Freiburg midfielder has found the net 23 times this season.