1. FC Kaiserslautern 2026/27 season preview: Transfers, pre-season, predicted lineup and expectations | OneFootball

Another season begins with Kaiserslautern looking towards the Bundesliga, but still searching for the consistency to get there. 

After finishing sixth, the Red Devils begin the new campaign knowing that another year in the upper reaches of the second tier would be far from satisfactory. 

Torsten Lieberknecht has been trusted with a second full season in charge, but he will be working with a reshaped coaching staff and a squad that still looks short of proven quality in several areas.

FCK have plenty of talent, particularly in attack. The question is whether they can finally find the consistency required to turn promising spells into a sustained promotion challenge.

Looking back at 2025/26

Kaiserslautern ended last season in sixth place with 52 points, having won 16 of their 34 league matches.

On the surface it did signal progress - FCK moved up one place from the previous campaign and finished the season with back-to-back victories over Arminia Bielefeld and Magdeburg.

Yet their final position did not tell the whole story.

Lieberknecht’s side spent much of the season threatening to move into the promotion race without ever properly establishing themselves among the leading contenders. 

Avoidable defeats too often followed strong performances, while their away form remained a recurring problem.

FCK would finish 10 points behind eventual playoff winners Paderborn, after failing to really trouble the top three for large periods of the term. 

The coach

Lieberknecht begins his second full campaign at the club after replacing Markus Anfang in April 2025.

The 53-year-old has always looked a natural fit for the Pfälzers. He is open, emotional and comfortable with the intensity surrounding the club, while his relationship with the supporters has remained one of his biggest strengths.

He also knows how to win promotion from this division, having taken Darmstadt into the Bundesliga in 2023.

That experience will count for little, however, unless FCK improve in the areas that held them back last season.

Their defensive organisation was not always convincing, set pieces failed to provide enough of an advantage and some of their away performances fell well below the standard expected of a promotion hopeful.

Lieberknecht is likely to continue with his preferred 3-4-2-1 system, with two attacking midfielders operating behind a central striker.

He will do so alongside a new-look coaching staff. Simon Pesch and former FCK midfielder Mike Wunderlich have joined as assistants. 

At the same time, Philip Giesler has taken over as head of analysis and Nils Vogt has been added to the athletic department.

Summer transfers

Kaiserslautern have focused on signing young talent this summer, rather than experienced second-tier players. Notable arrivals include Thierry Tazemeta from Borussia Dortmund’s academy and Ibrahim Kanaté on loan from Anderlecht - both just 19. 

Ivan Knežević joins from Stuttgart’s under-19s, while Kelven Frees (Hoffenheim) and Jan Elvedi (returning from Greuther Fürth) bolster the defence. Paul Joly’s loan from Auxerre has become permanent.

Up front, Erencan Yardımcı arrives on loan from Hoffenheim with Ivan Prtajin still recovering from injury. Mërgim Berisha, after a tough first season, will be expected to step up.

Departures include Daniel Hanslik (Bochum), Luca Sirch (Elversberg), Florian Kleinhansl (Darmstadt), Faride Alidou (Holstein Kiel), and Mahir Emreli (loaned to Raków Częstochowa). Several others returned to their parent clubs or left at the end of their contracts.

Pre-season recap

Lieberknecht's side opened their preparations with two 17-0 victories, first against a regional supporters’ selection and then against TSG Kaiserslautern.

The level of opposition made those results largely irrelevant, although they allowed Lieberknecht to give minutes to a wide group of players.

A more competitive test followed against Sandhausen, with FCK winning 5-3. Academy players Dion Hofmeister and Owen Gibs were among the scorers, while Tazemeta registered his first goal for the club.

The first setback came against neighbours Mainz, who won 4-1 at the Bruchwegstadion.

Kaiserslautern responded with a more controlled display during their training camp, drawing 0-0 with Italian second-tier side Südtirol.

Their final friendly provided the strongest reason for optimism.

FCK beat Metz 3-1 in a match played across three 45-minute periods. Naatan Skyttä opened the scoring before Berisha found the net with an excellent strike from the edge of the box. 

Semih Şahin added the third after a well-worked move involving Skyttä, Berisha and Mika Haas.

Predicted starting XI

The team used against Metz offered the clearest indication of Lieberknecht’s plans for the opening weekend.

Julian Krahl will continue as the first-choice goalkeeper, with Elvedi, Maxwell Gyamfi and Jacob Rasmussen the most likely back three.

Simon Asta started at right wing-back in the final friendly and may begin the season ahead of Joly. Haas is expected to operate on the opposite side.

Fabian Kunze and Şahin look set to form the central-midfield partnership, while Skyttä should start in one of the two attacking roles behind the striker.

Captain Marlon Ritter would ordinarily occupy the other position, although he missed the Metz game with hip and muscular problems. He is expected to return to training before the opening fixture.

Berisha’s performance against Metz may have put him ahead of Yardımcı for the central attacking role, at least at the beginning of the season.

Predicted XI for opening day (3-4-2-1): Krahl; Elvedi, Gyamfi, Rasmussen; Asta, Kunze, Şahin, Haas; Skyttä, Ritter; Berisha

Opening fixtures

FCK could hardly have been handed a more demanding start. 

They open away to relegated Bundesliga side Wolfsburg on Saturday, before welcoming Karlsruhe to the Betzenberg for the first Südwestderby of the season.

A DFB-Pokal tie away to local rivals Waldhof Mannheim follows, before they face St. Pauli, Darmstadt and Magdeburg. 

Strong results against Wolfsburg and KSC would immediately raise the mood, but a slow start with two derbies included across league and cup would bring immense early pressure. 

Almost 34,000 season tickets have already been sold, setting a new club record, and now the action on the pitch must match the ferocious support away from it. 

Expectations for 2026/27

Kaiserslautern have enough attacking quality to compete near the top end of the division. 

Ritter remains the creative leader, Skyttä has the ability to decide matches, and Berisha should be capable of offering far more than he did last season. Prtajin’s eventual return will add another proven goal threat.

The concern is whether the team around them is strong and reliable enough.

FCK conceded 47 league goals last season, a tally simply too many for a side hoping to win promotion.

Further additions before the end of the transfer window could change the picture, but as things stand, a similar finish between fifth and eighth looks the most realistic outcome.

Yet again, Der Betze could be close enough to dream about a return to the Bundesliga, but whether they are close enough to reach it is a different matter entirely.