In an interview, South Tyrol's football director Klaus Schuster looks ahead to the new amateur football season. © Niccolo Dametto

Before the start of the season: Klaus Schuster in a big interview

The new amateur football season in South Tyrol began on Thursday evening with a match in the 3rd Amateur League. South Tyrol's LND head, Klaus Schuster, takes a look ahead to the new season for SportNews.

August 29, 2025

From: cst

Klaus Schuster is the man who has the final say in South Tyrolean amateur football. The Wipptal native is both president and decision-maker. As a former coach, including of the Neo-Serie D league team FC Obermais and the CF Südtirol Women, he also knows exactly what matters on the pitch. In an interview with SportNews Klaus Schuster spoke about the following topics…

Obermais’ promotion to Serie D: "Serie D is a very difficult league. Virtus Bozen has been promoted twice and managed to stay there for a year each time. However, it would be important for South Tyrolean football if we had a consistent presence of clubs in Serie D. Furthermore, Serie D is an ideal stepping stone for many South Tyrolean talents. Very few make it directly from the FCS youth ranks to Serie B. Obermais has good conditions. The moment of truth will come in the winter at the latest, when they have to train over Christmas and play games in January. I hope they manage to avoid relegation."

The new Oberliga season: "Repeating last season will likely be difficult. I hope there will only be two relegations from South Tyrol, not three. Word from Trentino is that Levico is the favorite for the title. From a South Tyrolean perspective, Virtus Bozen is probably the only team with promotion ambitions. The absolute newcomer to the Oberliga is Val Gardena. Considering that some of their players were regulars in the 2nd Amateur League just a few years ago, you have to take your hat off to such an achievement. However, Val Gardena will be at a considerable disadvantage in the winter, as they won't be able to play on their home turf."

"In the state league, everyone wants to be champions. That's the difference between the top league and the top division." Klaus Schuster

The signs in the national league: "The regional league is attractive, with many derbies and large crowds. Everyone wants to be champions, that's the difference from the Oberliga. Good teams have emerged, including Natz, Freienfeld, Gargazon, and Olimpia Meran. Many clubs in the regional league now play on Saturdays. This isn't good for us as an association because we have problems with the referees. I would prefer to see some games played on Friday evenings."

The new cup formats: "Initially, the new state cup was received very well. Recently, however, the criticism from lower-league clubs has increased. They simply had no chance and, in some cases, suffered very heavy defeats. That's why there are now two cup competitions: the Forst Cup for the 2nd and 3rd Amateur Leagues, and the Volksbank Cup for the 1st Amateur League and above."

The youth work of South Tyrolean clubs: "The clubs in the larger centers are working well – and have been for years. But we have a problem at a broad level. We only have seven or eight clubs that consistently field youth teams. These have been the same clubs for years. In the periphery, and I'm referring primarily to the Vinschgau, Hochpustertal, and Wipptal, the clubs are struggling. The level? This year, we only had ten teams in the B-youth division that registered for the elite championship. By comparison, there were 33 in Trentino. I wonder if the clubs are just that modest, or if other factors are at play. The biggest mistake is being afraid of losing. You always learn the most when you play against better opponents."

"The biggest mistake is the fear of losing. You still learn the most when you play against better opponents." Klaus Schuster on youth work in South Tyrol

The Junior Pool Championship: "The juniors have been a problem for years. This year we have six more teams because of the pool teams in the championship. Several clubs are allowed to join forces to field a team. However, we always have problems getting this rule through in Rome. After all, we are the only region that offers this format. The downside is that the pool teams are not allowed to compete in national championships. Regarding the juniors, it should also be noted that the best players almost always go directly from the U1 to the first teams. In the UXNUMX, we have the same number of teams as last year."

The lack of digitalization in amateur football: "Since this year, referees have had digital match reports. This eliminates the need to manually write lists. Clubs also have a tool where they can determine the value of players. This is important, because the new regulations allow players to transfer freely. However, our online system is not yet at the same level as in Austria, for example. There, every game and every player can be viewed online. It will take a while until we get there, but we're on the way."