Rot-Weiss Essen Advances Confidently as SC Verl Exits Westfalenpokal Dramatically

Rot-Weiss Essen progresses in the Niederrheinpokal with a 3-0 win, while SC Verl suffers a dramatic penalty shootout defeat in the Westfalenpokal against 1. FC Gievenbeck.

    Key details

  • • Rot-Weiss Essen won 3-0 over Sportfreunde Broekhuysen to advance to the Niederrheinpokal round of 16.
  • • SC Verl was eliminated from the Westfalenpokal after losing 10-11 on penalties to 1. FC Gievenbeck.
  • • SC Verl twice took the lead but conceded equalizers leading to a 2-2 draw before penalties.
  • • SC Verl's goalkeeper Fabian Pekruhl missed the decisive penalty after previously saving one.

On September 26, 2026, Rot-Weiss Essen (RWE) secured a decisive 3-0 victory over Bezirksligist Sportfreunde Broekhuysen in the Niederrheinpokal, progressing smoothly to the round of 16. The goals came from Ruben Reisig (29'), Ekin Celebi (42'), and Marek Janssen, witnessed by around 1,200 spectators. RWE is set to face FC Kosova Düsseldorf in their next encounter.

In stark contrast, SC Verl experienced a surprising and dramatic elimination from the Westfalenpokal. After twice taking the lead with goals from Almin Mesanovic (15') and Antonio Foti (82'), Verl saw their lead equalized by Oberligist 1. FC Gievenbeck through Louis Martin (20') and Felix Ritter (89'). The match concluded at 2-2, leading to a tense penalty shootout.

The shootout extended to ten rounds of shooters each, culminating in a heartbreaking miss by Verl's goalkeeper Fabian Pekruhl. Earlier, Pekruhl had saved a penalty, but he ultimately failed to convert the decisive spot-kick, resulting in a 10-11 penalty defeat for Verl against Gievenbeck.

The Westfalenpokal competition will proceed with upcoming matches, including a scheduled fixture on October 20 featuring Preußen Münster and SG Wattenscheid 09.

This article was translated and synthesized from German sources, providing English-speaking readers with local perspectives.

Source comparison

Penalty shootout score

Sources report different scores for the penalty shootout

www1.wdr.de

"the penalty shootout involved ten shooters from each side, and the decisive moment came when Verl's goalkeeper, Fabian Pekruhl, missed the final shot that would have kept his team in the tournament."

www1.wdr.de

"losing 10:11 on penalties to Oberligist 1. FC Gievenbeck."

Why this matters: One source states the penalty shootout ended 10:11, while the other does not provide a score. This discrepancy affects understanding of the match outcome.

The top news stories in Germany

Delivered straight to your inbox each morning.