The Lower Saxony side, located near the border to the Soviet occupation zone, had previously been a mid-table team and were not expected to have anything to do with the title race before the season.
But a strong defense, which only allowed 27 goals in 34 games, an unexpectedly even-balanced league and struggling opposition (for example, runners-up 1860 Munich were in 17th place after one third of the season before starting a comeback) eventually benefitted the team of coach Helmuth Johannsen.
The competitional differences between the professional Bundesliga and the semi-professional Regionalligen had already become very difficult to compensate so that the demotion of both teams was inevitable the more the season continued.
On a minor note, Meidericher SV was renamed MSV Duisburg effective to the start of the year 1967.
Forwards: Erich Maas (33 / 11); Gerd Saborowski (33 / 8); Lothar Ulsaß (32 / 14); Klaus Gerwien (21 / 4); Wolfgang Grzyb (15 / 2); Wolf-Rüdiger Krause (2).