A winter break was held between 21 December 2009 and 14 January 2010, though the period has been reduced from six to three weeks.
They were replaced by Karlsruher SC and Arminia Bielefeld, who finished 17th and 18th respectively in the 2008–09 Bundesliga season.
At the bottom end of the table, VfL Osnabrück lost both of their play-off matches against 3.
Several teams moved to different grounds for the 2009–10 season; Alemannia Aachen and Augsburg were relocating to new stadia, replacing their old structures, while FSV Frankfurt and Union Berlin returned to their original home grounds which had undergone renovation.
Liga team FC Ingolstadt for a two-legged play-off.
FC Ingolstadt, as the winner on aggregated score after both matches earned a spot in the 2010–11 2.