The champions of Regionalliga West – Fortuna Köln – and the winner – SG Sonnenhof Großaspach – and third-placed team - FSV Mainz 05 II - of the Regionalliga Südwest were promoted to the 3.
18 teams from the states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein competed in the third season of the reformed Regionalliga Nord.
15 teams were retained from the last season and 3 teams were promoted from the Oberliga – Niedersachsenliga champions Lüneburger SK Hansa and the two Regionalliga North promotion playoff winners VfB Lübeck and FT Braunschweig.
16 teams from the states of Berlin, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia competed in the third season of the reformed Regionalliga Nordost.
Rödinghausen placed second in the Oberliga Westfalen although Arminia Bielefeld II won the competition but was unable to be promoted as the first team played in the 3.
18 teams from Baden-Württemberg, Hesse, Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland competed in the third season of the Regionalliga Südwest.