Bundesliga could not enter but were instead directly qualified for the first round of the DFB-Pokal.
[2][3] All twenty one winners qualified for the first round of the German Cup in the following season.
Three additional clubs are also qualified for the first round of the German Cup, these being from the three largest state associations, Bavaria, Westphalia and Lower Saxony.
In Bavaria the best-placed Regionalliga Bayern non-reserve team was qualified for the DFB-Pokal while in Westphalia a play-off is conducted to determine this club.
[1] On 2 November 2016, it was announced that German broadcaster ARD would show all 21 Verbandspokal finals live in a conference as well as live stream them and that all finals would be played on the same date, 25 May 2017.