2020–21 DFB-Pokal

[1] The competition was originally scheduled to begin on 14 August 2020 and conclude on 22 May 2021, though this was delayed due to postponement of the previous season as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

[2] The DFB-Pokal is considered the second-most important club title in German football after the Bundesliga championship.

Bundesliga side Bayern Munich were the two-time defending champions, having defeated Bayer Leverkusen 4–2 in the previous final to clinch a record 20th title.

[3] However, Bayern were knocked out of the competition in the second round by second-division side Holstein Kiel, losing on penalties following a 2–2 draw after extra time.

[5] As winners, Dortmund featured in the 2021 edition of the DFL-Supercup at the start of the next season, and faced the champions of the 2020–21 Bundesliga, Bayern Munich.

The winners of the DFB-Pokal also earned automatic qualification for the group stage of the 2021–22 edition of the UEFA Europa League.

[8] Due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in Germany and the high economic and organisational effort required to host the fixture, including loss of ticket revenue for matches behind closed doors, many amateur teams in the competition decided to waive their home rights and exchange the duty of hosting the match with their opponents.

[9] The DFB in general allowed spectators if approved by the local health department, though away supporters were not permitted at the start of the competition.

[10] The following 64 teams qualified for the competition: Baden Bavaria[note 5] Berlin Brandenburg Bremen Hamburg Hesse Lower Rhine Lower Saxony[note 8] Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Middle Rhine Rhineland Saarland Saxony Saxony-Anhalt Schleswig-Holstein South Baden Southwest Thuringia Westphalia[note 10] Württemberg The DFB-Pokal began with a round of 64 teams.

The three remaining slots were given to the three regional associations with the most men's teams, which were Bavaria, Lower Saxony, and Westphalia.

For Westphalia, the winner of a play-off between the best-placed team of the Regionalliga West and Oberliga Westfalen also qualified.

[15] From the round of 16 onward, a video assistant referee was appointed for all DFB-Pokal matches.

[16] If a player received five yellow cards in the competition, he was then suspended from the next cup match.

If a player received a direct red card, they were suspended a minimum of one match, but the German Football Association reserved the right to increase the suspension.

[14] The winners of the DFB-Pokal earned automatic qualification for the group stage of next year's edition of the UEFA Europa League.

All draws were held at the German Football Museum in Dortmund, on a Sunday evening at 18:00 after each round (unless noted otherwise).

[26] It was originally scheduled for 18 October 2020 at 18:00, but was delayed due to the postponement of one first round match to November 2020.