The league was formed from clubs from the southern side of the river, around the Offenbach am Main area.

From 1907, four regional leagues were formed within the structure of the Southern German football championship, in a move to improve the organisation of football in Southern Germany, these being: In 1908, a first Nordkreis-Liga (English: Northern District League) was established, consisting of ten clubs and playing a home-and-away season.

With the collapse of the German Empire in 1918, no Nordkreis championship was played in 1918-19 but football returned to a more organised system in 1919.

[3] In 1921-22, the Kreisliga Südmain was split into two groups of eight, increasing the number of tier-one clubs in the region to 16.

[5] In 1923, a league reform which was decided upon in Darmstadt, Hesse, established the Southern German Bezirksligas which were to replace the Kreisligas.