Berlin, Arminia Bielefeld, a third-division team, pulled off a historic shock on Tuesday, defeating Bayer Leverkusen, the reigning champion, 2-1 to earn their first-ever trip to the German Cup final.

Jonathan Tah volleyed home Amine Adli’s corner at the back post in the 17th minute, giving Leverkusen the lead early on. But Bielefeld was not going to back down. Three minutes later, Marius Worl easily slotted past goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky after jumping on a loose ball to tie the score.

At halftime, the underdogs scored once more. Maximilian Grosser at the far post was found by Louis Oppie’s whipped free kick, and his precision volley threw the home fans into a frenzy.

After the interval, Leverkusen added strikers Victor Boniface and Patrik Schick, but they were unable to overcome a determined Bielefeld defense. Schick’s late attempt just missed the post, and goalkeeper Jonas Kersken kept the advantage with a fingertip save to save Boniface’s header.

Mitch Kniat, head coach of Arminia Bielefeld, said, “We are just proud of the team.” “By making it to the Berlin final, we fulfilled our ambition. It was fantastic to take the lead just before halftime, and we defended with fervor. Overall, the victory is well-earned.

Robert Andrich, a midfielder for Leverkusen, acknowledged: “It is difficult to pinpoint precisely what went wrong today. Bielefeld deserves to be in the final, let’s face it. We just were unable to get through up front.

After defeating Union Berlin, Freiburg, and Werder Bremen, Bielefeld will play either RB Leipzig or Stuttgart in the championship match.