Bezirksliga Rheinhessen-Saar
The Bezirksliga Rheinhessen-Saar was the highest association football league in the German state of Saarland, the "Rheinhessen" part of the state of Hesse and parts of the Bavarian region of Palatinate and the Prussian Rhine Province from 1923 to 1927, when the league was replaced by the "Bezirksliga Rhein-Saar" and the "Bezirksliga Main-Hessen". Overview. The league was formed in 1923, after a league reform which was decided upon in Darmstadt, Hesse. It replaced the "Kreisliga Hessen" and the "Kreisliga Saar" as the highest leagues in the region. The "Bezirksliga Rheinhessen-Saar", named after the  region of Rhenish Hesse (German: "Rheinhessen") and the river Saar, started out with eight teams, playing each other in a home-and-away round with the league winner advancing to the Southern German championship, which in turn was a qualification tournament for the German championship. The league modus remained unchanged for its first three seasons, 1923–24, 1924–25 and 1925-26. For its last edition however, it expanded to ten clubs. Additionally, the leagues runners-up also qualified for a "consolidation" round with the other runners-up of the southern "Bezirksligas". The winner of this round was awarded the third entry  spot for the south to the German finals. In an attempt to bring all Southern German leagues to a similar system, the "Bezirksligas" were reorganised in 1927. For the "Bezirksliga Rheinhessen-Saar", this meant, it joined with the clubs of the "Bezirksliga Rhein" to form the new "Bezirksliga Rhein-Saar". The clubs from the Saar region became part of the new "Saar division" of this league. The clubs from the Rhenish Hesse region however became part of the "Hessen division" of the new "Bezirksliga Main-Hessen". It resulted in an even split of clubs, five going to the "Main-Hessen  league and the other five to the Rhein-Saar" league. National success. Southern German championship. Qualified teams and their success: German championship. Qualified teams and their success: Founding members of the league. The league was formed from eight teams: