Lakenheath goalkeeper Matthew Vasquez and Stuttgart striker Seth Harpuder jump for a ball during a Division I semifinal match at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany – After a one-year hiatus, Stuttgart and Ramstein will renew their boys soccer rivalry in the championship round.

The Panthers and Royals did enough in their respective DODEA-Europe Division I semifinal matches to get by – Stuttgart 3-0 over an upstart Lakenheath squad and Ramstein 2-0 over crosstown rival Kaiserslautern on Wednesday at Kaiserslautern High School.

The two are meeting in the title round for the third time in four seasons. Last year, the two squared off in the semifinals, with Ramstein upsetting the then-top seed on penalties.

Both sides have traded the European crown between each other the last three years – Ramstein in 2022 and 2024 and Stuttgart in 2023.

“It’s a great rivalry,” Stuttgart striker Seth Harpuder said. “There are wins on either side every year, and you never know who’s going to win.

“We’re coming into the championship game ready to fight for our lives.”

Longtime Ramstein coach Dominik Ludes said the trend for the championship matches is always tight, but that’s especially the case when the Panthers (9-0-1) and Royals (9-1-2) step onto the field.

“Little things will make the difference in those games,” he said. “The final is always close. If I look at the last 10, 15 years, there’s never a blowout in the final. It’s always a close game.”

Close games are what both sides faced in the semifinal round, although perhaps Ramstein more than Stuttgart.

The Raiders (5-5) stymied the Royals for most of the contest, keeping the second seed from getting into dangerous spots for the better part of an hour.

In the 64th minute, the game changed. Kaiserslautern senior Isaac Phillips slid to stop Ramstein midfielder Santiago Idarraga as he dribbled on goal. The referee deemed the action a denial of a goal-scoring opportunity, and the defender was sent off.

The Royals took advantage of being a man up with two goals over the final 14 minutes. First, senior striker Joseph Yost got on the end of a centering pass from teammate Andrew Soto and put it past Raider keeper Finn Derby (seven saves) in the 66th minute.

Then, in the 798th minute, Keiran Goodall dribbled in from the left wing and fired home from 10 yards out.

“They gave us a tough fight – we did not expect it,” Yost said of Kaiserslautern. “I give kudos to them. They came out here and gave it their all, slowed us down, but we ended up being able to push through.”

While going for the jugular immediately at the red card showed their experience in big matches, Ludes pointed to the play that led to the red card as another sign of the team’s championship pedigree.

“When you have a lot of returning players, a lot of players that have played in the big games before, that helps in close, tight games like a semifinal when it’s 0-0,” Ludes said. “You have to rely on that leadership. You have to rely on that experience.”

That’s the type of experience Kaiserslautern coach Enrique John is hoping his club can absorb going into the future.

“There was a bit of a destabilization, and they capitalized on it,” John said of the red card. “My team, like all other young teams, they have to learn to play with one man down. We haven’t learned that yet.”

Lakenheath goalkeeper Matthew Vasquez falls to the turf as he corrals a loose ball during a Division I semifinal match against Stuttgart at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Kaiserslautern midfielder Wesley Manson kicks the ball while Ramstein defender Nathan Rachamim comes forward during a Division I semifinal match at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Ramstein striker Joseph Yost heads the ball during a Division I semifinal match against Kaiserslautern at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Stuttgart attacking midfielder Dom Tondre dribbles past Lakenheath midfielder Jonas Ballesteros-Burkett during a Division I semifinal match at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Stuttgart attacking midfielder James Sheppard control the ball during a Division I semifinal match against Lakenheath at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Stuttgart attacking midfielder Cristian Ingle crosses the ball during a Division I semifinal match against Lakenheath at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Ramstein midfielder Jovan Paucar holds off Kaiserslautern midfielder Ethan Dezeda while Dezeda's teammate, outside midfielder Nico Engeman, comes to help during a Division I semifinal match at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Kaiserslautern defender Max Worley clears the ball as midfielder Kai Woodstock turns his body while trying to block the ball during a Division I semifinal match at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Kaiserslautern outside midfielder Nico Engeman stops the ball from going out during a Division I semifinal match against Ramstein at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Ramstein midfielder Santiago Idarraga looks up as dribbles past Kaiserslautern defender Jevonne Ford during a Division I semifinal match at the 2025 DODEA European championships on May 21, 2025, at Kaiserslautern High School in Kaiserslautern, Germany. (Matt Wagner/Stars and Stripes)

Stuttgart, meanwhile, didn’t need a man advantage to turn the screws to the Lancers (4-6). The team just needed halftime.

The Panthers jumped out to an early lead. In the sixth minute, junior Christian Groves volleyed home a corner from sophomore attacking midfielder Dom Tondre. The chances were pretty sparse for the rest of the opening 40 minutes.

After the break, though, the Panthers pounced on the Lancers. Harpuder punched in a rebound from his own shot saved by Lakenheath goalkeeper Matthew Vasquez.

A minute later, Panther junior Cristian Ingle put the match out of reach with a goal.

“In the second half, we rejuvenate ourselves, come out with more energy and hit them harder,” Harpuder said.

For Lakenheath, the match was another step in the right direction as the program continues to build.

“We left everything on the field like coach asked us to,” Vasquez said. “There’s not much more we can ask from the team.

“We have our eyes set on third for sure. We want to get that podium spot because we feel like we’ve earned it.”

Stuttgart knows something about playing in the third-place match, having done it in 2024.

Yet the Panthers are happy to return to the title contest against a familiar opponent. The match begins at 7 p.m. at Ramstein High School.

Groves said the Panthers expect the match to go how it typically goes when the two play each other.

“Every year is a battle, and it’s not easy,” he said. “We always go to the 80th minute.”