The German Football League (DFL) started its appeal against having to contribute to policing costs around high risk matches at the nation's highest court on Thursday.
The DFL is appealing a decision from 2014 by the federal state of Bremen, under which football authorities must help cover the costs for extra security measures, at the Federal Constitutional Court.
It has named a previous ruling in Bremen's favour unconstitutional, and there are fears that other states could follow Bremen's example.
The court heard both parties on Thursday, with a ruling not expected until later in the year.
Bremen senator of the interior, Ulrich Mäurer, spoke of an appropriate contribution to policing costs by professional football.
He said the states are heavily burdened by the additional policing costs at Bundesliga matches, with taxpayers bearing the costs as violence prevention measures have not yet had the desired effect.
Matches are classified as high risk when violence is expected between fans from the teams involved.
The DFL said that 52 of the 612 matches in the two top divisions were classified high risk in 2022-23.
Mäurer said that nine matches were deemed high risk in Bremen since the 2014 ruling, one match per season. Bremen has billed the DFL €3 million ($3.2 million) of which €2 million have been paid.
The court was told that up to 400 additional police officers are needed to safeguard high risk games, and that organizers must also contribute to the costs in other European countries.
DFL managing director Marc Lenz said that "Bundesliga clubs are investiging significantly in preventive measures," and that the stadium experience is "very safe" overall in Germany.
DFL lawyer Bernd Hoefer warned that that potential future cost sharing imposed on third division clubs could leave them in financial trouble.
Hoefer also highlighted that car fair organizers in Munich were not billed in connection with climate protests.
The German bar association DAV believes that the DFL appeal will fail because its basic rights are not violated and the Bremen legislation is in accordance with the constitution.
DAV constitutional rights commission member Sebastian Nellesen told dpa it is a "political issue" which only the federal states can decide, and not the constitutional court.