The earliest years of German Formula Three were shaped by the country's post-war division. The West German championship ran from 1950 to 1954 using the standard 500cc two-stroke formula, while an East German equivalent continued until 1956. This period marked BMW's first involvement in open-wheel racing as an engine supplier. Formula Three was superseded by Formula Junior in 1958, and the revived German F3 Championship in 1960 adopted that new 1000cc specification. Gerhard Mitter won the 1960 title, and Kurt Ahrens Jr. claimed the 1961 and 1963 championships.
Formula Three returned at the international level in 1964 with 1000cc four-cylinder production-based engines, but Germany did not revive its national series until 1975. The first champion of this modern era was Ernst Maring, who was also the first non-German winner of the title. The 1970s and 1980s saw Bertram Schäfer Racing emerge as a dominant force, winning eight drivers' titles across the life of the championship with drivers including two-time champions Bertram Schäfer himself (1976 and 1978) and Frank Jelinski (1980–81).
By the late 1980s the German F3 Championship had become an established proving ground for future Formula One talent. Bernd Schneider (1987 champion) and Joachim Winkelhock (1988) both graduated to F1 before winning titles in touring car racing at the highest level. Volker Weidler, the 1985 champion, made F1 appearances and won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1991.
The 1990 champion was Michael Schumacher, who won the title four years before claiming the first of his record seven Formula One World Championship titles. Heinz-Harald Frentzen ran Schumacher close in 1989, finishing as runner-up, before going on to win three Formula One Grands Prix in his own right. Schumacher's 1991 successor, Tom Kristensen of Denmark, embarked on a sportscar career culminating in a record number of Le Mans victories.
Through the 1990s the series continued to produce high-calibre alumni including Ralf Schumacher, Jarno Trulli, Alexander Wurz, Jos Verstappen, Nick Heidfeld, and Norberto Fontana. Gary Paffett, the last champion of that era, went on to win the DTM drivers' title and serve as a McLaren-Mercedes test driver.
In 2002, the motorsport governing bodies of France and Germany agreed to revive the concept of a European Formula Three championship. The French series ceased at the end of that year, but the German championship had a larger entry base, and many competitors expressed concern about the increased costs of a pan-European calendar. Bertram Schäfer, with backing from ADAC and the F3V (Germany's national F3 association), led efforts to maintain a domestic series.
The result was the Recaro Formel 3 Cup, launched in 2003 with Schäfer himself as promoter. Title sponsorship from Recaro was later replaced by wheel manufacturer ATS in 2007. A two-tier chassis class system — distinguishing newer from older machinery — was adopted in 2005, following a model already used in British F3, to lower the cost of entry and attract a broader field.
After the 2014 season, with grids often numbering fewer than fifteen cars, organisers rejected a proposed merger with the British Formula 3 Championship. Plans were announced for a 2015 successor series called German Formula Open, intended to circumvent FIA rules limiting national F3 championships to no more than one round outside their home country. However, in January 2015 the organisers announced that no 2015 championship would be held, leaving the series' future uncertain.
The Formel 3 Cup became notable for its diverse technical landscape. While many European F3 championships converged on a single chassis supplier — typically Dallara — the German series accommodated Dallara alongside the Lola B06/30 and the SLC R1 built by Signature. On the engine side, the H.W.A.-Mercedes and Spiess-Opel units were most popular, but Mugen-Honda, TOM's-Toyota, and the older Sodemo-Renault also saw use, creating an unusually eclectic field. Tyre supply was provided by Yokohama.
Across more than six decades of competition, the German Formula Three Championship served as one of Europe's most important driver development platforms. Its champions list reads as a directory of motorsport achievement: world champions, Le Mans winners, DTM title holders, and Grand Prix race winners all passed through the series on their way to the top of the sport.