Starting short on DB Sparpreis Germany-London

If I have a DB-issued DB+Eurostar ticket from eg. Cologne to London, will I have any problems starting from Brussels, in other words not using the Germany>Brussels portion?

I have some vague memory that it is supposed to be endorsed with something proving you've travelled on the DB portion or am I imagining things?

Should not be a problem. I have done this a few times when a DB-Ticket Aachen->London was cheaper than an Eurostar Brussels->London ticket. At Eurostar check-in nobody cared that my ticket had no control markings etc.. At one time I even showed up at the check-in about 30min before the arrival of the ICE train and nobody made a fuss about it.

I don't expect there will be problems, but the I've seen some small print for Sparpreis Europa to the effect that the DE border must be crossed on a DB service.
That's not a rule about not starting short, more about routeing and carrier.

k-c-p said:

Should not be a problem. I have done this a few times when a DB-Ticket Aachen->London was cheaper than an Eurostar Brussels->London ticket. At Eurostar check-in nobody cared that my ticket had no control markings etc.. At one time I even showed up at the check-in about 30min before the arrival of the ICE train and nobody made a fuss about it.

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Thanks. That's basically my situation here - DB ticket from Cologne cheaper than regular ticket on Eurostar's own website.

On the topic of Sparspreis Europa, is there any update on being able to buy these tickets for journeys beyond November 9? I just price something up for a Xmas Markets trip in early December and it would sell me a Eurostar + Sparspreis Belgium, which came in at €193 one way in First Class from London to Dusseldorf.

The DB site can't offer anything beyond 31 Oct, even Flexpreis fares.
The Eurostar site has never offered the DB London fares AFAIK.

Can also try b-rail, com but I assume it also wont be able to offer very much.

On the topic of Sparspreis Europa, is there any update on being able to buy these tickets for journeys beyond November 9?

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No news so far. Statement on DB Website:

Due to a system change at Eurostar, DB no longer has an interface to Eurostar. As a result, we can no longer offer saver and flexible fares for the entire journey from and to London from 9 November 2019. We are currently working on a more customer friendly solution with Eurostar. In the meantime, you can book your ticket via the international booking platform (link provided in the travel information on bahn.com).

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The question is, if Eurostar is really interested in re-instating the offer. As far as I know, they get a fixed amount of money for each ticket the DB sells - no matter which price the DB charges the customer. Combine this, with the fact that oftentimes a ticket from Germany to London is sold cheaper than a mere EST Brussels->London ticket, this offer is not very attractive to EST.

I want to go to London in January. I have not decided yet, whether I will wait if something changes, or until tickets via Paris become available at SNCF or book a flight or ... On thing this is for sure: This whole mess does not encourage people to use the train.

Thalys plus Eurostar should continue to be available, or Sparpreis Europa Belgien plus Eurostar, but not as cheap as the bedt DB prices