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The official curtain-raising event known as the DFB Super Cup between Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen and DFB-Pokal winners VfB Stuttgart will take place on August 17, one week before the league kicks off.
Officially set to begin on August 23, 2024, with the maiden fixture Borussia Mönchengladbach vs. Bayer 04 Leverkusen, this will be the 62nd season of Germany’s premier men’s football competition.
While the UEFA Champions League has taken on a new shape, the Bundesliga will remain in its familiar round-robin form, where a total of 34 games will be played.
FC St. Pauli returns to the Bundesliga after a 13-year absence, while Holstein Kiel are back in Germany’s top-flight history after 60 years of absence. Both clubs replace 1. FC Köln and Darmstadt 98, who finished in 17th and 18th place, respectively, last season.
Six managerial changes have taken place since the previous edition of the Bundesliga ended on May 18, with the likes of long-serving Christian Streich among the departing six.
The 59-year-old had announced his exit weeks before the end of the 2023–24 season, following a 12-year spell at Freiburg.
Meanwhile, the likes of Fabian Hürzeler threw in the towel before the season even began after leading St. Pauli to a Bundesliga return.
Will we see another unbeaten fairy tale run by Bayer Leverkusen as they look to hold on to the title?
Or will Vincent Kompany prove doubters wrong by reclaiming the league title after Bayern’s 11-year title hold came to an end? Who are the favourites to win the Bundesliga?
Together, we will answer many of these nagging questions as we go along.
WHO ARE THE FAVOURITES TO WIN THE BUNDESLIGA?
Bayer Leverkusen are the defending champions after winning their first ever title following a remarkable season-long unbeaten run that left them with 28 victories and six draws.
Now, they will be looking to fend off competition from the familiar duo of Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. Leverkusen coach Xabi Alonso wasn’t short of suitors after the remarkable feat he achieved with the club.
However, rather than leaving with a standing ovation after interests from Liverpool and Bayern Munich, the 42-year-old decided to remain at BayArena in a bid to steer Leverkusen to back-to-back title wins.
WILL BAYERN RECLAIM THE TITLE?
But with Bayern gearing up for the new season, those dreams may fail to materialize. Thomas Tuchel was shown the door early enough, before an unexpected choice in the shape of Vincent Kompany left eyelids batting following the official announcement.
‘It’s important that we’re fit for the cup match and then the start of the Bundesliga,’ Kompany recently said after a pre-season 14-1 win over Rottach-Egern.
While fingers remain crossed over the unpopular choice to lead Germany’s most decorated side to domestic glory, onlookers expect Bayern to reclaim the title after a shock third-place finish last term.
To do so, the Bavarians signed the promising 22-year-old Michael Olise for €53M. The right winger, who scored 14 goals and created 22 assists for Crystal Palace in 82 games, had one of the most promising seasons last term, helping Palace to a 10th-place finish.
Bayern also secured the services of João Palhinha for €51M from Fulham after an impressive outing with Portugal at the just concluded European championship, which you can relive on our live blog.
COULD IT BE DORTMUND?
Meanwhile, one of the many shocking events of last season was Edin Terzić’s resignation after an impressive season where he steered Borussia Dortmund to the Champions League final.
Rumours of a violent bust-up with Mats Hummels surfaced much later after the 41-year-old asked for his contract to be terminated.
Marco Reus also left the club after an impressive twelve-year spell. However, with former assistant manager Nuri Şahin slipping into the managerial seat, continuity might not be a problem for the Black & Yellows.
The acquisition of Serhou Guirassy from Stuttgart for €18M is expected to strengthen Dortmund.
We anticipate a three-horse race in the Bundesliga, with Leverkusen putting up a stiff title defence in a neck-to-neck race with Bayern Munich and Dortmund.
WHO WILL FINISH IN THE TOP FIVE?
It used to be the top-four race, but after the Bundesliga was awarded another UEFA Champions League qualifying spot at the tail end of last season, a top-five race will be the talk of the season.
RB Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt will likely be among the contenders. The Red Bulls finished fourth last season after a dissatisfying campaign that saw them win only 19 league matches [19W, 8D, 7L].
Despite being considered an outsider for the title, Marco Rose will be keen to establish his side as a formidable contender for third place. Certainly, the Red Bulls will be more than happy to challenge for the title if the opportunity arises. That said, if only Bayern or Leverkusen slip up.
On the other hand, Stuttgart was, should we say, the dark horse of the previous season. Of course, that’s behind Leverkusen. The Sebastian Hoeneß’s led side had crept up on an unsuspecting Bayern before beating the Bavarians to second place on the final day of the season as runners-up.
While challenging for the title might be a long shot, Stuttgart will be looking to finish in the top five once again for an automatic UCL spot.
WHO WILL BE IN THE EUROPEAN QUALIFYING RACE?
Although only a few have the quality or depth to challenge for the top five places, another battle for the European qualifying place promises to be exciting.
An eighth-place finish for Heidenheim surprised many after Frank Schmidt led his side to 10W, 12D, and 12L for Europa Conference League qualification. Will Heidenheim see back-to-back European place finishes? Or could another team burst onto the scene?
Meanwhile, famous victories over Bayern Munich and Leipzig ensured Frankfurt finished in 6th place last term. They will be keen to peel off prized scalps again this season in another attempt to finish in a position that ensures qualifying for one of the European club tournaments.
Don’t write off recently promoted St. Pauli, who were champions of the 2.Bundesliga. However, a change of coach following their promotion could unsettle them.
Fabian Hürzeler signed for Brighton after helping St. Pauli return to the Bundesliga following a 13-year absence.
Former Genoa manager Alexander Blessin, who slips into the vacant role, will be keen to see the Neighbourhood Kickers remain in the Bundesliga at the end of the season.
WHO WILL FINISH AS BUNDESLIGA TOP SCORER?
While major trophies have continued to be elusive, more recently, after successive European Championship final defeats, Harry Kane secured a personal record for himself after a maiden season in the Bundesliga.
The Englishman finished as the Bundesliga top scorer after 36 league goals and also picked up the European Golden Shoe. Serhou Guirassy came in next with 28 goals for Stuttgart, while Leipzig’s Loïs Openda was third with 24 goals.
Harry Kane is expected to emerge as the top scorer once again, with the caveat that Vincent Kompany’s Bayern shows the kind of form they were known for in his debut season.
WHO WILL FINISH WITH THE HIGHEST NUMBER OF CLEAN SHEETS?
Lukas Hradecky made 15 clean sheets over the course of the season as Leverkusen matched on to an unbeaten run as the keeper with the most clean sheets.
He made 78 saves in 33 appearances for Leverkusen in the previous season, which amounted to 76.5% after facing 102 shots.
His exploits between the sticks didn’t go unnoticed, as he was named the 9th best goalkeeper in the world in the top 10 list by ESPN in June 2024.
Alexander Nübel kept 11 clean sheets for Stuttgart, the second-highest number, while Freiburg’s Noah Atubolu came in third with 10 clean sheets. Both goalkeepers made 30 and 34 appearances, respectively.
All three were not even in the top three under the category in the previous season.
However, a Freiburg goalkeeper has been in the top three for the last three seasons. Could the trend continue?
Or will an unfamiliar trio knock all three off the list at the end of the season? We will have to wait and see.
Do you agree with our predictions?
No one would have ever thought Bayer Leverkusen would put the name ‘Neverkusen’ to bed at the onset of the 2023–24 Bundesliga season. No one would have guessed Stuttgart would finish above Bayern Munich, nor predicted Edin Terzic would walk out on Dortmund.
While our prediction API can provide far more accurate outcomes, what do you think about your choices?
We leave you to ponder our choices. Meanwhile, our Bundesliga API is part of our robust Football API that provides up-to-date statistics, calendars, in-play events, and live scores for the 2024–25 season.
Why not build your dream Bundesliga data-driven app with our free trial? What’s more? Check out our 2024–2025 Premier League preview.
