Bundesliga preview: New door opens to fascinating possibilities

World Soccer Talk writer Ismail Ansar joins us for the 2024/25 Bundesliga preview. It’s a season that holds much promise after what happened last season.

In years before the brilliance of Xabi Alonso’s Bayer Leverkusen side won the Bundesliga last season, Bayern Munich had a vice-like grip on the German league for over a decade. Bayern had won 11 league titles in a row.

That number has been matched or surpassed by just six other teams throughout the history of European top-flight football. Croatian side Dinamo Zagreb has matched the 11-in-a-row achievement, while Bulgarian side Ludogorets, Belarusian club BATE Borisov, and Norwegian outfit Rosenborg have all surpassed it by winning their respective divisions 13 times in a row at one point. Meanwhile, Lincoln Red Imps of the Gibraltar National League and the now-defunct Latvian club Skonto Riga have both won 14 consecutive titles in their respective countries.

Bayern Munich meets Bayer Leverkusen

Despite Bayern Munich’s 11 Bundesliga titles in a row, empires eventually always fall. Whether that be due to being conquered by a newer and more powerful enemy, the empire’s economic health nosediving, or internal conflict, change always happens. Last year we saw that with Bayer Leverkusen’s incredible season. At the same time, Bayern’s fall also came at the hand of well-documented internal conflict among the club’s hierarchy, alongside years of spending large sums of money on superstar signings that have left other areas of the squad in need of attention.

Following Bayer Leverkusen’s title win last year, can Xabi Alonso’s team kickstart what could be a modern dynasty by claiming a second league title win this season, or will they undergo a fate similar to that of Wolfsburg, Werder Bremen, and Kaiserslautern – all clubs who have pipped Bayern Munich to the Bundesliga title within the last 30 years, only to suffer declining fortunes in the aftermath?

With the addition of a new manager (Vincent Kompany) and new players at the Allianz Arena, the inevitable duel for the title between these two clubs is the most notable in a series of compelling storylines and narratives heading into the 62nd edition of top-flight German soccer.

Bundesliga preview: Can Leverkusen retain its crown?

Bayer Leverkusen makes the short journey to play Borussia Monchengladbach on Friday in the opening game of the season (live on ESPN+ and ESPN2). Last season, Leverkusen picked up a possible four out of six points against Friday’s opponents, ultimately finishing 56 points ahead of Monchengladbach. Gladbach finished in a highly concerning 14th position.

Like nearly all title-winning teams, one of the tenets of repeating the feat is keeping the core squad together. Leverkusen have done so by managing to keep Alonso at the club, which is arguably the most important move they have made this summer. But they have also done the same with their playing squad. Key men such as Alex Grimaldo, Granit Xhaka, Florian Wirtz, and Victor Boniface are all still at the BayArena. But the additions of young defender Jeanuel Belocian and goalscorer Martin Terrier from Rennes will improve an already strong side.

That notion of a strong side was further supported by Leverkusen’s showing in the Supercup last weekend, with Alonso’s men triumphing over Stuttgart on penalties after a late Patrik Schick equalizer. It helped Leverkusen on their way to a third piece of silverware under Alonso’s tenure.

Leverkusen’s ability to dig themselves out of a hole with a late goal was something that audiences became accustomed to, and maybe even expecting, during last season. It is an asset that may have to be reproduced again this campaign if there is any chance of another title.

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Vincent Kompany’s appointment has been supplemented by the additions of new players to the squad. Some of that shopping was done in the Premier League in the form of Fulham’s Joao Palhinha and Crystal Palace’s Michael Olise. They have also done their customary shopping at fellow Bundesliga clubs, taking defender Hiroki Ito from 2023/24 runners-up Stuttgart. 

Bayern travel to Wolfsburg on Sunday, looking to lay down their marker to any potential title rivals.

Bayern Munich will first meet Leverkusen on September 28 at the Allianz Arena, with the return game at the BayArena scheduled for February 15. Those are arguably two of, if not, the most important domestic games for Kompany in a season that will require him to be at his best to bring silverware back to the club.

Elsewhere across Germany

There are a plethora of other interesting storylines and narratives further down the league and in the furthest corners of Germany.

The club that most frequently comes to mind after Bayern is Borussia Dortmund. Dortmund have somewhat undergone their metamorphosis this summer, seeing club legend Marcos Reus and Mats Hummels depart alongside manager Edin Terzic. Club legend Nuri Sahin takes the reins from Terzic, while the additions of Serhou Guirassy and Maximilian Beier (who finished 2nd and 5th in the scoring charts last season), and Brighton’s Pascal Gross could see Dortmund mount a serious push to break into the top three.

Meanwhile, how will Stuttgart fare after their 2nd-place finish last season, with Die Schwaben now having to contend life without last season’s hero Serhou Guirassy?

Could RB Leipzig, who have never finished lower than 6th during their time in the Bundesliga, make a surprise push for the title?

Can perennial top-four outsiders Hoffenheim and Eintracht Frankfurt break into it this year?

Bundesliga preview: Minnows and hipsters

Will minnows Heidenheim, who secured a stunning 8th-place finish in their debut Bundesliga campaign, suffer the dreaded second-season syndrome?

How will newly-promoted Holstein Kiel, who holds the title of the northernmost club to have ever played in the Bundesliga, get on in their debut season – can they repeat the heroic feats of Heidenheim by securing safety easily, or will they go straight back down?

And finally in our Bundesliga preview, for the hipsters, the return of cult club St. Pauli to the top flight after a 13-year absence will be one to keep an eye on.

Photo: IMAGO / Steinach