German 2026/27 Football Season Preview
The German 2026/27 football season kicks off on Friday with Bayern Munich beginning their title defence against Stuttgart, and the central question is a familiar one: can anybody prevent Germany’s dominant club from finishing first?
Bayern did not merely win the league last season. Vincent Kompany’s side overwhelmed it, finishing 16 points clear and scoring a league-record 122 goals. Harry Kane claimed another Golden Boot, Michael Olise continued his development into one of Europe’s outstanding attacking players, and Bayern added the DFB-Pokal to complete a domestic double.
Borussia Dortmund finished second and remain the most obvious challengers, but the more competitive battle could take place immediately behind the top two. Bayer Leverkusen are attempting to recover from a disappointing season, Stuttgart want another CL qualification and RB Leipzig have responded to significant summer departures by bringing Christopher Nkunku back to the club.
At the bottom, Schalke return to the top division alongside Elversberg and Paderborn, while FC Köln and Hamburg will attempt to avoid the problems traditionally associated with the difficult second season after promotion.
Read Part 1 of our PL 26/27 preview here, with part 2, part 3 and part 4 also out.
Read our preview of the Spanish 26/27 season here.
Read our preview of the French 26/27 season here.
Read part 1 of our preview of the Italian 26/27 season here, with part 2 also out.
Can anyone realistically stop Bayern Munich?
There is little value in inventing a title race simply to make the season sound more unpredictable than it is.
Bayern begin as overwhelming favourites. Kompany’s second league title was considerably more convincing than his first. Bayern lost only once in 34 matches, collected 89 points and averaged more than three and a half goals per game. The 122-goal total established a new top division record.
Kane remains the focal point. The England captain scored 36 league goals last season to win another European Golden Shoe and has now reached 98 top division goals in Germany in only 94 appearances. He has also made clear this summer that the attraction of returning to the PL is no longer what it once was.
Bayern have nevertheless made changes around him. Leon Goretzka and Raphaël Guerreiro have departed after their contracts expired, while Nicolas Jackson returned to Chelsea following his loan. Ismael Saibari has arrived from PSV Eindhoven and Nathaniel Brown from Eintracht Frankfurt, with the latter already scoring on his competitive debut against Dortmund in the Supercup.
Jamal Musiala’s availability is a much more serious concern after the neurological problem that caused him to collapse during summer friendlies. There should be no attempt to predict a return date while his health remains the priority.
Even without Musiala, Bayern possess an attacking group that no league rival can match. Kane, Olise and Luis Díaz provide goals from several positions, while Saibari adds another option from midfield.
Saturday’s 2-1 Supercup victory over Dortmund hardly weakened the argument. Bayern controlled the first half and eventually survived Dortmund’s improvement after the interval to collect the first domestic trophy of the season.
Bayern can certainly lose individual matches. Over 34 games, however, asking another German club to collect more points than them looks considerably harder.
Dortmund have rebuilt the supporting cast
Borussia Dortmund are the natural alternative. Niko Kovač remains in charge after guiding BVB to second place, and last season’s defensive improvement was significant. Dortmund conceded only 34 league goals, giving them a foundation from which to challenge again.
The summer has changed the attacking picture. Julian Brandt has left for Ajax, while Dortmund have invested in Joey Veerman, Giannis Konstantelias, Konstantinos Karetsas and Joane Gadou.
Karetsas may prove particularly exciting. Still one of Europe’s outstanding young talents, the Belgium international gives Dortmund precisely the type of player their recruitment model has traditionally allowed to flourish.
Veerman offers something different. His passing range should improve Dortmund’s ability to control matches against opponents who defend deeply, an area in which they have sometimes looked less comfortable than when given space to counter.
There were already promising signs against Bayern. Dortmund struggled during the opening half of the Supercup but improved after Konstantelias and Karetsas became more influential, with Fabio Silva eventually reducing the deficit.
The difficulty is the standard Bayern have established. Dortmund could improve and still finish a considerable distance behind the champions. Their first objective should therefore be establishing themselves clearly as Germany’s second-best side rather than becoming trapped in the congested CL battle. We expect them to do exactly that.
Leverkusen, Stuttgart and Leipzig fight for the CL
Bayer Leverkusen are our choice to return to the top four. Sixth place last season represented a significant decline for a club that had become accustomed to competing near the summit. Carles Martínez now has the task of rebuilding the side, and the summer transfer business suggests Leverkusen recognise that changes were required. Miguel Gutiérrez and Facundo Medina strengthen the defensive options, with Afonso Moreira another addition.
There has been substantial turnover, but Leverkusen retain enough quality to make sixth look more like a disappointing season than their new natural position.
Stuttgart have a stronger claim to continuity. Their fourth-place finish was built around one of the league’s better attacking teams, and making Bilal El Khannouss’s move permanent was important. Leo Sauer, Dženan Pejčinović and Grischa Prömel have also arrived, although goalkeeper Alexander Nübel has departed after his loan ended.
Stuttgart begin with the difficult assignment of visiting Bayern, but one result should not define how we assess their season. Another top-four challenge looks realistic.
Then there is RB Leipzig. Their summer could almost be described as a rebuild. Yan Diomande, Xaver Schlager, Loïs Openda and Péter Gulácsi are among the significant departures, while Martín Demichelis has taken over as coach.
Rocco Reitz and Maxime Estève are useful additions, but Wednesday’s development changes the attacking picture considerably.
Christopher Nkunku is back. Leipzig have re-signed their former star on loan from AC Milan with an option to buy. Nkunku previously produced the best football of his career in Leipzig, and his return gives Demichelis a proven match-winner who already understands the club.
Whether that is enough to keep Leipzig in the top four is another question. Stuttgart currently look slightly more settled, so we have Leipzig fifth.
Hoffenheim lead the European outsiders
Hoffenheim’s fifth-place finish deserves respect. They collected 61 points last season and spent much of the campaign demonstrating that their European challenge was more than an early-season anomaly.
Keeping that level will be difficult after losing important players, including Bazoumana Touré and Prömel. Their recruitment has again leaned towards development potential, which may eventually produce another excellent team without necessarily guaranteeing immediate improvement. We therefore expect some regression, but sixth rather than a return to the lower half.
Freiburg follow closely. Their summer has included the additions of goalkeeper Mio Backhaus, Yannik Engelhardt and Keisuke Gotō, while Johan Manzambi’s move to Aston Villa represents an important departure. As usual, Freiburg appear organised enough to compete for Europe without requiring headline-grabbing transfer business.
Eintracht Frankfurt are looking to improve after finishing eighth. Raphael Onyedika adds quality in midfield, but Brown’s move to Bayern removes one of last season’s important players.
Mainz should also be taken seriously. Eric Martel has arrived from FC Köln, while Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer and Stefan Posch add further experience.
The difference between sixth and ninth may ultimately be small, and any of these four could emerge as the strongest challenger to the established CL contenders.
Plenty of uncertainty in mid-table
Borussia Mönchengladbach are our favourite candidate to climb from the middle group. Gladbach finished 12th last season but enjoyed an excellent pre-season, and there is enough talent in the squad to expect something better.
Rocco Reitz’s departure for Leipzig is significant, however, and the squad has changed sufficiently to prevent us from becoming overly optimistic.
Augsburg remain one of those clubs capable of finishing almost anywhere between the European conversation and the lower reaches of mid-table. Their summer has involved considerable turnover, although Rodrigo Ribeiro’s move has been made permanent and several additional options have arrived.
Werder Bremen are particularly interesting because Niclas Füllkrug has returned. His familiarity with the club and ability to provide a reliable central reference point should help a team that finished only 15th last season.
Union Berlin should again be difficult to beat, while Hamburg enter their second season back in the top division with an attack that looks stronger on paper. Patson Daka has joined from Leicester, while Terem Moffi is another notable addition and Albert Grønbæk’s move has been made permanent. That should give Hamburg enough to stay away from the most dangerous positions.
Schalke return with serious survival ambitions
Schalke are not approaching promotion as though simply reaching the top division was enough. The 2. Bundesliga champions have recruited experienced players specifically capable of helping them survive.
Robin Gosens has arrived on loan from Fiorentina, Maximilian Wöber strengthens the defence and Junior Dina Ebimbe adds league experience in midfield. Junior Adamu has joined from Freiburg, while veteran striker Edin Džeko provides another option in attack.
There are no guarantees. The gap between the two divisions remains substantial, and Schalke’s name, stadium and support do not earn points. Their recruitment does, however, look stronger than that of a typical promoted club. We expect them to survive.
Elversberg are a completely different story. This is their first top division season, an extraordinary achievement for a club that has risen through German football with remarkable speed.
Rather than abandoning the model that brought them here, Elversberg have recruited another collection of talented young players. Cole Campbell, Noah Darvich, Maurice Krattenmacher and Francis Onyeka are among the arrivals.
There is considerable upside in that group, but also obvious inexperience. We have Elversberg reaching the relegation playoff rather than going straight back down.
FC Köln and Paderborn face a difficult season
FC Köln survived last season, but the second year after promotion can be more difficult than the first.
Their transfer window has not been passive. Ellyes Skhiri has returned, Thijs Dallinga has arrived on loan from Bologna and Reigan Heskey is among several younger additions. Gideon Mensah and Luka Lochoshvili provide further defensive options.
There is enough there to make FC Köln competitive. Our concern is that the teams immediately around them have also strengthened. Schalke arrive with an experienced promotion squad and ambitious recruitment, Hamburg look better equipped than a year ago and Elversberg possess considerable young talent. That leaves very little margin for FC Köln.
Paderborn are our final-place prediction. Their promotion was a major achievement, and Gabriel Vidović, Oliver Batista Meier and Laurin Ulrich are among the players brought in for the upcoming challenge. The squad nevertheless looks the least convincing over a full 34-game season.
Paderborn will take points from better teams and could make this prediction look excessively pessimistic, but survival would represent a significant achievement.
ArcticBet prediction
Bayern are our champions. Dortmund should finish second again, but we expect the more interesting competition to concern the final two CL positions.
Leverkusen are our choice to recover and finish third, while Stuttgart narrowly hold off Leipzig for fourth.
Hoffenheim, Freiburg, Frankfurt and Mainz form our European chasing group, with Gladbach leading the middle of the table.
At the bottom, Schalke’s recruitment convinces us that they can survive immediately. Elversberg face the playoff, while FC Köln and Paderborn occupy the two automatic relegation positions.
Our predicted table is:
1. Bayern Munich – champions
2. Borussia Dortmund
3. Bayer Leverkusen
4. Stuttgart
5. RB Leipzig
6. Hoffenheim
7. Freiburg
8. Eintracht Frankfurt
9. Mainz
10. Borussia Mönchengladbach
11. Augsburg
12. Werder Bremen
13. Union Berlin
14. Hamburg
15. Schalke
16. Elversberg – relegation playoff
17. FC Köln – relegated
18. Paderborn – relegated
Bayern finishing first may be predictable, but the standings underneath them should be anything but. Leipzig’s late move for Nkunku has strengthened an already competitive CL race, while three promoted clubs with very different approaches make the bottom equally difficult to call.
Last updated: 27.08.26
Odds might have changed since the writing and/or publication of this article.
