Bundesliga Matchday 1 preview, August 28-30
The new season of the Bundesliga kicks off with a match between Bayern and Stuttgart, with the rest of the first round participants stepping up on Saturday. The main interest lies not only in the championship race, but also in how the teams will perform after significant changes in the summer: Bayer begins work with Carles Martínez, RB Leipzig with Martin Demichelis, and Schalke, Paderborn and Elversberg have returned to the elite. Almost all clubs have already had the opportunity to test themselves in the German Cup, so they approach the start of the championship with the first official match under their belt.
Bayern vs Stuttgart
Bayern will begin the defense of their championship title with a match against Stuttgart – a team that finished fourth last season and earned a Champions League spot. The Munich team has already managed to win the first trophy of the new season, beating Borussia Dortmund in the German Super Cup with a score of 2-1. The club strengthened its attack in the summer with Ismael Saibari and Nathaniel Brown. Stuttgart has its own trump card: Jenan Pejcinovic started the season with a hat-trick in the German Cup, and the team thrashed Hansa (4-0). Therefore, Bayern will immediately face an opponent who has already demonstrated serious readiness.
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Union vs Eintracht
Union approaches the start with a new coach, Mauro Lustrinelli, who is set to gradually change the pragmatic football that Berliners are used to and add courage to the team's attack. The first official match was indicative: Union twice fell behind to Braunschweig, but eventually won (4-2), with Marin Ljubicic playing a noticeable role. Eintracht, coached by Adi Hütter, crushed St. Tennis in the German Cup with a score of 11-0. Such a result highlights the difference in class and shows that the team is in good shape for the start of the season.
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Elversberg vs Bayer
Elversberg will play in the Bundesliga for the first time, and in the very first round will face one of the most serious opponents – Bayer. The hosts moved up to the elite after finishing second in the Second Bundesliga and have already confidently passed the first round of the Cup, beating Duisburg (3-1). Bayer started a new project with Carles Martínez this summer and so far looks interesting: the team won six out of seven friendly matches, and in the Cup they thrashed Veen. For Elversberg this is a historic match, but Bayer approaches it not only as a favorite, but also as a team that has already managed to work out certain mechanisms under the new coach.
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Cologne vs Hoffenheim
After returning to the Bundesliga last season, Cologne finished 14th and now mustneeds to make the next step if it doesn't want to once again spend the championship in a battle for survival. On the contrary, Hoffenheim became one of the main sensations: fifth place in the last campaign and just one point away from the Champions League zone gives the team a completely different status. In the Cup, the visitors also started the season confidently, thrashing Erzgebirge Aue (4-0), while Cologne will need to take advantage of the home field and show that last year's experience has indeed made the team stronger.
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RB Leipzig vs Borussia Mönchengladbach
RB Leipzig starts a new season after another major restructuring and with Martin Demichelis at the helm. The team has already made a statement by thrashing Eintracht Trier (6-0) in the country's Cup, and the return of Christopher Nkunku has been one of the most notable events in the days leading up to the start of the championship. Borussia Mönchengladbach also confidently passed the first round, scoring five goals against Schott Mainz, and last year's 12th place makes the team look at the new season much more ambitiously. Therefore, the match in Leipzig is the first serious test of two projects that underwent noticeable changes this summer.
Link to the match:
RB Leipzig vs Borussia Mönchengladbach
Mainz vs Paderborn
Mainz got the opportunity to start the season at home after an impressive 9-0 victory over Krišov in the German Cup. The team finished only tenth in the last championship, so the new season should be an attempt to return closer to the European Cup fight, and a home match against a newcomer is a good chance to score the first three points. Paderborn made it to the Bundesliga from third place in the second-tier league and has already managed to defeat Phoenix Lübeck (4-2) in the cup competition. Now let's see if Ralf Kettmann's team plans to change its attacking nature to a defensive one due to the promotion.
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Borussia Dortmund vs Hamburg
Borussia Dortmund will start the season after finishing second in the championship and losing to Bayern in the Super Cup, with Niko Kovac continuing to build the team around high intensity and reliable defense. Hamburg, after returning to the elite a year ago, retained its place in the Bundesliga, finishing 13th, and now hopes to make the next step. In the Cup, Merlin Polzin's charges confidently beat Verl (3-0), but the trip to Signal Iduna Park will be a test of a completely different level of tension for the team.
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Freiburg vs Werder
Freiburg finished the last championship in seventh place, and also played in the Europa League final. The team has already shown in the Cup thatshowed good readiness, thrashing Fortuna Düsseldorf (5-1). Julian Schuster has kept the core of the team, so the Brazilians from Breisgau still aim to compete for places at the top of the table. Werder had a significantly less convincing last season, finishing 15th, so the team's task is to distance themselves from the relegation battle as quickly as possible. The victory over Hansa Lüneburg in the Cup was a good start, but the match in Freiburg will show whether Bremen is ready for a more stable championship.
Link to the match:
Augsburg vs Schalke
Augsburg finished last season ninth and starts the new one with a home match against Schalke, who have returned to the Bundesliga. The Gelsenkirchen side became champions of the second league with 70 points and extended the contract with Edin Dzeko in the summer, as well as loaned Robin Gosens. However, in the German Cup, the Miners had to go into extra time with Hallescher before winning 5-2. Augsburg, on the other hand, got past Cottbus (2-0) and had a more relaxed start, so the first round will show how quickly Schalke can transfer their successful second division model to the Bundesliga level.
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Round Summary
The first round offers several different storylines: Bayern will test themselves against one of the strongest opponents of the last season; Bayer, Leipzig and Eintracht will start new coaching projects; and the three newcomers will immediately get the opportunity to understand the real difference between the second and first Bundesliga. Meanwhile, the results of the German Cup show that most teams are already in competitive rhythm, so the start of the season should provide much more information about the real state of the clubs than the usual first round after the summer break. https://scores24.live/en/sportbooks-de
FAQ
When will the 1st round of the Bundesliga 2026/27 take place?
The matches of the first round of the German Championship will take place from August 28 to 30, 2026.
Which match will be the highlight of the 1st round of the Bundesliga in the 2026/27 season?
The Friday game between Bayern and Stuttgart will not only kick off the championship, but also be the highlight of the first round. The matchups involving newcomers are also intriguing, particularly the encounter between Elversberg and Bayer.
