Slimmed-down Bayern Munich still the team to beat as new Bundesliga season begins

By Canadian Press on August 20, 2025.

BERLIN (AP) — Bayern Munich reclaimed its Bundesliga throne last season. Vincent Kompany and Harry Kane are looking for another title to consolidate their rule and build their own dynasty.

Ahead of the opening game of the league season Friday between Bayern and Leipzig, the defending champion remains the team to beat and the role of closest challenger is wide open.

Most of the likeliest candidates – Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund, Stuttgart, Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt – have lost key players. Few have made standout signings since last season.

Leverkusen, the only team to break Bayern’s dominance over the last 13 years, has had a huge overhaul of the side that won the Bundesliga in 2024. Gone are key players like Florian Wirtz, Granit Xhaka, Jeremie Frimpong and captain Jonathan Tah, as is star coach Xabi Alonso. Former Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag has been tasked with leading the rebuilt team’s fresh start.

Bayern’s bid for glory

Luis Díaz’s arrival from Liverpool gives Bayern a new attacking threat, as he showed last weekend with a goal on his debut as Bayern lifted the German Supercup.

In Kane’s third season as Bayern’s star striker, the structure around him is no longer a holdover from the club’s Robert Lewandowski era.

Leroy Sané, Thomas Müller, Kingsley Coman and Mathys Tel have all left. This slimmed-down squad will require Díaz and the experienced Serge Gnabry – the only remaining forward from Bayern’s 2020 Champions League win – to be consistently effective.

The biggest pressure might be on Michael Olise. A long-term injury at the Club World Cup means Jamal Musiala may not return before 2026, leaving Olise, usually a winger, to occupy a less familiar role in the center. Racking up 20 goals and 23 assists last season was a strong start, but Olise was mostly on the right flank.

Tah adds strength and experience to the defense after signing from Leverkusen. Kompany can call on some exciting young midfielders after Tom Bischof and Lennart Karl both shone in preseason.

Bellingham at Dortmund — again

From Jude to Jobe, there’s a Bellingham running Dortmund’s midfield again.

Still only 19, the younger of the Bellingham brothers signed from Sunderland and straight away looked at home on a bigger stage when he made his Dortmund debut at the Club World Cup.

Jobe Bellingham is the standout new arrival among the group of would-be Bayern challengers, who are each trying to adapt after stars departed. Leverkusen said goodbye to a host of title-winners, while Frankfurt bid farewell to Hugo Ekitiké and goalkeeper Kevin Trapp, and Jamie Gittens left Dortmund for Chelsea.

Ahead of Jürgen Klopp’s first full season as Red Bull’s head of global soccer, Leipzig has reportedly spent over 110 million euros ($128 million) on seven young players — Brazilian striker Rômulo is the oldest at 23 — but lost Benjamin Šeško to Manchester United.

There could be more signings before the transfer window closes Sept. 1. Leverkusen and Frankfurt in particular have earned much more than they’ve spent so far.

Back but for how long?

Promoted teams Hamburger SV and Cologne’s biggest challenge will be to stay in the top division.

Cologne brought back veteran coach Friedhelm Funkel for its last two games to make sure of its return as second division champion, but former Paderborn coach Lukas Kwasniok has been appointed to ensure it stays.

Hamburg, which was the longest surviving founding member of the Bundesliga, endured seven seasons away. Elation at finally securing its return has given way to sober reality after a summer of discouraging results. Hamburg needed extra time to get past fifth-tier Pirmasens in the first round of the German Cup last weekend.

Merlin Polzin’s team starts its Bundesliga campaign at Borussia Mönchengladbach on Sunday before hosting St. Pauli for what is sure to be an emotional city derby the following weekend.

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Ellingworth reported from Duesseldorf, Germany.

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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

Ciarán Fahey And James Ellingworth, The Associated Press