Bayern Munich is smashing its own records in the Bundesliga and rivals aren’t close

By Canadian Press on January 22, 2026.

BERLIN (AP) — Bayern Munich is running away with the Bundesliga again.

But this time it’s smashing even its own records.

The Bavarian powerhouse has a whopping 71 goals in 18 games, conceded only 14 goals, and drawn only two matches. It has won the other 16.

With 50 points and a goal difference of plus-57, Bayern has made the best ever start to the Bundesliga at this stage of the season.

And its rivals are struggling to keep up.

Bayern already leads by 11 points from Borussia Dortmund and is on course for its 13th Bundesliga title in 14 years.

Bayern next hosts relegation threatened Augsburg in a Bavarian derby on Saturday.

Key matchups

Bayern hasn’t dropped points since a surprising 2-2 draw with Mainz in mid-December. Augsburg hasn’t won a game since beating Bayer Leverkusen — the only team to break Bayern’s dominance in the last 13 years — in early December.

Leverkusen, which lost to Olympiakos in the Champions League on Tuesday, will hope to snap its three-game losing run against visiting Werder Bremen on Saturday.

St. Pauli entertains Hamburger SV in the city derby on Friday. St. Pauli, which won the reverse fixture in August, can climb off the bottom by avoiding defeat, with relegation contenders Mainz playing Wolfsburg and Heidenheim entertaining Leipzig on Saturday.

Also on Saturday, Eintracht Frankfurt, which crashed out of the Champions League on Wednesday, hosts in-form Hoffenheim. Frankfurt is still looking for a coach following the dismissal of Dino Toppmöller. The team has conceded three goals in every game in 2026.

Players to watch

Harry Kane missed a penalty in Bayern’s 2-0 win over Union Saint-Gilloise in the Champions League on Wednesday and though he scored both goals he’ll be keen to “make amends” for his penalty miss. He already has 34 goals in 29 games for Bayern this season.

Nicolas Jackson is back at Bayern after helping Senegal win the Africa Cup of Nations. Jackson scored two goals for the Teranga Lions at the tournament but could find playing time restricted on his return to Munich.

Stuttgart has Bilal El Khannouss back after his impressive Africa Cup performances for Morocco, where he became a starter for the host team.

Who is out?

Morocco’s Eliesse Ben Seghir returned to Leverkusen from the Africa Cup with an ankle problem. Defender Edmond Tapsoba also came back injured from his participation with Burkina Faso, while forward Nathan Tella and goalkeeper Mark Flekken are out “long term” with serious knee injuries from Leverkusen’s defeat to Hoffenheim last weekend.

Jamal Musiala made his anticipated return for Bayern in a brief appearance last weekend, but he’s returning to a team that had been doing just fine without him. Bayern attackers Kane, Luis Díaz, Serge Gnabry and the 17-year-old Lennart Karl have been outstanding, giving Vincent Kompany a selection problem any coach would love to have.

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

Ciarán Fahey, The Associated Press