The 2024-25 Bundesliga season is set to kick off, and despite Bayer Leverkusen’s record-breaking title win last season, Bayern Munich is once again the favorite to reclaim the trophy.
Leverkusen’s historic unbeaten league campaign broke Bayern’s 11-year stranglehold on the title, raising hopes for a competitive season in Germany.
However, Bayern has made significant changes, including hiring Vincent Kompany as their new manager.
Kompany’s possession-based brand of football suits Bayern’s identity well, and he has already made some key signings, including Michael Olise and Joao Palhinha.
Palhinha, in particular, is expected to be a dominant force in front of Bayern’s backline.
Meanwhile, Leverkusen has managed to keep its core group of players, including Florian Wirtz, Granit Xhaka, Jeremie Frimpong, and Alex Grimaldo. They have also strengthened their squad with new signings, including Aleix Garcia, Jeanuel Belocian, and Martin Terrier.
Aside Bayern and Leverkusen there are two other teams with ambitions of competing for the German championship.
The first are Borussia Dortmund, now coached by Nuri Sahin following the departure of Edin Terzic.
Dortmund reached the Champions League final under Terzic last season, but club power-brokers were concerned about the lack of overall progress.
Dortmund ended the season fifth in the Bundesliga – 27 points behind Leverkusen – and only reached this year’s Champions League because of the altered format, which granted the German league five spots.
Sahin is even less experienced than Kompany and Alonso, but the general hope is the former Liverpool midfielder could improve Dortmund’s possession game to dominate play like Bayern and Leverkusen.
Dortmund were even more active in the transfer market, signing Germany internationals Pascal Gross, Waldemar Anton and Maximilian Beier, while Manchester City’s Yan Couto and Serhou Guirassy from Stuttgart also arrived.
Guirassy was second in the Bundesliga scoring charts behind Harry Kane last season and has essentially pushed Niclas Fullkrug, who has joined West Ham, out of the door.
It is up to Sahin to put the pieces together effectively. Unlike Terzic, the new manager cannot count on moments of brilliance from a few attacking players, especially now Jadon Sancho has left the club once again.
RB Leipzig is also expected to be a contender, despite losing Dani Olmo. Manager Marco Rose has a familiar group of core players, including Xavi Simons, who has remained on loan from Paris St-Germain for another year.
The upcoming season promises to be an exciting title race with multiple teams, charismatic managers, and talented players.
Can Leverkusen defend their title, or will Bayern reclaim their dominance? Only time will tell.
