The 2023/24 race for European qualification in the Bundesliga
Champions Bayer Leverkusen will now be joined by four other German teams in the 2024/25 Champions League in Bayern Munich, VfB Stuttgart, RB Leipzig and Borussia Dortmund. How many others might make it into Europe next season?
Find out how many Bundesliga teams can qualify for Europe!
UEFA Champions League
The exploits of Bundesliga teams in Europe this season means German clubs have earned an extra berth in the new-format Champions League. As a result, the top five will all qualify for the competition - and those five teams are already confirmed.
1st: Bayer Leverkusen (P31, 81pts, GD +55)
2nd: Bayern Munich (P31, 69pts, GD +51)
3rd: VfB Stuttgart (P31, 64pts, GD +32)
4th: RB Leipzig (P31, 62pts, GD +38)
5th: Borussia Dortmund (P31, 57pts, GD +20)
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6th: Eintracht Frankfurt (P31, 45pts, GD +5)
It's just a case of what order they finish in now. Champions Leverkusen officially sealed a top-four spot and place in next season's Champions League with their 2-1 win against Hoffenheim on Matchday 27. Bayern are also guaranteed a place in the continent's premier club competition after their win over Frankfurt.
Stuttgart and Leipzig have Dortmund to thank for their qualification after BVB beat Paris Saint-Germain in their semi-final first leg to get the Bundesliga over the line and also confirm their own 2024/25 qualification in the process, regardless of what happens over the final three matchdays.
It could also still be six teams who earn a place in the Champions League. If Dortmund win the competition and only finish fifth, then they will qualify as holders, and the next best-placed Bundesliga team (i.e. sixth) will take the extra fifth berth. Any potential BVB triumph would only come after the conclusion of the Bundesliga season, so the team that finishes sixth will have a nervous wait. But it also means it's still all to play for...
UEFA Europa League/UEFA Conference League
The extra position for collective performance in European competitions means that things shift down one spot in the table.
As such, sixth will go directly into the Europa League along with the winner of the DFB Cup - more on that in a moment...
Seventh will go into the Conference League play-off. That is unless the DFB Cup winner has already finished in the top six in the Bundesliga. So, if Leverkusen do go on to make it a domestic double in the final against Kaiserslautern, then seventh will also go into the Europa League's league phase and eighth will contest the play-off to enter the Conference League.
Should Bundesliga 2 side Lautern stun Leverkusen in Berlin, then they will earn the right to go into the Europa League alongside the team in sixth.
6th (UEL): Eintracht Frankfurt (P31, 45pts, GD +5)
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7th (ECL): Freiburg (P31, 40pts, GD -10)
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8th: Augsburg (P31, 39pts, GD -4)
9th: Hoffenheim (P31, 39pts, GD -8)
10th: Heidenheim (P31, 37pts, GD -8)
11th: Werder Bremen (P31, 37pts, GD -9)
Frankfurt - Europa League winners in 2021/22 - complete the current top six and can secure the place for themselves this weekend with the right results, ahead of Freiburg, Augsburg, Hoffenheim, and Heidenheim. Surprisingly, fifth down to ninth all lost on Matchday 31, making Nikola Dovedan's late winner for Heidenheim one of huge importance.
The Bundesliga newbies remain in the hunt for Europe, as do Bremen who downed Augsburg 3-0. Given Eintracht's advantage, the rest are really only competing for seventh. But as said above, eighth place may end up being a ticket into continental competition - never before has that position been potentially so valuable.
Watch: Heidenheim relegated Darmstadt to keep their European dream alive
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Also in contention
The middle of the Bundesliga table has long been tightly packed. And as a result of the potential extra places, every team as low as Bochum in 15th (i.e. everyone except the bottom three) still have a mathematical (although unlikely) chance of getting into Europe.
12th: Wolfsburg (P31, 34pts, GD -14)
13th: Borussia Mönchengladbach (P31, 32pts, GD -7)
14th: Union Berlin (P31, 30pts, GD -24)
15th: Bochum (P31, 30pts, GD -25)
Click here for the full Bundesliga standings!
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