Race for Champions League qualification and survival battles keeping Bundesliga on edge

CIARÁN FAHEY Thu, April 30, 2026 at 8:45 AM UTC

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1 / 0Germany Bundesliga SoccerHeidenheim's head coach Frank Schmidt gestures during the German Bundesliga soccer match between 1. FC Heidenheim and 1. FC St. Pauli in Heidenheim, Germany, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (Tom Weller/dpa via AP) ()

BERLIN (AP) — Four teams are vying to join Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League next season and a host more are fighting for survival in the Bundesliga.

Last-placed Heidenheim could be relegated this weekend, possibly replaced by second-division leader Schalke, which can seal promotion.

There are no games on Friday as it’s May Day, traditionally a day of demonstrations and worker protests accompanied by a heavy police presence across Germany. May Day falls on a Saturday next year, when there will be no matches at all over the whole weekend because of the anticipated security requirements.

Saturday's and Sunday’s games are unaffected this year. The Women's Bundesliga is also unaffected, with Union Berlin visiting Hamburger SV on Friday. Bayern sealed the women's title as it did the men's already.

Key matchups

Heidenheim faces a daunting trip to Bayern on Saturday. Heidenheim boosted its hopes of avoiding the drop with wins over Union Berlin and St. Pauli this month. But a win at Bayern would be a major surprise, even if the already crowned league champion is likely to field a B team before its Champions League semifinal second leg against Paris Saint Germain next week. PSG won a pulsating first leg 5-4 on Tuesday.

Heidenheim would be relegated by a defeat in Munich if St. Pauli, currently in the relegation playoff place, beats Mainz at home on Sunday.

Schalke can clinch promotion on Saturday with a win at home over struggling Fortuna Düsseldorf.

Hoffenheim welcomes Stuttgart and Bayer Leverkusen hosts Leipzig for duels with Champions League qualification at stake on Saturday. Third-placed Leipzig is the best-positioned of the four teams after five straight wins for 62 points, followed by Stuttgart and Hoffenheim on 57. Leverkusen is seven points behind Leipzig with three round rounds to play.

Union Berlin hosts Cologne on Saturday with both teams just outside the relegation zone. Union is looking for its first points since Marie-Louise Eta was appointed coach.

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Players to watch

Leverkusen 18-year-old Montrell Culbreath scored in the 3-1 win in Leipzig when the sides last met in December, and he’s likely to get another run out after appearing in each of Leverkusen’s last eight games across all competitions.

Yan Diomande has become Leipzig’s star with goal involvements in each of the team’s last three games.

Continuing the theme of youngsters breaking through, Dortmund gave 18-year-old Italian forward Samuele Inacio his first start last weekend, when 16-year-old Mathis Albert became the youngest American to play in the Bundesliga. Dortmund visits Borussia Mönchengladbach on Sunday.

Bayern 18-year-old Bara Sapoko Ndiaye from Senegal made his first start against Mainz last weekend and will likely get another chance in midfield against Heidenheim.

Who is out?

Union goalkeeper Frederik Rønnow is out for the rest of the season with a muscle injury from last weekend’s defeat in Leipzig. Carl Klaus, who made his Bundesliga debut at age 32, can look forward to three more appearances.

Off the field

Leverkusen defender Edmond Tapsoba extended his contract with the club on Wednesday through June 2031. The 27-year-old Burkina Faso mainstay joined Leverkusen in early 2020 from Portuguese team Vitória de Guimarães and has since played in 183 Bundesliga games for the club.

The German soccer league (DFL) announced on Tuesday that it entered a “strategic cooperation” with sportswear giant Adidas to boost the development of professional soccer in the country. Adidas was to give the DFL a loan of 100 million euros for investment, while it extended its deal to provide match balls for the top two divisions until 2034. The has asked the DFL for further details.

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

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Source: “AOL Sports”