| Season starts | 21 August 2026 |
| Season ends | 23 May 2027 |
| Teams | 14 |
| Matches | 182 |
| Defending champions | Bayern Munich |
| Newly promoted | VfB Stuttgart, 1. FSV Mainz 05 |
| Opening match | Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich — 21 August, 18:20 CEST |
| Where to watch | DAZN, MagentaSport, Sport1 and selected ARD/ZDF broadcasts |
Friday evening, August 21, 18:20.
In Köpenick, a stadium built into a forest fills with red and white. Union's colours, waiting.
Four months ago, on this same ground, a season ended. Bayern Munich came here in April and left with a 3–2 win that secured a fourth consecutive German championship.
Now they return to start again.
Not just here. Across Germany, six more kick-offs are waiting over the following three days: in old football grounds and giant arenas, beside training pitches and beneath floodlights, for a 14-team league that spent last season discovering just how much bigger it could become.
The league expanded. The crowds grew with it. Bayern went unbeaten. Two more clubs earned their way in. Now comes the harder question: what does bigger look like in year two?
Bayern: can anyone stop the fifth?
Bayern Munich begin 2026/27 where they have spent much of the past four years: at the top, and as favourites to stay there.
Last season they didn't lose a league match. José Barcala's first campaign in charge finished with 24 wins, two draws, 90 goals scored and just nine conceded. Bayern finished 16 points clear of Wolfsburg and completed their second unbeaten Bundesliga season in three years. Then they added the DFB-Pokal, beating Wolfsburg 4–0 in the final without conceding a single goal during their entire cup run.
2026/27: Bayern are chasing an eighth Bundesliga title — which would make them the outright record holder, and give the club a ninth German championship overall including their pre-Bundesliga 1976 title.
No club has won five consecutive Frauen-Bundesliga titles. Bayern are four down. One to go. And the chase begins on the exact patch of grass where the fourth was secured.
2022/23 → 2023/24 (unbeaten) → 2024/25 → 2025/26 (unbeaten) → 2026/27 ?
Two of the four titles were won without losing a single league match. The record they are chasing has never been done.
The league got bigger. Now we find out what that means.
Bayern's record chase is the obvious story. The league underneath it may be the more interesting one.
The league expanded from 12 to 14 clubs for the first time in 2025/26. By the winter break alone, 367,787 spectators had attended matches — already almost as many as the previous full-season attendance record. The opening game at the Allianz Arena drew 57,762, a new league record. Bremen–Hamburg brought 37,000 into the Weserstadion. Six games passed 10,000 spectators before Christmas.
That unevenness is not evidence of a league that doesn't know what it is. It may be the clearest evidence of a league in transition. 2026/27 is the first season in which being bigger has become normal.
Fourteen teams, fourteen different starting points
VfL Wolfsburg remain the clearest challenger on paper. They finished runners-up last season, 16 points behind Bayern, and begin another campaign trying to turn proximity into interruption. But this version of Wolfsburg will look different: several important players have left, including Alexandra Popp.
Eintracht Frankfurt finished third and return to the Champions League conversation under Niko Arnautis, one of the league's great constants. Major departures have been followed by some of the most interesting recruitment in the division — including the league's reigning top scorer, Larissa Mühlhaus, who moved from Werder Bremen.
Bayer Leverkusen, SC Freiburg, TSG Hoffenheim, 1. FC Köln, RB Leipzig and Werder Bremen all have reasons to believe they can inconvenience the established top three. Then there are last year's promoted clubs: Union Berlin, 1. FC Nürnberg and Hamburger SV have now survived their first season in the expanded Bundesliga. Union finished ninth, Nürnberg 11th and Hamburg 12th. The first season is about discovering the level. The second is about proving you belong there.
Stuttgart and Mainz: two roads to the top flight
Stuttgart have been walking towards this moment almost from the beginning. The club established its women's football department in May 2021 and entered competitive football the following year. Then came three successive promotions: Baden-Württemberg, Regionalliga Süd, 2. Bundesliga — and finally, the Bundesliga. This was not an accidental ascent. Stuttgart assembled a squad with Bundesliga experience and recruited for where they wanted to go, not simply where they were.
Mainz's story starts somewhere else. When Takashi Yamashita took over in October 2022, the stated target at the start of last season wasn't the Bundesliga. It was survival. At one point Mainz went four games without scoring and fell seven points behind the promotion places. Then they won nine games in a row.
On August 23, Stuttgart's first Bundesliga match takes them to Hoffenheim. Twenty-eight hours later, under the Monday-night lights at the Bruchwegstadion, Mainz welcome Werder Bremen. For one club, a destination reached. For the other, a door that opened unexpectedly.
Four women on the touchline
Three clubs begin the season with new head coaches: Marie-Louise Eta at Union Berlin, Marco Konrad at Freiburg and Omar Adlani at Nürnberg. José Barcala begins his second Bundesliga season with Bayern. Stephan Lerch continues the pursuit at Wolfsburg. Roberto Pätzold remains at Bayer Leverkusen through June 2027. Takashi Yamashita leads Mainz into the top flight after guiding them there.
But one name changes the texture of this season before a ball has even been kicked.
Marie-Louise Eta knows this league from the pitch. As Marie-Louise Bagehorn, she won three consecutive league titles with Turbine Potsdam and the 2009/10 UEFA Women's Champions League. She retired from playing at 26 and moved into coaching. Then her career took her somewhere women's football had almost never taken anyone.
Eta joined Union Berlin's men's setup in 2023 and became the first female assistant coach in the men's Bundesliga and the men's Champions League. In April 2026, Union dismissed Steffen Baumgart with five Bundesliga matches remaining and appointed Eta interim head coach — the first woman to manage a men's team in one of Europe's five major leagues. Then she walked across the club and into the Frauen-Bundesliga. On August 21, she will stand on the touchline at the Alte Försterei with Bayern Munich on the other side.
Marie-Louise Eta — 1. FC Union Berlin · Britta Carlson — 1. FC Köln · Fritzy Kromp — Werder Bremen · Eva-Maria Virsinger — TSG Hoffenheim
A league being raided — and reshuffling itself
Georgia Stanway — Bayern Munich → Arsenal
Selina Cerci — TSG Hoffenheim → Arsenal
Géraldine Reuteler — Eintracht Frankfurt → Arsenal
Stanway's departure is especially significant for Bayern. She was central to the team that went unbeaten last season. Bayern have depth; they also have a very real hole in midfield to solve while trying to make history.
Frankfurt lose Reuteler, as well as Lisanne Gräwe and Jella Veit to Union and Elisa Senß to Real Madrid. Wolfsburg have lost Janou Levels to Real Madrid, Vivien Endemann to Liverpool and, most symbolically of all, Alexandra Popp.
But describing this simply as an exodus misses half the story. Frankfurt responded by taking the league's reigning top scorer, Larissa Mühlhaus (17 Bundesliga goals last season), from Werder Bremen through 2029 — and brought Paulina Krumbiegel back to Germany from Juventus. Union have taken Gräwe and Veit from Frankfurt. Wolfsburg have added Germany international Giovanna Hoffmann from Leipzig. Leverkusen have brought Carolin Simon back after a decade away. Stuttgart are entering the league with a squad deliberately stocked with players who already know it.
The transfer story of this summer isn't that Germany is losing players. It is that the hierarchy of talent is being disturbed in several directions at once.
Five players to watch
Georgia Stanway is gone. Bayern's title defence isn't. That makes Bühl increasingly important — not only as one of Bayern's most recognisable players but as one of the creative constants around which a slightly altered champion has to reorganise. Last season she led the league in assists and total goal contributions at the halfway point. The question isn't whether Bühl is good enough. It is how much more of Bayern will pass through her now.
Seventeen league goals made her the 2025/26 top scorer. Now she changes clubs without changing leagues. Mühlhaus moves from Bremen to a Frankfurt side trying to remain in the Champions League places while replacing several important departures. A golden boot tells us what she did. Frankfurt will tell us what the next level looks like.
22 goals in the 2. Bundesliga last season — more than anyone else in the division. Now comes the conversion every promoted striker eventually faces. How many second-division chances still exist when the defenders are faster, the spaces smaller? Mainz's survival prospects may depend partly on the answer.
Her move from Frankfurt to Union says something larger about Union's intentions. She is a Germany international entering her prime, and she has moved not from a relegation-threatened side to an established power, but from a Champions League club to last season's ninth-place finisher. That is not the profile of a club satisfied with ninth.
Stuttgart's first Bundesliga season does not begin with a squad behaving like tourists. Hagel arrives after playing abroad with Sevilla, joining a group already carrying considerable Bundesliga experience. For a newly promoted team, experience can mean the difference between learning the level slowly and recognising it immediately. Stuttgart are betting on the latter.
Where this league lives
There is no single visual language for a match in this league. One weekend can mean tens of thousands of people inside one of Germany's great football stadiums. Another can mean supporters almost close enough to hear instructions from the technical area.
| Venue | Club | Capacity |
|---|---|---|
| Trainingszentrum Cottaweg | RB Leipzig | 1,300 |
| FC Bayern Campus | Bayern Munich | 2,500 |
| Bruchwegstadion | Mainz 05 | 7,134 |
| GAZi-Stadion auf der Waldau | VfB Stuttgart | 11,410 |
| Stadion An der Alten Försterei | Union Berlin | 22,012 |
| Max-Morlock-Stadion | 1. FC Nürnberg | ~50,000 |
| Volksparkstadion | Hamburger SV | ~57,000 |
Union open the season at the Alte Försterei, surrounded by the trees of Köpenick. Hamburg play their home fixtures at the Volksparkstadion — the giant bowl whose scale still feels extraordinary beside much of the division. Nürnberg really do play at the 50,000-capacity Max-Morlock-Stadion. Mainz will normally play at the Bruchwegstadion, but selected matches will move to the larger MEWA Arena. Stuttgart's regular home is the GAZi-Stadion auf der Waldau; last season, more than 31,000 people watched them face Mainz at the MHP Arena.
Several clubs use multiple stadiums during the season.
The dates to circle
The 2026/27 season begins on Friday, 21 August 2026, when Union Berlin host defending champions Bayern Munich at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei at 18:20 CEST. The season ends on 23 May 2027, with all final-day fixtures kicking off simultaneously.
Key dates
| Date | Fixture | Note |
|---|---|---|
| 21 Aug 2026 | Union Berlin — Bayern Munich | The season begins |
| 23 Aug 2026 | Hoffenheim — Stuttgart | Stuttgart's Bundesliga debut |
| 24 Aug 2026 | Mainz — Werder Bremen | Mainz's Bundesliga debut |
| 11–14 Sep 2026 | Werder Bremen — Hamburger SV | The Nordderby |
| Matchday 10 | Wolfsburg — Bayern Munich | |
| Matchday 23 | Bayern Munich — Wolfsburg | |
| 23 May 2027 | Final day | 7 matches, one kick-off time |
The match you can't miss
Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich
Friday, 21 August · 18:20 CEST · Stadion An der Alten Försterei · Berlin
April 22, 2026. Union equalised once. Then twice. Bayern scored a third. By full time they were champions. On August 21, the scoreboard starts at zero again. Same stadium. Same two badges. Different season.
Where to watch
All 182 matches will be shown live on MagentaSport and DAZN. Monday-night matches will also be shown live free-to-air on Sport1. ARD and ZDF hold rights to ten additional free-to-air live matches across the season, bringing the total number of free-to-air broadcasts to 36. The opening Union Berlin vs Bayern Munich fixture will be live on ZDF, MagentaSport and DAZN.
Follow your team
Follow the whole competition or add only the club you care about. Each HerFixtures team calendar updates automatically throughout the season.
| Team | Regular home / major venue | Calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 1. FC Union Berlin | Stadion An der Alten Försterei | |
| Bayern Munich | FC Bayern Campus / selected larger venues | |
| Bayer Leverkusen | Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion | |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | Stadion am Brentanobad | |
| Hamburger SV | Volksparkstadion | |
| 1. FC Köln | Franz-Kremer-Stadion | |
| RB Leipzig | Trainingszentrum Cottaweg | |
| SC Freiburg | Dreisamstadion | |
| TSG Hoffenheim | Dietmar-Hopp-Stadion / selected larger venues | |
| VfL Wolfsburg | AOK Stadion / selected larger venues | |
| Werder Bremen | Weserstadion Platz 11 / selected Weserstadion fixtures | |
| 1. FC Nürnberg | Max-Morlock-Stadion | |
| VfB Stuttgart | GAZi-Stadion / selected MHP Arena fixtures | |
| 1. FSV Mainz 05 | Bruchwegstadion / selected MEWA Arena fixtures |
Our predictions
Bayern make it five in a row. Not because an unbeaten season should be treated as normal — it shouldn't — and not because losing Georgia Stanway is insignificant. But four consecutive titles have created something larger than a strong starting XI. Bayern now have the infrastructure, depth and expectation of a team that understands how to live at the top of this league.
Our call: Bayern win a fifth consecutive championship and an eighth Frauen-Bundesliga title, breaking the seven-title tie with Frankfurt and Wolfsburg.
Wolfsburg finish second again, but the transition in their squad makes the gap harder to predict. Frankfurt remain in the Champions League fight despite losing major players, with Mühlhaus giving them a new focal point. Union move upwards — ninth last season feels more like a beginning than a destination, especially after the recruitment of Gräwe and Veit and the arrival of Eta.
Of the newcomers, Stuttgart look better equipped to avoid an immediate relegation fight; they have built specifically for the Bundesliga and carry an unusual amount of top-flight experience for a debutant. Mainz may have the rougher adjustment — but a team that was supposed to fight relegation last year and responded by winning nine consecutive matches has already demonstrated the danger of deciding too early what its ceiling should be.
Vital Kats, Mainz 05. Twenty-two second-division goals bought her a ticket here. Now we find out what she does with it.
Quick answers
By Friday evening, none of this will matter quite as much. Not the predictions. Not the transfers. Not the title arithmetic.
At the edge of Berlin, people will walk beneath the trees towards the Alte Försterei. The floodlights will come on. Union will emerge in red. Bayern will walk back onto the pitch where, four months earlier, they became champions.
Only this time there will be no trophy waiting at the end of the match. There will be 25 more.
Fourteen clubs. One hundred and eighty-two games. And a table with nothing written in it yet.
The Frauen-Bundesliga starts Friday. You don't have to wonder when.
HerFixtures is a women's sports fixture calendar for fans who are done missing games.