Champions League and relegation showdowns loom on Bundesliga's final day
Two dramatic three-way showdowns will dominate the last day of the Bundesliga season Saturday as Stuttgart leads a race for Champions League qualification and former champion Wolfsburg fights to avoid an historic relegation. The top three spots are already clear after Bayern Munich sealed the title last month, while Borussia Dortmund is runner-up yet again and Leipzig is third. Key matchups Stuttgart has the fourth Champions League spot for now.
Hoffenheim and Bayer Leverkusen want it. Stuttgart's final game is a tough one at Eintracht Frankfurt. A win there would almost certainly guarantee fourth spot.
If Stuttgart drops points, Hoffenheim can snatch fourth with a better result at Borussia Moenchengladbach and return to the Champions League for the first time since 2017-18. Leverkusen needs to beat Hamburger SV and hope Stuttgart and Hoffenheim lose. Champion of the Bundesliga in 2008-09, Wolfsburg hasn't been outside the top flight since 1997.
It's one of the bottom three teams, all level on points, chasing one shot at survival. The teams in 17th and 18th — St. Pauli and Heidenheim — are relegated automatically.
The side in 16th, Wolfsburg for now, goes into a promotion-relegation playoff against a second-division team. Wolfsburg visits St. Pauli on Saturday and a loss for either means relegation.