On Thursday, 14 May (kick-off 16:00), the VfL Wolfsburg women will compete for the DFB Cup for the twelfth time. To secure another triumph, however, they face a difficult task: defeating the reigning cup holders FC Bayern Munich.
Key facts about the clash:
- Impressive winning streak: Since the integration of Wolfsburg’s women’s department into VfL in 2003, the Green-and-Whites have recorded 77 victories in the competition. The She-Wolves have reached the final 11 times and have lifted the trophy on each occasion. With 11 cup wins, the Lower Saxony side are the record title holders.
- Eight times extra time: Of those 77 victories, eight were only secured in overtime. On four occasions the matches were decided after 120 minutes, while four went to penalties: in the round of 16 in 2006 and the 2018 final against FC Bayern Munich, in the 2020 final against SGS Essen and in this year’s semi-final at FC Carl Zeiss Jena.
- Only one goal conceded: In this season’s cup run up to the semi-final, the She-Wolves have scored 15 goals and conceded just once. In the semi-final in Jena, they won 5-4 on penalties after 120 goalless minutes.
- Munich again and again: So far, Wolfsburg have beaten FCB five times away, once at home and twice in the final.
- Comfortable route to the final: Bayern played their semi-final against SGS Essen and set the course for the final early on. The Munich side were already 3-0 up at half-time and ultimately won 4-0.
- Bayern yet to concede: The Red-and-Whites have enjoyed a flawless DFB Cup campaign so far. Bayern have scored 12 goals this season and have not conceded a single one.
- Last successful meeting in the cup final: The most recent cup final between the VfL women and FC Bayern Munich took place on 9 May 2024. On that occasion, the She-Wolves secured the title with a 2-0 win thanks to goals from Jule Brand and Dominique Janssen.
- Highest-scoring cup matches: The She-Wolves recorded their biggest DFB Cup win in the second round of the 2015/2016 season with an emphatic 19-0 victory over DJK VfL Billerbeck. Bayern produced a goal festival in 2018: in the quarter-finals, FC Bayern advanced with a 15-0 win away to 1. FC Saarbrücken. The FCB women also won 15-0 at 1. FC Riegelsberg in the 2016/2017 season.
- Cup trio: Alexandra Popp has been part of all 11 of the She-Wolves’ title wins. She has made 44 cup appearances for VfL, while Joelle Wedemeyer has won the cup 10 times with VfL and has played 30 matches in the competition. Svenja Huth has made 27 cup appearances for the Lower Saxony side and has collected five cup titles.
- Lerch unbeaten in cup finals: Stephan Lerch, head coach of the She-Wolves, was on the touchline for four cup finals between 2017 and 2021 – and remained unbeaten with VfL in all of them.
- Not easy to lift: Since 2010, the DFB Cup winners have received a newly designed trophy. Standing around 60 centimetres tall and weighing approximately 11 kilograms, the cup was designed by Swiss designer Thomas Hug. All previous cup winners since 1980 are engraved on its base. The top is crowned by a ball featuring the German Football Association logo set in enamel. The trophy is made of brass.
