1. FC Heidenheim step out at the Volkswagen Arena on Saturday (kick-off 15:30 CEST) for their first ever outing in the Bundesliga, but VfL Wolfsburg are actually their most-played opponents in another competition. FCH have faced VfL more times than any other club in the DFB Cup, with the two sides meeting three times – in the first round in 2008/09 and in the second round in the 2014/15 and 2016/17 seasons. The Green-and-Whites came out on top each time, and in most of the seasons when they’ve come up against Heidenheim, they’ve ended it with a trophy.
More facts and figures on the clash with the promoted side:
- Current Heidenheim coach Frank Schmidt was already in charge for the first of these three meetings on 10 June 2008. VfL won 3-0.
- The Wolves won 4-1 and 1-0 in the other two cup clashes. Therefore, Heidenheim’s only competitive goal against Wolfsburg was scored on 29 October 2014 at the Volkswagen Arena by club legend Marc Schnatterer, who is FCH’s record appearance maker and record goalscorer with 121 goals in 457 games.
- The Swabians are the first newcomer to the Bundesliga since Union Berlin’s promotion in 2019, becoming the 57th different club in Germany’s top flight.
- VfL registered the most sprints and intensive runs in the Bundesliga last season. Heidenheim did the same in the second tier for the last three years in a row.
- The Wolves begin the Bundesliga season with a home match against a promoted team for the third year running. Last term they began the campaign with a 2-2 draw against Werder Bremen, while in 2021/22 the Green-and-Whites beat Bochum 1-0 on Matchday 1.
