On Sunday, April 14, 2024, a match between two top flight German soccer teams Bayer 04 Leverkusen and Werder Bremen ended with Leverkusen winning five to zero. Not only did Leverkusen win the match, the win also gave the club their first Bundesliga title in its 120 year history, and they clinched it five weeks before the end of the season. In the process of winning the title, Leverkusen broke records and ended decade long trends.
Bayer Leverkusen had just come off one of the wildest comebacks the previous season, and were looking to continue the success in the 2023-2024 season. The club started the season with a win, then another, and another, and yet another. In fact, the team had a 43-game unbeaten streak in all competitions by the time they had won the league, according to the Bundesliga. The way soccer scoring works, a win awards the teams with three points, a draw or tie awards teams with one point, and a loss doesn’t pay any points. Leverkusen’s unbeaten streak meant that the club had 79 points in their possession by the end of the match against Werder Bremen. The club had also pulled ahead to a 16 point lead over second place Bayern Munich. With there being only 15 points left to be played for in the season, Leverkusen automatically won the title. By winning the title, they had also ended the 11-year winning streak Bayern Munich had in the Bundesliga.
Much of Leverkusen’s success is attributed to the club’s manager Xabi Alonso. The Athletic states that Alonso, a former Liverpool and Bayern Munich player, took over the manager position at the club in October of 2022. At the time, Leverkusen were in a relegation position, and had yet to find much success. In his first season as a manager, Alonso led the team to a fifth place finish by the end of the 2022-2023 Bundesliga season. Alonso stayed as manager for the 2023-2024 season, and the rest is history.
Winning the Bundesliga also got rid of a nickname that has haunted the club since the 2000s. GOAL states that Bayer Leverkusen gained the nickname “Neverkusen” or “Vizekusen” in German, after finishing runner up in the Bundesliga four separate times in the early 2000s. The club also lost the prestigious Champions League final in 2002, as well as losing the DFB Pokal trophy the same year, all after coming second in the league. Another second was added to their tally in the 2011-2012 season. With the win in the 2023-2024 season, Leverkusen are no longer “Neverkusen.”
Bayer Leverkusen proved to the world that they were capable of winning the title, and doing so in dominant fashion. With the success shown by the club, it wouldn’t be far fetched to say they may establish a future dynasty.
