German football : German Bundesliga 2009/2010 season preview

Wolfsburg land first Bundesliga title

Wolfsburg sealed their first Bundesliga title by demolishing Werder Bremen 5-1 on the final day of last season. Wolfsburg also became the first team in the history of the league to have two strikers score 20 goals or more in one season, with Brazilian Grafite netting 28 times and Bosnian Edin Dzeko 26. Coach Felix Magath's team finished the season two points ahead of last year's champions Bayern Munich, who edged third-placed Stuttgart 2-1.

Wolfsburg and Bayern enter Europe's top club competition in the group stage, while Stuttgart secured the UEFA Champions League qualifying. Hertha Berlin, Hamburg and German Cup winners Werder Bremen play the new Europa League. At the bottom, Arminia Bielefeld and Karlsruhe were relegated while Freiburg and Mainz gained direct promotion to the German top-flight. Nurnberg sealed their place in this season's Bundesliga by beating Energie Cottbus 5-0 on aggregate in the promotion/relegation play-off.

• Champions: Wolfsburg (UEFA Champions League)
• Runners-up: Bayern Munich (UEFA Champions League)
• Third place: Stuttgart (UEFA Champions League play off round)
• Fourth place: Hertha Berlin (UEFA Europe League)
• Fifth place: Hamburg (UEFA Europe League)
• German Cup winners: Werder Bremen (UEFA Europe League)
• Relegated: Energie Cottbus, Arminia Bielefeld, Karlsruhe
• Promoted: Nurnberg, Freiburg and Mainz.

Brazilian striker Grafite has been named German Footballer of the Year for 2009 after his goals helped Wolfsburg win the title last season. The 30-year-old finished ahead of new Bayern Munich signing Mario Gomez and his Wolfsburg teammate Edin Dzeko in a poll of the country's sports writers. As expected, Felix Magath was named Coach of the Year for guiding Wolfsburg to their maiden Bundesliga title last term.

The table shows the overall number of titles since 1992 for each club in German 1. Bundesliga and their league standings in the last five seasons.

Felix Magath swaps Wolfsburg for Schalke

Having won the Bundesliga title with Wolfsburg last season, coach Felix Magath will now try to work the same magic on Schalke this campaign. The 56-year-old has enjoyed unexpected success with Wolfsburg, turning an underperforming team that barely avoided relegation into a champion in only two seasons. He joined Wolfsburg in 2007 after winning domestic doubles at Bayern Munich in 2004/05 and 2005/06. Magath has noe agreed a four-year contract to act as both coach and manager at Schalke.

Former Stuttgart coach Armin Veh replaces Magath at Wolfsburg. Veh, who led Stuttgart to their 2007 title, was sacked by the club in November 2008 after a poor run of results. Veh is fortunate Wolfsburg have managed to keep hold of key players, including Dzeko, Grafite and midfielder Zvjezdan Misimovic, despite interest from some of Europe's top clubs. However, it remains to be seen if the team can repeat their surprise success or handle the step up to the UEFA Champions League where they will make their debut.

Louis van Gaal to coach Bayern

In May, Bayern Munich and AZ Alkmaar have reached an agreement for coach Louis van Gaal to join the German giants this summer. The 57-year-old Dutchman has signed a two-year contract. Bayern sacked coach Jurgen Klinsmann in April and appointed Jupp Heynckes to take over for the rest of this campaign. Van Gaal joined AZ Alkmaar in 2005 and has just guided the club to their first Dutch title since 1980/81. He also won the 1992 UEFA Cup and the 1995 UEFA Champions League with Ajax and two Spanish championships with Barcelona.

The table displays complete German 1. Bundesliga standings for season 2008/2009.

Labbadia to Hamburg, Heynckes to Leverkusen

Hamburg appointed Bruno Labbadia as their new coach, while Labbadia's former club, Bayer Leverkusen, announced Jupp Heynckes as his replacement. The 43-year-old Labbadia signed a three-year contract at Hamburg to replace Martin Jol, who has left the team to take charge of Dutch giants Ajax. Labbadia joined Leverkusen last year. The club led the Bundesliga at one stage, but the young team slumped later in the season and finished ninth.

However, Labbadia took Leverkusen to the German Cup final, which they lost to Werder Bremen. The 64-year-old Heynckes guided Bayern to a second-place league finish last season and UEFA Champions League qualification after taking over as a caretaker from the fired Juergen Klinsmann. Heynckes will coach Leverkusen until 2011.

This page is introduction to the 2009/2010 German Bundesliga season. Latest news, statistics, results and predictions you can find on our main Euro Football > Germany page.

More coaching changes

Koln appointed former Croatia international Zvonimir Soldo as their new coach, succeeding Christoph Daum. The 41-year-old Soldo agreed a two-year contract. Daum resigned to sign with Turkish side Fenerbahce. Soldo, who played for Stuttgart in the Bundesliga for 10 seasons until 2006, coached Dinamo Zagreb to a national double last season before stepping down.

Borussia Monchengladbach have appointed former player Michael Frontzeck as their new head coach following a turbulent season that saw them avoid relegation on the final day. The 45-year-old replaces the veteran Hans Meyer. Frontzeck was also fired by Arminia Bielefeld two weeks before the end of last season. He has signed a two-year contract with the Monchengladbach club.

Mainz have appointed Thomas Tuchel as their new coach after parting company with Jorn Andersen just a week before the start of the 2009/10 campaign. Andersen joined Mainz in 2008, steering them to promotion in his first season in charge. However, the 46-year-old Norwegian has been sacked after an embarrassing German Cup first round exit against fourth-division Luebeck, leading Mainz to promote the untested Tuchel from the Under-19 to the first team.

Bayern tipped for Bundesliga title

Werder Bremen and Wolfsburg are Bayern's top challengers for the Bundesliga title this season, according to online bookmakers.

The preseason odds for the outright winner of the 2009/10 German football league.

German Cup (DFB-Pokal) finals in last five years

2005   Bayern Munich - Schalke   2:1
2006   Bayern Munich - Eintracht Frankfurt   1:0
2007   Nurnberg - Stuttgart   3:2
2008   Bayern Munich - Borussia Dortmund   3:1   (after extra time)
2009   Werder Bremen - Bayer 04 Leverkusen   1:0