Back in August, the scrappy yet ambitious team of writers at BFW laid out preseason predictions for Bayern Munich (fact check here). There was a general consensus that Bayern would win the Bundesliga, reach the DFB-Pokal, and advance to the quarterfinal stage in the Champions League. We hit the mark on the overall team goals but had some, er, unique choices when it came to the specifics.
Most Valuable Player
Harry Kane OR Michael Olise
Bayern allowed ten different players to play more than 3,000 minutes and 35 starts. Some were out of necessity,
others due to injuries, and the rest because they hate sitting on the bench for any reason (cough, Joshua Kimmich). Another contributing factor was the deep runs made in the Champions League and DFB-Pokal.
Of those 10 qualified candidates, Kane and Olise elevated themselves above the rest. Both players built a resume worthy of Ballon d’Or consideration. Kane finished the season with 61 goals across all competitions, the most in Europe since Cristiano Ronaldo in 2014/15. Michael Olise dropped an insane 22 goals and 26 assists, often providing highlight reel moments along the way.
Olise was ultimately named Bundesliga Player of the Year and accepted the award with humble praise for his teammates. However, Kane’s goal scoring mark led Bayern’s path to shattering the Bundesliga single-season scoring record as a club. Their contributions led to a co-MVP award.
Correct (Kane): CSmith1919, R.I.P. London Teams, RuneKingThor
Correct (Olise): Jack Laushway, Michael Scott
Other: Joshua Kimmich (Zippy), Aleksandar Pavlović (Frank Mo)
Biggest Surprise
Bayern’s youth movement
Bayern played 10 academy players this season, equaling Schalke’s longstanding record dating back to the 1980/81 season. On the grander scale, Michael Olise and Aleksandar Pavlović were the only players on the roster under the age of 25 who played more than 2,000 minutes. However, there was a clear boost to the team when the younger players were on the pitch.
Lennart Karl started an insane 24 matches and added 16 goal contributions. Some fans believe that a healthy Karl would have been the difference maker in the second leg against PSG when Bayern needed fresh legs and ideas to break down the defending champs. Tom Bischof was too good to keep on the bench and found minutes at left back while constantly drifting into midfield areas. Jonas Urbig has only been with Bayern for 16 months and has already earned himself the title of heir apparent where many others have failed.
Aleksandar Pavlović just turned 22 years old but is often forgot as a young player because he has always carried himself with a professional maturity. In his sixth season, Jamal Musiala is only 23 years old and tenaciously recovered early from a vicious injury that will define the rest of his career.
When Bayern’s management team rejected the signing of Xavi Simons, most Bayern fans rolled their eyes because youth players were rarely prioritized in recent years. Vincent Kompany made 2025/26 a different story.
Correct: Jack Laushway, RuneKingThor
Other: Tom Bischof (CSmith1919, R.I.P. London Teams), Hiroki Itō (Michael Scott), Leon Goretzka (Zippy), Dayot Upamecano (Frank Mo)
Biggest Disappointment
Players returning from injury
This is always a painful category to broach but it is part of the process. It was a little disappointing to watch Kim Min-jae fail to step into the starting lineup. Leon Goretzka had some bright moments but ultimately did not perform well enough to earn an extension. Nicolas Jackson’s loan spell went about as expected (unfortunately). Tom Bischof only played 1,665 minutes but clearly asserted himself for the future.
When Bayern moved into the Rückrunde, optimism was an all-time high for Bayern to win the treble but it did not come to fruition. Jamal Musiala was working his way back but struggled to effectively re-integrate his style of play into the squad after Serge Gnabry went down. Alphonso Davies re-injured himself twice and is questionable to play in the 2026 World Cup. Hiroki Itō only played four full matches and two of them occurred after Bayern had already clinched the Bundesliga back in April. Raphaël Guerreiro never fully recovered from his February issues and limped across the finish line, likely headed to retirement.
The list extends to the younger players as well but probably did not have a major effect on the outcome of the season, besides Karl’s one month absence. It is fair to expect Kompany to start squad rotation earlier in the season to rest the older veterans for a treble run next season.
Correct: n/a
Other: Luis Díaz (Jack Laushway), Serge Gnabry (R.I.P. London Teams, RuneKingThor), Leon Goretzka (Michael Scott), Jonathan Tah (CSmith1919, Frank Mo), Transfer Window (Zippy)
Best Addition
Luis Díaz OR Jonathan Tah
From day one in Munich, both Díaz and Tah established themselves as clear cut starters at their respective positions. Díaz earned the most starts on the squad (46) and Tah played 400 more minutes than any other defender (if you don’t count Kane dropping deep into the backline).
Díaz’s stat line of 26 goals and 19 assists would be the envy of any Bundesliga player if Kane and Olise hadn’t put up even gawdier numbers. Díaz quickly endeared himself to the Bayern faithful with his relentless effort and crazy finishes. Sure, he missed some easier opportunities but was still a major improvement on Kingsley Coman or Leroy Sané.
Tah was originally believed to be a veteran backup replacement for the departing Eric Dier but Kompany immediately moved Tah into the starting lineup over Kim Min-jae. Tah was quickly voted into the team’s leadership council and became the vocal leader for the defense.
Both players brought stability to the squad and validated Max Eberl’s transfer acumen.
Correct (all Díaz): CSmith1919, Michael Scott, R.I.P. London Teams, RuneKingThor, Zippy
Other: Tom Bischof (Frank Mo, Jack Laushway)
Bundesliga
Champions
Bayern started the season as heavy favorites (-400) to lift the Meisterschale again. The other major contenders all sold off major attackers to the Premier League for big money and did not re-invest with the purpose of unseating Bayern from the throne this season. Bayern clinched the title in April with four matches to spare.
The most impressive part of the season was scoring 122 goals, obliterating the 101-goal mark from Bayern’s 1971/72 season. Bayern expects to return most of the same squad but it feels unlikely that this record will be bested in our lifetime.
Correct: Everyone!
Champions League
Semifinal loss to PSG
Despite a 3-1 loss to Arsenal in the group table stage, Bayern had the right to feel confident about its ability to make a true run at the European title. After embarrassing Atalanta with a 10-2 aggregate score, Bayern outplayed and outlasted the club’s Champions League bogeyman, Real Madrid, with two incredible wins.
That optimism was immediately challenged in Paris when Bayern found themselves in a 5-2 hole after 58 minutes. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia and Ousmane Dembélé picked apart Bayern with speed, ingenuity, and overwhelming pressure. An early goal in the second leg allowed PSG to sit on a two-goal advantage for most of the match and eliminate Bayern.
On the bright side, Bayern reached the quarterfinals for the seventh season in a row. Bayern played in the semifinals for the third time in the same window. In order to break through the final barrier, Bayern needs to add a different attacking look against the truly elite defenses of Europe. Bayern only posted two clean sheets in 14 Champions League matches, proving that the defensive efforts need to be more consistent as well.
Correct: Frank Mo, RuneKingThor
Other: Winner (Zippy), Runner-up (Jack Laushway), Quarterfinals (CSmith1919, Michael Scott, R.I.P. London Teams).
DFB-Pokal
Champions
It was fun to be back in Berlin! It was incredible watching Harry Kane and other first-time cup winners celebrate like kids, especially after the bitter taste of the PSG loss lingered for way too long. Bayern’s defense locked down RB Leipzig, Bayer Leverkusen, and Stuttgart with clean sheets over the final three rounds to cruise to the club’s first DFB-Pokal trophy since the 2019/20 treble.
Like the Bundesliga, Bayern started the season as heavy favorites but had experienced major hiccups in previous seasons. Bayern had only reached the quarterfinal round once since 2020 and Kompany intentionally prioritized the domestic cup within the locker room early in the season. Harry Kane’s hat trick in the final secured another Golden Boot trophy for his collection.
Correct: CSmith1919, Frank Mo, Jack Laushway, Michael Scott
Other: Runner-up (RuneKingThor), 2nd round (Zippy)
BFW Oracle
RuneKingThor
Congrats! Even in the two categories that RuneKingThor missed, there was a proper qualifier. The writer predicted Serge Gnabry as the Biggest Disappointment but also noted that “the vacant CAM position for the first six months is his last chance to redeem himself.” RuneKingThor also placed Bayern in the finals, which was technically also correct.
If you are looking for more Bayern Munich and German national team coverage, check out the latest episodes of Bavarian Podcast Works, which you can get on Acast, Spotify, Apple, or any leading podcast distributor…
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