'Shock relegation': Ku Ja-cheol and KDB's home club humiliated, forced into second division for the first time in 29 years... 'European powerhouse' Wolfsburg plummets

*This content was translated by AI.

Wolfsburg, a traditional powerhouse of Germany's Bundesliga, has collapsed in the promotion-relegation playoff. It is a humiliating relegation to the second division after 29 seasons.

On the 26th (Korean time), Wolfsburg lost 1-2 to Paderborn in the second leg of the promotion-relegation playoff, played as an away match in Paderborn, Germany, after a grueling extra-time battle. Having drawn 0-0 in the first leg at home, Wolfsburg was eliminated with an aggregate score of 1-2, confirming their relegation.

With this result, Wolfsburg's record of 29 consecutive seasons in the Bundesliga since being promoted to the first division in 1997 has come to an end. Meanwhile, Paderborn, which secured a dramatic victory, swapped places with Wolfsburg, managed by coach Dieter Hecking, and celebrated their promotion to the first division.

Wolfsburg struggled with severe poor form throughout the year, constantly hovering near the bottom of the table. They managed to scrape together 5 points in three matches from round 30 to round 32, barely escaping the automatic relegation zone, which occupied 17th and 18th place. They then defeated St. Pauli in the final league match, pushing them into relegation, and seized a slim chance of survival. However, they collapsed in the final hurdle, the promotion-relegation playoff.

Wolfsburg has faced crises before, narrowly avoiding relegation by defeating Eintracht Braunschweig and Holstein Kiel in the promotion-relegation playoffs in the 2016-2017 and 2017-2018 seasons, respectively. However, the shock of this relegation is even greater because just a few years ago, in the 2020-2021 season, the team, under the guidance of Austrian-born coach Oliver Glasner, finished fourth in the league and stepped onto the stage of the 2021 UEFA Champions League.

Furthermore, between 2014 and 2021, Wolfsburg entered the top seven teams no fewer than five times. In the 2015-2016 season, they reached the Champions League quarterfinals, pushing Real Madrid to the brink of defeat, establishing their reputation as a powerhouse on the European stage.

Notably, in the 2014-2015 season, under the command of coach Hecking, they boasted explosive attacking power from Kevin De Bruyne and Bas Dost, finishing as runners-up in the league behind Bayern Munich. In the DFB Pokal final that same year, they defeated Borussia Dortmund to lift the trophy, and two months later, at the DFL Supercup, they even subdued Munich, enjoying the club's golden age.

The best golden era in the club's 29-year history was in 2009. Under the leadership of coach Felix Magath, Wolfsburg lifted the Bundesliga championship trophy for the first time in club history. The striking duo of Grafite and Edin Dzeko scored a combined 54 goals in a single season, a record that remains the highest combined goal tally in a single season in Bundesliga history to this day. Midfielder Zvjezdan Misimović also recorded 20 assists, holding the record for the most assists in a single Bundesliga season.

For domestic fans, the team is very familiar as it featured players such as Ku Ja-cheol and Makoto Hasebe, a legend of Japanese football.

Before entering the first division for the first time in 1997, Wolfsburg had bounced between the second division and lower leagues. With the defeat against Paderborn, the club, which had long guarded its dignity as a traditional powerhouse, has been humbled and must now prepare to compete for promotion from the second division once again.

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*This content was translated by AI.