Bayer Leverkusen become first team to go through entire ...

18 May 2024

The Athletic

Bayer Leverkusen become first team to go through entire

It is a busy weekend on The Athletic — alongside our football coverage, you can follow live updates from the PGA Championship and Fury vs Usyk Bayer Leverkusen have become the first team to go through a whole Bundesliga season unbeaten after defeati

It is a busy weekend on The Athletic — alongside our football coverage, you can follow live updates from the PGA Championship and Fury vs Usyk

Bayer Leverkusen have become the first team to go through a whole Bundesliga season unbeaten after defeating Augsburg 2-1 on Saturday.

Xabi Alonso’s side clinched their 28th win of the season, with goals from Victor Boniface and Robert Andrich sealing the victory.

Leverkusen also drew six games but never lost, ending the season on 90 points. Only Bayern Munich’s 2012-13 champions have recorded more (91) in the Bundesliga era.

Bayern, meanwhile, finished third after losing 4-2 at Hoffenheim. Stuttgart’s 4-0 win against Borussia Monchengladbach saw them climb one point above Thomas Tuchel’s team. It is the first time Bayern have failed to finish in the top two of Germany’s top flight since 2010-11.

Leverkusen are also unbeaten across all competitions in this campaign, reaching the German Cup and Europa League final in the process.

Earlier this month, Leverkusen’s 2-2 draw against Roma in the Europa League semi-finals ensured the German side went 49 games unbeaten and broken the record for the longest streak without losing to a European club since the introduction of UEFA club competitions in 1955.

Unbeaten seasons in big five leagues

Team/Season	Country	Games played	Finishing pos.
Preston in 1888-89	England	22	1
Athletic Bilbao in 1929-30	Spain	18	1
Real Madrid in 1931-32	Spain	18	1
Perugia in 1978-79	Italy	30	2
AC Milan in 1991-92	Italy	34	1
Arsenal in 2003-04	England	38	1
Juventus in 2011-12	Italy	38	1
Bayer Leverkusen in 2023-24	Germany	34	1

Leverkusen’s streak began with an 8-0 victory over FC Teutonia Ottensen in the German Cup on August 12 and they surpassed the Portuguese club Benfica’s record of 48 consecutive games without a loss from December 1963 to February 1965.

That legendary Benfica team, led by Eusebio, won the Portuguese league and cup during their unbeaten run.

Under Alonso, Leverkusen has remained undefeated in 34 Bundesliga games, five German Cup matches, and 12 Europa League games, winning 42 of these matches.

Their success has put them on the verge of a treble. They have already clinched the Bundesliga title, ending Bayern’s 11-season dominance. They will face second-tier Kaiserslautern in the German Cup final on May 25 and Atalanta in the Europa League final on May 22.

GO DEEPER

How Bayer Leverkusen won the Bundesliga: Alonso magic, breaking up cliques and clever transfers

(Hesham Elsherif/Anadolu via Getty Images)