Football is not just a sport in Germany, it is a deep-seated passion that unites millions of fans nationwide. Football in Germany is known for its vibrant atmosphere with loyal and loud fans, with Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich both playing in front of over 70.000 fans every home match. The Bundesliga is currently ranked number four in Europe by UEFA. However, the German teams are not satisfied with being ranked four, since they historically have been higher. In this ranking, we are looking at the top two divisions, Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga. Read this article to find out; Who is the best German football team right now?
But Also...
What is the most successful team in Germany historically? Who is the biggest club in Germany? To find out, it is required to look at more than just the current standings. This article ranks the clubs based on an algorithm that considers several key performance indicators, such as recent performance and success, historic achievements, and the overall size of each football club currently in the Bundesliga or 2. Bundesliga. Read more about our ranking here, to understand how this is calculated.
From the club that has won everything there is to win in recent years, Bayern Munich, to current league champion Bayer Leverkusen, to historically strong clubs such as Borussia Dortmund and Nuremberg. The debate over which German football team is the best will spark discussions, but when taking all factors into consideration it is possible to find out. Let us dive into the rankings to find out.
Top 10 at this moment - Best German Football Team
Full data - Best German Football Team in Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga - last updated after the 2023/24 season
| Team | Ranking | Recent Success | Historic Achievements | Overall Size | Total score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bayern Munich | 1 | 49.85 | 67.99 | 13.94 | 131.77 |
| Borussia Dortmund | 2 | 25.32 | 18.20 | 7.55 | 51.07 |
| RB Leipzig | 3 | 22.73 | 1.34 | 4.49 | 28.56 |
| Bayer 04 Leverkusen | 4 | 14.72 | 5.39 | 3.57 | 23.67 |
| Borussia Mönchengladbach | 5 | 7.93 | 9.26 | 1.90 | 19.10 |
| 1.FC Nuremberg | 6 | 3.75 | 14.00 | 0.25 | 18.00 |
| VfB Stuttgart | 7 | 6.50 | 8.41 | 3.06 | 17.97 |
| FC Schalke 04 | 8 | 4.76 | 11.55 | 0.42 | 16.73 |
| Hamburger SV | 9 | 4.44 | 11.20 | 0.50 | 16.15 |
| Eintracht Frankfurt | 10 | 9.19 | 4.08 | 2.75 | 16.02 |
| SV Werder Bremen | 11 | 5.53 | 7.91 | 0.82 | 14.26 |
| VfL Wolfsburg | 12 | 8.11 | 3.75 | 1.17 | 13.03 |
| 1.FC Köln | 13 | 5.89 | 5.60 | 0.94 | 12.43 |
| SC Freiburg | 14 | 8.66 | 0.64 | 1.29 | 10.60 |
| 1.FC Kaiserslautern | 15 | 3.34 | 6.30 | 0.21 | 9.86 |
| TSG 1899 Hoffenheim | 16 | 7.68 | 1.21 | 0.71 | 9.60 |
| 1.FC Union Berlin | 17 | 8.47 | 0.43 | 0.63 | 9.53 |
| Hertha BSC | 18 | 5.13 | 2.80 | 0.46 | 8.39 |
| 1.FSV Mainz 05 | 19 | 6.59 | 1.14 | 0.63 | 8.37 |
| SpVgg Greuther Fürth | 20 | 4.04 | 4.20 | 0.07 | 8.32 |
| FC Augsburg | 21 | 5.59 | 1.00 | 0.72 | 7.31 |
| Hannover 96 | 22 | 3.86 | 3.15 | 0.22 | 7.23 |
| Fortuna Düsseldorf | 23 | 4.57 | 2.10 | 0.30 | 6.97 |
| Karlsruher SC | 24 | 3.95 | 2.10 | 0.12 | 6.17 |
| VfL Bochum | 25 | 5.03 | 0.29 | 0.32 | 5.64 |
| Holstein Kiel | 26 | 4.08 | 1.47 | 0.09 | 5.63 |
| 1.FC Heidenheim 1846 | 27 | 4.47 | 0.14 | 0.18 | 4.79 |
| Eintracht Braunschweig | 28 | 3.16 | 1.40 | 0.06 | 4.62 |
| SV Darmstadt 98 | 29 | 4.36 | 0.00 | 0.15 | 4.50 |
| FC St. Pauli | 30 | 4.16 | 0.07 | 0.20 | 4.43 |
| SC Paderborn 07 | 31 | 4.23 | 0.00 | 0.05 | 4.28 |
| SSV Jahn Regensburg | 32 | 3.41 | 0.00 | 0.01 | 3.42 |
| 1.FC Magdeburg | 33 | 3.16 | 0.00 | 0.09 | 3.24 |
| SV 07 Elversberg | 34 | 3.01 | 0.00 | 0.04 | 3.05 |
| Preußen Münster | 35 | 2.92 | 0.00 | 0.01 | 2.93 |
| SSV Ulm 1846 | 36 | 2.92 | 0.00 | 0.01 | 2.93 |
Club Summaries
1. Bayern Munich
Founded: 1900
Division: Bundesliga
Stadium: Allianz Arena
Recent Success: Bayern Munich is in a league of its own considering the club’s recent success. They have won the league four out of the five times in recent seasons, and at the same time, they have won the German Cup and Champions League once. There are no teams close, and they are very comfortable at the top.
Historic Achievements: Bayern Munich is far ahead of the other teams when talking about recent success, but they are even further away when looking at historic achievements. There are no teams remotely close, and they will stay on top of this category for a very long time. They have the German record for most league trophies with 33, most cup trophies with 20, and most Champions League trophies with 6.
Overall Size: With the massive success they have in the other two categories, it is no surprise that Bayern Munich also tops this category comfortably. Being on top of all three categories is not so common, and it shows how far ahead Bayern Munich is compared to the other German teams.
2. Borussia Dortmund
Founded: 1909
Division: Bundesliga
Stadium: Signal Iduna Park
Recent Success: Borussia Dortmund has been the most common challenger for Bayern Munich in recent times, but usually they had to accept the second place, also in this ranking. The only trophy they got the last five seasons is a cup trophy, but they have been close to the top every season.
Historic achievements: Far behind Bayern Munich, but Borussia Dortmund is ranked number two in this category. They have a lot of league trophies and cup trophies, but the last time they won the league was over 10 years ago.
Overall Size: Being one of the biggest clubs in Germany, and playing in front of the biggest crowd in Germany, they are comfortably in second place in this category, only beaten by one team. Guess who? You are right, Bayern Munich.
3. RB Leipzig
Founded: 2009
Division: Bundesliga
Stadium: Red Bull Arena
Recent success: RB Leipzig has been battling for the top positions in recent years, and has been fairly successful. In the last five years, they have won two cup trophies. This puts them in third place in this category.
Historic Achievements: Being a club that was founded in 2009, it is no surprise that they do not score a lot of points in the category for historic achievements. They are placed all the way down at 21st place, with the two cup trophies mentioned earlier the only silverware in their trophy cabinet.
Overall Size: RB Leipzig is a controversial club, backed by the energy drink company Red Bull. Even if fans do not like it, based on the numbers they have to be considered one of the biggest clubs in Germany in the category for overall size. They are ranked number three.
4. Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Founded: 1904
Division: Bundesliga
Stadium: BayArena
Recent success: Bayer Leverkusen, the reigning champion in Germany, is the only club that has beaten Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga in the last five seasons. They have not been at the very top earlier, so they are still only ranked fourth in this category. If they can keep it up, they will surely climb the ranking in the future.
Historic Achievements: Bayer Leverkusen has “always” been in the top division, but they have struggled to win trophies. This puts them as low as number 11 in this category.
Overall Size: Bayer Leverkusen is a big and well-known club in German football, and is ranked at number four in this category, just in front of Stuttgart. If they keep on winning trophies, they will without a doubt climb up in this category.
5. Borussia Mönchengladbach
Founded: 1900
Division: Bundesliga
Stadium: Stadion im Borussia-Park
Recent success: If you exclude the absolute top teams in Germany, it is close between a lot of teams in this category. Borussia Mönchengladbach is ranked at number nine in this category, but they can easily climb a few places if they find some success on the pitch in the future. The top placement in the last five seasons is a fifth place in Bundesliga in 2019/20.
Historic Achievements: Even though it has been a very long time since Borussia Mönchengladbach won anything, they are historically a very strong club, having won the German League five times and the German Cup three times. This puts them at sixth place in this category.
Overall Size: Far behind the top teams in Germany, but they are ranked at number seven in the category for overall size. They have one of the biggest fanbases in Germany, which is the biggest reason why they are not lower in this category.
Honorable mentions
6. 1.FC Nuremberg
Just outside of the top five, Nuremberg ranks at number six. This may be a surprise for a lot of people since they are currently in the 2. Bundesliga in Germany. The only reason they are this high is because of their historic achievements, where they rank at number three, only beaten by Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. In periods, they have been a powerhouse in German club football, especially in the first half of the 1900s.
7. VfB Stuttgart
Stuttgart is ranked at number five in the category for overall size and is also just outside the top five in the category for historic achievements. If they become a more stable top team in the future, they will certainly be a contender for higher placements in the total ranking, being at number seven as of today.
8. FC Schalke 04
Schalke 04 is ranked fourth in the category for historic achievements, and this is the biggest reason they are ranked number eight in the total ranking.
9. Hamburger SV
The same as Nuremberg and Schalke, Hamburger is in the top five for historic achievements, but low in the other categories. This ranks them at number nine in the total ranking. All these three teams have a rich history but have not lived up to their legacy in recent times.
10. Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt is only ranked at number 10 in the total ranking but is ranked as high as number five in the category for recent success. They have not been at the absolute top, but they have been stable on the upper half of the table in recent years.
Conclusion - The Best German Football Team
In summary, Bayern Munich is without a doubt the best, biggest, and most successful team in Germany right now. It will most likely stay the same for a long time. Far behind Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund is ranked comfortably in second place. Below these two teams, it is tight and a lot can change soon. Will Bayer Leverkusen keep on winning, and reduce the lead to the teams in front of them? Or will Bayern Munich fight back, and be established as the best German football team? Will Borussia Dortmund stay as the eternal number two? This ranking is last updated after the 2023/24 season and will be updated as soon as the 2024/25 season ends. Sign up for our newspaper to get notified when the new ranking arrives!
