Borussia Dortmund are going to end the 2025-26 season without a trophy but may have a chance to win a silverware in the very first game of next season.
That's because the BVB could qualify for the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup 2026, if things play out in a certain way.
With Bayern Munich being crowned the Bundesliga champions, they have already sealed their place in the cup once again. But their opponents are still undecided.
It could be one of Dortmund or Stuttgart, who are into the 2026 DFB-Pokal finals after beating Freiburg on Thursday.
Should Die Roten prevail in the cup finals next month, they will face Bayern in the German Cup in August with Dortmund missing out. It would also mark their third consecutive appearance in the Sueprcup, having played (and lost) in 2024 and 2025).
However, if Vincent Kompany's side complete the league double by clinching the domestic cup title too, then Dortmund secure a place in the upcoming supercup by virtue of finishing as Bundesliga runners-up.
The Black and Yellows are currently in second place of the league standings with 64 points from 30 games, five clear of third-placed RB Leipzig.
Back-to-back losses to Bayer Leverkusen and Hoffenheim have seen their position come under threat. If Dortmund don't get their act together and continue to drop points, Leipzig could realistically leapfrog them into second place.
That would further exacerbate their situation as Die Borussen could then miss out on a place in the German Supercup next season, thereby missing yet another chance at a trophy.
Dortmund are on course to finish the fifth consecutive year without a title, so it's imperative for the side to take their chances wherever it appears.
Dortmund's record at Supercups
Borussia Dortmund have made 12 appearances in the DFL Supercup, more than any German side after Bayern Munich, who lead the way with 18.
They are also the most successful in the one-off cup behind the Bavarians with six titles to their name, though their last triumph came back in 2019.
Since then, Dortmund have made two more appearances in the Supercup, in 2020 and 2021, losing on both occasions to Bayern who beat them 3-2 and 3-1 respectively.
Besides their 2011 defeat to Schalke on penalties, all the other five German Supercup losses for Dortmund have come against Bayern (2012, 2016, 2017, 2020 and 2021).
Werder Bremen are the only other team to have won it multiple times (3) while Kaiserslautern, Stuttgart, Schalke, Leipzig, Bayer Leverkusen and Wolfsburg have won once each.
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