The month of December witnessed Bayern Munich suffer injury after injury, resulting in Vincent Kompany’s first Bundesliga loss at the hands of surging Mainz. Eintracht Frankfurt fell into a slump of their own, paving the way for underrated clubs like Mainz and Werder Bremen to enter this month’s top five.
This series will recap each team’s performance and rank the Bundesliga teams on a monthly basis. The ranking system is based on the quality of performances, opponents, and recent matches.
1) Bayer Leverkusen
Previous Ranking: 3
Bundesliga Results: WWWWW
Since the mind boggling draw at Bochum, the defending champs have been invincible across all competitions. The defense remembered how to produce clean sheets and the offense has been brutally efficient. Leverkusen still trails Bayern by four points in the Bundesliga but that is a smaller margin than Frankfurt and Leipzig, who both trail Leverkusen by five points heading into the winter break.
2) Bayern Munich
Previous Ranking: 1
Bundesliga Results: WDWLW
Bayern has held the crown in the rankings since matchday two but finally gave way to Leverkusen’s winning streak. Bayern’s depth has played a major role in maintaining pole position in the Bundesliga and nearly every player is expected back to 100% in January. Right now, the Meisterschale is Bayern’s to lose. If Bayern can beat Leverkusen on February 15th, Bayern can cruise to the title and focus its energy on the Champions League knockout rounds.
3) Mainz
Previous Ranking: 7
Bundesliga Results: WWLWW
Mainz closed out the year with signature wins over Bayern and Frankfurt, celebrated mostly by Bo Henriksen’s flowing hair. Henriksen has worked wonders with the club that only finished two points clear of relegation last season. Jonathan Burkardt’s 10 goals have him squarely in the hunt for the Golden Boot.
4) Borussia Dortmund
Previous Ranking: 5
Bundesliga Results: WDDDW
Dortmund is an unpredictable enigma this season but has figured out a way to go undefeated in its last five Bundesliga matches. Dortmund boss Nuri Şahin has seen more success when the squad has shifted away from the traditional 4-2-3-1 and pressed higher up the pitch with a 4-3-3 or 4-1-3-2. If Şahin can find a reliable scorer at the forward position, Dortmund should be able to qualify for a Champions League spot.
5) Werder Bremen
Previous Ranking: 9
Bundesliga Results: LDWWW
Bremen took advantage of a friendly December schedule, defeating Union Berlin, St. Pauli, and Bochum. Bremen also advanced to the quarterfinals of the DFB-Pokal on a stoppage time from Anthony Jung. Surprisingly, Danish midfielder Jens Stage is outscoring Marvin Ducksch, although Ducksch is leading the team in assists.
6) Eintracht Frankfurt
Previous Ranking: 2
Bundesliga Results: WWDLL
After winning seven consecutive matches, Frankfurt came crashing back to Earth in December, earning a meager four points in six matches across all competitions. The 3-1 loss to Mainz was particularly painful because Mainz picked up a red card in the 21st minute. It’s not a coincidence that Omar Marmoush has only scored once during the five-game winless streak.
7) Borussia Mönchengladbach
Previous Ranking: 4
Bundesliga Results: WLDWW
Gladbach has only lost once since October. That statistic will be tested in January in matches against Bayern and Leverkusen. Tim Kleindienst has been fantastic and is looking more and more like a guaranteed selection for Germany’s 2026 World Cup roster.
8) RB Leipzig
Previous Ranking: 6
Bundesliga Results: LLWWL
Leipzig closed out the year with an embarrassing loss at Bayern, but Leipzig will be thankful for wins over Frankfurt and Holstein Kiel following a winless November. The attacking partnership of Loïs Openda and Benjamin Šeško has found its footing, but the injury to Germany’s Benjamin Henrichs will leave a gaping hole in Leipzig’s defense.
9) Stuttgart
Previous Ranking: 12
Bundesliga Results: WDWWL
Seb Hoeneß will be extremely disappointed in the St. Pauli loss that ruined Stuttgart’s perfect month. It’s extremely odd that the team’s leading scorer, Ermedin Demirović, has failed to score in Stuttgart’s last eight wins. The squad is lacking the chemistry and flare that fueled the club to a second place finish last season.
10) Freiburg
Previous Ranking: 11
Bundesliga Results: LWDWL
Julian Schuster’s inaugural season as a manager has produced mixed results. Early wins over Stuttgart and Bremen offered a lot of hope, but two wins in the last two months has stymied that progress. Freiburg is on a straight course for a midtable finish with little deviation on the horizon.
11) Wolfsburg
Previous Ranking: 8
Bundesliga Results: WWWLL
Wolfsburg is the lowest club in the table with a positive goal differential, which would have been even higher if Wolfsburg avoided late losses to Dortmund and Freiburg. Oddly enough, those losses came on the heels of impressive wins over Leipzig and Mainz. In his first season at the club, Ralph Hasenhüttl brings different formations and tactics to every match.
12) St. Pauli
Previous Ranking: 15
Bundesliga Results: LWLLW
Only Bayern has conceded fewer goals than St. Pauli this season. Normally this would result in a club finish in the top half of the table, but St. Pauli has also scored the fewest goals. St. Pauli has grinded out a win each month which should eventually prove to be enough to keep them in the top division for another season.
13) Hoffenheim
Previous Ranking: 14
Bundesliga Results: WLDDL
The heavy schedule of playing in the Europa League has completely decimated Hoffenheim. Hoffenheim has only won one of its last eight Bundesliga matches and has not faired much better in the Europa League or DFB-Pokal.
14) Augsburg
Previous Ranking: 13
Bundesliga Results: LWDLL
Augsburg has been terrible on both ends of the pitch. Most of Augsburg’s players are in their late twenties, but they play with the legs of older players and focus of younger players. After escaping Karlsruher in the Round of 16, Augsburg still has an opportunity to steal some glory in the domestic cup.
15) Union Berlin
Previous Ranking: 10
Bundesliga Results: LLLDL
Union is winless in its last eight Bundesliga matches but at least they scored in the each of the last four games. On the Bundesliga table, Bo Svensson’s aging squad is technically outperforming last year’s campaign but it doesn’t feel that way.
16) VfL Bochum
Previous Ranking: 18
Bundesliga Results: LLLDW
Bochum is still stuck in the Bundesliga cellar, so call it an act of kindness for bumping them up to 16th after clawing their way to four points against Union and Heidenheim. Barring some miracle, Bochum will surely be relegated in May. But finding that first win has the potential to spark an unlikely run.
17) Heidenheim
Previous Ranking: 16
Bundesliga Results: LLLLL
After a seven-game losing streak that included getting beat up by Bochum in a 2-0 loss, Heidenheim probably deserves to be in last place. However, Heidenheim is expected to advance to the Conference League knockout stage which has to count for something.
18) Holstein Kiel
Previous Ranking: 17
Bundesliga Results: LLLLW
Kiel has one clean sheet all season and is by far the worst defensive team in the league. Like Bochum, Kiel is almost guaranteed to be relegated. Enough said.
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