When the little ones abruptly change into huge, the favorites have nothing left to say, or fallen soccer giants abruptly rise once more – that is when followers rapidly fall in love with a staff.
Even in 2025, there have been these teams that achieved the unimaginable. It’s excessive time to have a good time them as soon as extra.
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Village Club on a Roll
A couple of hundred meters from the Baltic Sea, in mid-October 2025, some farmers gathered with their tractors to escort the native soccer staff to their championship parade. Things each village league membership is aware of. Only, we’re not speaking concerning the village league right here.
Mjällby AIF had simply completed turning into the Swedish first division champion for the primary time in the membership’s historical past. An 800-inhabitant village membership, crammed with quite a few native gamers, a coach who beforehand taught as a instructor, and a chief scout who works as a postman through the day.
This story sounds nearly too good to be true. All the higher that it truly is. We look ahead to Mjällby AIF’s first European Cup appearances in the summer time of 2026.
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Who Needs a Large Population?
Curaçao won’t play in the European Cup in the summer time of 2026 – however they are going to play in the Football World Cup in the USA, Canada, and Mexico.
As the smallest nation by inhabitants ever – formally round 150,000 inhabitants – the island nation certified for a World Cup for the primary time. The staff’s coach is none aside from Dick Advocaat. The former Bundesliga coach will face the German nationwide staff with his squad on June 14, 2026, in Group E. Hopefully, there will not be any purpose to fall additional in love with Curaçao then…
Teaching the Bundesliga Fear
What do Union Berlin, SC Freiburg, Werder Bremen, and Bayer 04 Leverkusen all have in widespread? Correct: They have been all knocked out of the competitors by a third-division staff final season.
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At the Bielefelder Alm, Arminia, underneath coach Mitch Kniat, went on a fully loopy run that took all of them the way in which to the DFB-Pokal closing in Berlin.
In entrance of over 70,000 soccer followers, Bielefeld lastly needed to concede a 2-4 defeat towards VfB Stuttgart. Fortunately, the present second-division staff had already gained the hearts of half the soccer republic by then.
Old Bundesliga Incoming?
Two different golf equipment in Germany are at the moment attaining this as properly. At least they’re successful the hearts of those that lengthy for a Bundesliga of outdated instances.
Let’s begin with the previous Bundesliga dinosaur: Hamburger SV is not at all liked by everybody – and but it belongs in the Bundesliga simply as a lot because the billy goat belongs to 1. FC Köln. After seven years, HSV is again in the highest tier for the reason that summer time and, as the present thirteenth in the desk, has reputable probabilities of staying up.
📸 AXEL HEIMKEN
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Schalke 04 abruptly additionally has reputable possibilities for the Bundesliga once more. Under Miron Muslic, the membership is experiencing a real resurrection. While the membership felt useless in current years and needed to plan for the third division, they’re at the moment on the prime of the second division desk.
Muslic has elevated the Royal Blues, particularly defensively, to a totally new stage and rightfully led them to the autumn championship. Now simply please get promoted, S04.
This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇩🇪 here.
📸 JOHAN NILSSON