It was a bright, sunny Monday evening in Paderborn, Nordrhein-Westfalen – the 25-degree weather with a warm breeze creating a perfect summer feel to those . And it was on this evening that the hometown SC Paderborn 07 (18-8-8, 3rd 2. Bundesliga) hosted VfL Wolfsburg (7-8-19, 16th Bundesliga) in the final match of the season.
For Die Blau-Schwarz, this was a potentially historic evening – as they looked to confirm their third promotion to the Bundesliga in their 119-year history. Paderborn made the Bundesliga in the 2014/15 and 2020/21 seasons, both of their promotions having been through second-place finishes in 2. Bundesliga and both of their Bundesliga seasons having ended in relegations through last-place finishes.
As for Die Wölfe, they looked to avoid a historic first relegation from the Bundesliga in their 81-year history. Wolfsburg promoted to the Bundesliga for the first time in the 1998/99 season, and have been in the top division since – winning the Meisterschale on one occasion, in the 2008/09 season, and adding a DFB-Pokal to that collection in 2014/15. After a year that saw the club part ways with two coaches, their sporting director, and their managing director for sport, as well as finish with their worst goal differential in the last three decades (-24), this 28-year streak of playing top-flight German football was on the line.
Paderborn won the coin toss and elected to kick off the first half, with Stefano Marino kicking the ball back to Tjark Scheller along the back line.
After two minutes of midfield play, Wolfsburg would get the first chance – and they would take full advantage of it. A Konstantinos Koulierakis long ball from his own half entered the left side of the box, knocked down by Adam Daghim. The Danish winger then threaded the ball to the edge of the box for Dženan Pejčinović, who powered the following attempt past Dennis Seimen and into the bottom-left corner.
Just a few minutes after an altercation on the sidelines between Filip Bilbija and Joakim Mæhle, which saw both players carded, Paderborn had their first notable chance courtesy of the 26-year-old midfielder, who weaved his way into the right side of the Wolfsburg third before his attempted cross was deflected away by the right leg of Mæhle. The ensuing set piece was cleared outside the penalty area, but as Bilbija was about to recover possession, Mæhle performed a dangerous slide tackle from behind.
It led experienced head official Felix Zwayer to have no other option but a second yellow card, sending Mæhle to the showers and thus ending his season. One of the most experienced players in the squad, with 76 appearances in total, went off after two bookings in a four-minute span, leaving Wolfsburg with ten for the remainder of the match.
Paderborn controlled the pace of play immediately after the suspension. Mika Baur received a pass from his right from Stefano Marino at the edge of the box, before sending a rolling ball just wide of the right post with his left boot. A cross in the twentieth minute from Laurin Curda on the right side of the Wolfsburg half nearly reached a leaping Ruben Müller in the centre of the box, but it was hit a bit too hard – going well above him and Vinícius Souza for a goal kick to the visitors.
Bilbija and Castañeda would follow with another two chances of their own after the twenty-minute mark, but neither would go on target, sailing well over Kamil Grabara. The 29-year-old faced another shot on target at the half-hour mark; Bilbija with a short pass to the right edge of the box to Curda, but his attempt to send a ground pass into the centre of the goal area was gloved down by the Polish goalkeeper.
Paderborn, looking more comfortable on the attack, started to shift into a more attacking formation – bringing their back line forward to deliver crosses around the half-hour mark. Mattes Hansen’s cross from the right side of the Wolfsburg third into the centre of the box was headed away at the goalmouth by Denis Vavro. Mika Baur’s ensuing corner from the left side of the Wolfsburg third was hoofed well away from danger, into the midfield by Saël Kumbedi. The ball made its way back to the box, where Santiago Castañeda sent a right-footed shot towards the centre of the goal; however, Grabara pawed away the American midfielder’s attempt with both hands for an eventually unsuccessful near-post corner.
Paderborn would eventually find the back of the net in the thirty-ninth minute, as a throw-in from Laurin Curda was thrown into the box, then flicked into the centre of the goal area by a Calvin Brackelmann header. Bilbija found space between Koulierakis and Kumbedi before tapping the ball past a diving Grabara, into the centre of the goal.
The hosts were not done yet, as two minutes later, Curda curled an attempt towards the top-left corner, a split-second before Daghim could deflect the ball away – but a leaping Grabara managed to punch it away with both hands. Castañeda followed with a longshot of his own towards the bottom-left corner, but this one was easier to handle for Grabara as he went down and covered it with both gloves.
Zwayer would call time on the first half soon after, with the scores level at one apiece. After Mæhle’s second booking, Paderborn made it clear that they would statistically dominate the remainder of the first 45 minutes; shots in the first term finished 12-1 to Paderborn, 4-1 on target with 74% possession and an 88% pass accuracy on 260 passes, a full 12% better than Wolfsburg on 92 passes.
After a fifteen minute break, both teams would return to the field for the second half. Not much changed in terms of momentum; Paderborn continued to create strong opportunities to take the lead in the first few minutes of the second term. The hosts would win a corner after a minute and a half; Baur’s inswinger was headed by Calvin Brackelmann towards the goal area, going past Grabara but cleared off the line by Souza. The rebound sprung to the right side of the box, with Curda there to deflect a right-footed attempt towards the bottom-left corner; however, Eriksen got to the left side of the goal area in time to tap it away from danger.
In the fifty-fourth minute, Castañeda’s cross into the centre of the box, from the left side of the Wolfsburg half, was met by a towering header from Marino – who sailed it just above the bar. Six minutes later, Sebastian Klaas would get his first chance of the evening, receiving the ball at the edge of the box from a failed Koulierakis clearance and then smashing a left-footed attempt off the left post.
Wolfsburg would get a chance of their own in the sixty-sixth minute, as Saël Kumbedi managed to dart his way into the right side of the Paderborn third before sending a ground pass into the centre of the box; it would come to nothing, however, as Brackelmann got in front of Pejčinović and lifted it out of the box before the German youth international could attempt for his second of the evening.
At this point of the match, Ralf Kettemann decided to make four changes, including bringing in Sven Michel and Steffen Tigges. These substitutes made an almost instant impact, as Michel would get an opportunity in the centre of the box in the seventy-fourth minute, deflecting off the body of Vavro – the rebound sprung to Tigges, who blasted it over the bar and out for a goal kick to the visitors.
Niklas Mohr, one of the other substitutes brought on, would attempt a cross in the seventy-eighth minute, hoping to find Michel in the centre of the box; however, a diving header from Koulierakis cleared it away. It would have hit the hand of Eriksen if he had not moved it slightly out of the way; the Paderborn players protested for a spot kick, but upon consultation with VAR officials Christian Dingert and Frederik Assmuth, Zwayer ultimately determined that there was no contact and play resumed as normal.
Both sides started to look fatigued at the eighty-minute mark, with neither able to generate dangerous chances until stoppage time arrived. Two minutes into the extra three, a cross from Hansen would reach the head of Michel; fortunately for Grabara, it bounced off the left post and Koulierakis would get just enough of the ball with his right boot to deflect it away for a corner to the hosts, one which would not lead to anything in the end.
The full-time whistle would go soon after, with shots 19-1 to Paderborn in the second half, 4-0 on target. The hosts held 68% possession and finished the second term with an 85% pass accuracy on 238 passes, compared to 77% on 103 passes.
Felix Götze would get the first half of extra time underway, and he would also be responsible for the first shot on target in the extra 30 – denied of the bottom-left corner by a diving Grabara. In the ninety-fourth minute, he would deliver a cross into the centre of the box from the right side of the Wolfsburg third, but Kumbedi stepped in front of Michel and knocked it to the left for a corner to the hosts; Castañeda’s ensuing header towards the top-right corner on a cross following the set piece went just above Grabara and out of play for a goal kick to the visitors.
Paderborn would ultimately break the deadlock in the hundredth minute, as Michel delivered a cross into the centre of the box from the left side of the Wolfsburg third. Curda got on the receiving end of it, and with precision, tapped the ball with his right foot past Grabara and into the bottom-left corner. It was a sea of blue-black delirium at Home Deluxe Arena, as a majority of the 15 000 supporters went into a frenzy – the hosts were finally in front.
The hosts continued to maintain possession, although not as intense to avoid making risky passes and hold their lead. Wolfsburg would push for an equaliser in the final minutes, though; a cross from the left side of the Paderborn half courtesy of Paredes reached Wind in the centre of the box; the Danish forward headed the ball towards the top-centre, but Seimen punched it away for a corner to the visitors. Eriksen’s far-post cross was headed by substitute Kento Shiogai, but Seimen went down and gloved it with both hands.
After a Konstantinos Koulierakis foul in the left side of the Wolfsburg half, the final whistle would go, confirming SC Paderborn 07 their place in the Bundesliga for the third time in their history. SC Paderborn 07 will play in the top division of German football in the 2026/27 season, kicking off in the third week of August. As for VfL Wolfsburg, after nearly three decades in the German top tier, they will play 2. Bundesliga football in three months’ time.
