No need for winter break blues!

Three weeks of winter break tedium are very nearly over. The Bundesliga is about to return and is bringing some new year fireworks in the first fixture of 2025, as Matchday 16 kicks off with Dortmund hosting defending champions Leverkusen at the Signal Iduna Park on Friday, 10 January.

It’s the launch of another exciting year that will bring yet more thrills, spills and drama up and down the Bundesliga. Leverkusen, RB Leipzig and Eintracht Frankfurt all made their mark prior to the break and now face the task of reeling in Bayern Munich over the coming five months.

All three have shown in the recent past that they can make life particularly tough for the record champions. Leverkusen alone have already denied Bayern victory twice this season. And of course we can’t forget Borussia Mönchengladbach, one of the Munich giants’ bogey teams. And who do Bayern open 2025 against? Yes, they go to Borussia-Park for the first Topspiel of the year.

And the action continues to come thick and fast after that. A round of midweek fixtures follows the restart and marks the official mid-point of the season with games like VfB Stuttgart against Leipzig.

We’re then treated to another massive Friday night going into Matchday 18 as Frankfurt host Dortmund, before Leverkusen take on rivals Gladbach on Saturday. The Werkself finally see out January in Leipzig, while Bayern face a tricky trip to Freiburg.

Expect plenty of movement in the top half of the table at the start of the year as teams jostle for position in the race for Europe and potentially more at the summit.

Obviously there’s lots at stake at the bottom end of the table as well. Bochum and Holstein Kiel really need a much improved 2025 if they’re to stand a chance of staying up. The likes of Heidenheim and St. Pauli have also spent the winter break looking nervously over their shoulders. 

There’s excitement everywhere you look in the Bundesliga, and it all resumes very soon!