Overview

• Germany’s 63rd season starts tonight with Bayern München hosting RB Leipzig at 20:30 local time, ending a 97‑day pause.
• Leverkusen’s ten Hag says the dressing room is “growing together” after a major turnover, with new arrivals Claudio Echeverri and Loïc Badé signed this week; Echeverri is in contention to play while Malik Tillman is not yet ready.
• HSV return after seven years with coach Merlin Polzin naming Heuer Fernandes as No. 1, and potential substitute cameos planned for Yussuf Poulsen and Jean‑Luc Dompé in Sunday’s opener at Mönchengladbach.
• League readiness varies as injuries and compressed preparations linger, with Dortmund managing defensive absences and Mainz planning rotation following a midweek trip to Trondheim.
• Match operations debut semi‑automated offside, in‑stadium referee announcements after VAR interventions, and expanded RefCam, with broadcast shifts including the conference moving to DAZN and Sky carrying Friday and Saturday evening fixtures.