Bundesliga | Eintracht Frankfurt celebrates in Freiburg – and so does the Sport Club

Kevin Trapp and his teammates had been celebrating exuberantly in front of the Frankfurt fan block for quite some time when he suddenly ran bare-chested across the pitch toward the locker room. The Eintracht goalkeeper was clearly missing something – and a short time later, the black and white celebration crowd in the northwest corner of the Freiburg stadium had grown: a crate of beer was now on the pitch, and the footballers, newly qualified for the Champions League, were lapping it up.

Expression of respect

Two more crates were quickly added, this time from Frankfurt . The fact that the 3-1 winners of the Champions League clash had first reached for a nationally renowned beer from the southern Black Forest could certainly be interpreted as a small sign of respect for their defeated hosts. Freiburg were brave enough to celebrate their achievements: fifth place and Europa League qualification. At the same time, their immense disappointment was evident; defensive leader Matthias Ginter even shed bitter tears at first.

A great season from SC Freiburg , just missing the crowning glory? "Yes, that could be. But right now, it doesn't feel so exciting," said a glum Freiburg native, Ginter, who returned to the club in 2022 after eight years in Dortmund and Gladbach. At that moment, particularly loud cries of joy reached Ginter's ears from the away end – and when the Champions League anthem was played, the Frankfurt players turned the volume up particularly high. It was the accompaniment to a season in which Eintracht Frankfurt finally turned things around.

A matter of nerves

Coach Dino Toppmöller's Frankfurt team had already missed two match points at the ticket counter of Europe's elite league, first in Mainz, then against St. Pauli. The final showdown with the resilient Breisgau side seemed to be a nerve-wracking affair for Eintracht Frankfurt – especially when the Hesse side fell behind after half an hour. Freiburg seemed ready for its first attempt at the Champions League, for which it needed a win.

Frankfurt equalized with a bit of luck through Ansgar Knauff in first-half stoppage time. Rasmus Kristensen and Ellyes Skhiri then scored twice after the hour mark to put Eintracht on the road to a deserved victory. This meant the club qualified for the Champions League via the Bundesliga for the first time. "A historic success," commented sporting director Markus Krösche, referring to his inner state: "I'm really exhausted right now; the pressure was already high." Coach Toppmöller, who extended his contract until 2028 on Thursday, gleefully mentioned the "many doubters" around the club "who didn't believe in us." Especially not when Omar Marmoush, their best player, left for Manchester City for €80 million at the end of January. CEO Axel Hellmann praised the team: "Today's success is a testament to our sporting overperformance."

Insight

For the second time since 2022 – back then as Europa League winners – Eintracht has now crossed the threshold of continental football prominence. Freiburg, on the other hand, may be helped by Ginter's insight: "We've picked up one point out of a possible 24 against the league's top four clubs. That's also true."

The Europa League, which the South Baden club reached for the third time in four years in their first season under head coach Julian Schuster, seems to be a tailor-made competition for Freiburg. That's why midfielder Vincenzo Grifo, despite "a tearful and a laughing eye," was able to launch a challenge towards Leipzig, Wolfsburg, or even Stuttgart shortly after the game. "Ultimately, we can be proud of ourselves," said the 32-year-old. "Many teams with completely different ambitions set out to achieve what we have now achieved." That's Freiburg's way of overachieving. And that was then celebrated extensively with the fans later on.