Paderborn beat Wolfsburg after extra time and secured a return to the Bundesliga
SC Paderborn 07 achieved one of the most important victories in the club's recent history. In the second leg of the Bundesliga relegation play-off, played on 25 May 2026 at the sold-out Home Deluxe Arena, Paderborn defeated VfL Wolfsburg 2:1 after extra time and secured a place in the Bundesliga for the 2026/2027 season. According to SC Paderborn's official report, the first match in Wolfsburg ended without goals, so the return leg in Paderborn directly decided the final place in Germany's elite division. The home side came to victory with a comeback after the visitors' early lead, and the decisive goal was scored by Laurin Curda in extra time. Thus the second-division club from North Rhine-Westphalia took advantage of a great opportunity in front of its fans, while Wolfsburg, according to the dpa report, was relegated from the Bundesliga for the first time in the club's history.
Early shock, red card and home comeback
The match began very difficultly for Paderborn. According to the official match record on Bundesliga.com, Dženan Pejčinović gave Wolfsburg the lead as early as the third minute, turning the visitors' first more serious attack into a goal for 0:1. Such a start could have completely changed the psychological course of the match because the Bundesliga club at that moment had an away advantage and the possibility of controlling the rhythm. However, the match soon turned dramatically. Joakim Mæhle received a second yellow card already in the 14th minute, leaving Wolfsburg with one player fewer for almost the entire rest of the evening.
After the sending-off, Paderborn took the initiative and began to press the opposing defence ever more strongly. According to the home club's report, the team of coach Ralf Kettemann had significantly more possession after the red card and reached the final third more and more often. The equaliser arrived in the 38th minute, when Filip Bilbija scored for 1:1 after a move in which Calvin Brackelmann was involved. That goal not only restored the balance on the scoreboard but also further lifted the home team, which by the end of the first half had already created the impression that it was playing with much greater energy and clarity. Wolfsburg, on the other hand, after the early lead, was increasingly forced to defend deep and wait for rare transitions forward.
Paderborn's dominance confirmed by the numbers
The statistical picture of the match further shows how much Paderborn changed the course of the game after the initial shock. According to the official statistics on Bundesliga.com, the home side finished the match with 64 percent possession, while Wolfsburg had 36 percent. Paderborn took 36 shots, 10 of them on target, while Wolfsburg remained on only two attempts, one off target and one on target. The difference in corners was especially pronounced: the home side took 18, and the visiting team only one. The expected goals figure was also convincingly on Paderborn's side, with Bundesliga.com assigning them an xGoals value of 3.48, while Wolfsburg remained at 0.17.
Such indicators do not mean that the match was simple for the home side, but they explain why Paderborn's pressure in the closing stages of regular time and in extra time felt increasingly powerful. The home team did not settle for the equaliser, but kept trying to stretch the play and look for space between Wolfsburg's defensive lines. In the second half, play still took place mainly toward the visitors' goal, and according to SC Paderborn's report, Stefano Marino had a great headed chance, Sebastian Klaas hit the frame of the goal, while Sven Michel was also very close to scoring in stoppage time. Wolfsburg goalkeeper Kamil Grabara kept the visitors in the game on several occasions, but the overall pressure from the home side eventually became too great.
Curda delivered the decision in extra time
As there was no winner after 90 minutes, the match went into extra time. According to Bundesliga.com's explanation of the play-off format, after an aggregate draw following two matches, an additional 30 minutes are played, and the away-goals rule no longer applies. Such a format gave Paderborn more time to capitalise on their numerical advantage and dominance on the pitch. Wolfsburg had to find a way back into the match in extra time, but with one player fewer they had less and less strength for organised attacks. The home team continued to attack and patiently waited for the moment when enough space would open up.
The decisive moment came in the first period of extra time. According to SC Paderborn's report, Sven Michel crossed the ball from the left side, and Laurin Curda reacted best in front of goal and scored for 2:1. Bundesliga.com marked that goal as the moment that opened the door to the Bundesliga, because after it Wolfsburg had to score in order to force the battle to continue. In the very final stages, the visitors tried with long balls and crosses, but Paderborn managed to preserve the lead. In the 120th minute, goalkeeper Dennis Seimen stopped a dangerous headed attempt, and then the team withstood the final pressure and awaited Felix Zwayer's final whistle.
Return to the Bundesliga for the third time in club history
This victory has broader significance than the result itself. According to the dpa agency report, with this success Paderborn secured a third entry into the Bundesliga, after promotions in 2014 and 2019. The club, which on both previous occasions did not remain long in the top tier, now gets a new opportunity for stabilisation among the elite of German football. Particularly important is the way the return was secured: not through a routine outcome, but through a two-legged tie against a Bundesliga opponent and a match in which the team had to react after conceding early. Such a scenario further enhances the symbolism of the victory, because Paderborn reached the goal through a combination of patience, physical readiness and continuous pressure.
For coach Ralf Kettemann, this is a result that confirms the team's stability at the most important moment of the season. Paderborn played 0:0 in the first match in Wolfsburg and kept realistic chances alive, and in the return leg, in front of a full stadium, made use of home advantage. According to the club's official report, the Home Deluxe Arena was sold out with 15,000 spectators, creating an atmosphere that carried the team even after an unfavourable opening. The home fans continued to support the players even after Pejčinović's goal, and the club states that more than 4,000 fans welcomed the team bus before the match. In such surroundings, Paderborn played a match that will long be remembered as one of the club's key evenings.
Wolfsburg pays the price for a missed opportunity
For Wolfsburg, the outcome in Paderborn is the end of a very difficult season. According to VfL Wolfsburg's official preview before the two-legged tie, the club entered the relegation play-off fighting for the final place in the Bundesliga for the 2026/2027 season, and the decision, after the first goalless encounter, came in Paderborn. The visitors had a perfect start in the return leg because they took the lead already in the third minute, but Joakim Mæhle's early sending-off changed everything. Dieter Hecking's team had to play with one player fewer for almost the entire match, and after Bilbija's equaliser it struggled to find a way to keep the ball and move the game away from its own penalty area. The statistics for shots and corners show how much pressure Wolfsburg was under.
According to the dpa report, Wolfsburg only reached the chance to save its status through additional matches at the very end of the Bundesliga season. In Paderborn, however, it did not manage to escape from a situation marked by an early red card, a lack of attacking presence and the increasingly pronounced dominance of the home side. Although the individual quality in Wolfsburg's squad was significant, the match showed how much discipline, concentration and the ability to respond to moments of crisis decide relegation duels. For the club from Lower Saxony, a demanding analysis of the season and preparation for life in a lower tier now follow, while relegation after such an outcome will have sporting, organisational and financial consequences.
Fan evening and police balance sheet
Paderborn's victory triggered a huge celebration in the stadium and the city. According to the Paderborn police statement, already during the afternoon an increased number of fans was recorded in the city centre, and venues that organised public viewing were very well attended. The police state that at around 5 p.m. a fan procession of approximately 4,000 Paderborn supporters set off toward the Home Deluxe Arena and that it passed peacefully. After the end of the match, according to the same statement, around 9,000 fans entered the pitch in a controlled manner to celebrate with the team. The police announced that there were individual provocations between groups of Paderborn and Wolfsburg fans, but that a direct clash was prevented.
The police report also states that there was prohibited ignition of pyrotechnics, including the period before the start of the match and the later celebration in the city. According to the police, several hundred people gathered spontaneously in the centre of Paderborn after the match, especially in the Westerntor area, which caused the intersection to be temporarily closed. Investigations were launched over pyrotechnics, and the police also reported two people detained in the context of separate incidents, among other things because of a threat and resistance to officers. Despite these incidents, the police described their initial balance sheet as predominantly positive, which is important in the context of the large number of people in the stadium and in the city after such an emotional match.
A match that changes plans for the 2026/2027 season
Paderborn's 2:1 victory against Wolfsburg is therefore not only an attractive result against a Bundesliga opponent, but a sporting event that directly changes the composition of the German Bundesliga for the 2026/2027 season. The club from Paderborn returns to the top tier after a dramatic two-legged tie, while Wolfsburg leaves the elite after defeat in a match in which it lost its balance too early. Across the two matches, Paderborn did not lose once, and in the decisive encounter it showed that it can dominate even against an opponent from a higher tier. The response after Pejčinović's goal is especially remembered, because instead of panic the home side gradually took control of the pitch and created a huge number of chances. Bilbija's goal brought the match back into balance, and Curda in extra time concluded an evening that will remain recorded in Paderborn as historic.
Sources:
- SC Paderborn 07 – official report on the 2:1 victory against VfL Wolfsburg, goalscorers, line-ups, spectators and the course of the match (link)
- Bundesliga.com / DFL – official live ticker of the relegation return leg, match record, goalscorers, sending-off, stadium and final course of the match (link)
- Bundesliga.com / DFL – official match statistics SC Paderborn 07 - VfL Wolfsburg, including possession, shots, corners and xGoals (link)
- VfL Wolfsburg – official preview of the relegation two-legged tie and context of the fight for the final place in the Bundesliga 2026/2027 (link)
- dpa / WELT – agency report on Wolfsburg's relegation and Paderborn's third entry into the Bundesliga (link)
- Polizei Paderborn / Presseportal – police balance sheet after the match, fan procession, celebration, pyrotechnics and security events (link)