Bundesliga

General information

Bundesliga: Victory at Last

Bundesliga took a while to form. With so much tension in the country and splitting of East and West Germany throughout most of its formation, the league didn’t come into existence until the end of the 20th century. Struggling to keep players in the country with strict and tense laws, the league continued to function, and coped with the challenges very well indeed, earning a top spot along many notable contenders in the world of football today.

Throughout Bundesliga’s stint as a league, it has been through several changes in rules, regulations, and format, eventually leading to its modern outlook and functioning. Let’s take a brief look into their history, the way of playing, and the reward systems of this ever-surviving and ever-rising football organization.

Bundesliga has also been making headline news for its innovative and futuristic ways of running, holding drone practices, and virtual security checks for players and coaches. In combination with successful and showstopping players, the league is sure to produce big news and big winnings in the seasons to come.

History

A Rocky History of Bundesliga: East v West

At the time when several giant leagues were forming, Bundesliga was just an amateur league, with teams separated by region playing against one another near their locations. With the rise of the game’s popularity in the neighboring countries, Germany began to grow anxious, as its top players started flying off the shelves, bought up by growing leagues.

This situation, however, was quickly managed, with Bundesliga’s strength far surpassing expectations. Their defeat of top contenders in the World Cup of 1962 sparked talks of formation, bringing the idea to light and finally playing their first matches in the 1963/64 season.

The league was initially split in 2, with East and West leagues playing separately due to political reasons. These 2 leagues would finally be able to join after the de-escalation of tensions upon the Reunification of Germany. Since that time, there have been several adaptions and changes to the form of tallying points, rules, and regulations that would finally lead to the league’s successful run today.

The league’s logo has also gone through some changes. Initially, Bundesliga had no official visuals. It wasn’t until 1996 that the association was given a logo tweaked in 2010, acquiring a different shape with the same icon. Later, there would be an attempt to bring the design up to date, changing the angles to make a cleaner and crisper modern look.

The league also faced the threat of large companies buying out the majority of seats at the matches to create a surge in ticket prices. This situation was addressed by introducing the 50+1 Rule, a rule that keeps private investors from buying up seats, leaving them for true fans and supporters of the league.

Format and rules

Ways and Rules of the Game

Adapting to the ways of other top contenders, since 1996, the league has changed its points system to adopt the one used throughout most of the world, with 3 points per win, 1 per draw per team, and 0 for losses.

They play in a standard round-robin format, where each of the 18 teams within the league will play with each other 2 times, giving each a chance to score an exciting victory at their home or host stadium.

Once all of the pints are tallied, the top 4 scoring teams make their way to the UEFA Champions League. An equal total of points between 2 teams is further settled by either tallying goal differences, goal scores, or comparison of their stats. Bayern Munich holds the largest number of championships won, at 28 for a total of 29 total national wins.

When it comes to foreign players, the league has no limit on the number that they can incorporate into a team. The only agreement is that a minimum 12 German-born players are contracted. A later law made it a bit stricter, requiring 8 to 9 players to come from German academies that have prepped future power players.

Trophies and awards

Reward System and Trophies

Germany implemented an honors system that rewards teams based on their performance. Each successful championship scores teams gold stars to be displayed on their uniforms after their first 5 are won. Stars are added every 10 championships that teams won after that.

There was a small incident that involved German authorities as leagues fought for their right to display gold stars, changing the form into 1 single star with the total amount of championships won presented on it.

From 1949 forward, the Meisterschale or Salatschussel “salad bowl”, a silver bowl-shaped trophy, has been given out to German champions. The trophy replaced a previous version that was in use since 1903, but was lost during World World II and have resurfacecd only after the German Reunification.

Bundesliga used to allow multiple teams to hold a championship title, so there are several copies of the trophy floating around. Today, Bayern Munich, the league’s top performer for the last decade, is known as the trophy’s honorable holder.