DFB-Pokal first round: Cologne and Wolfsburg open season against lower-division sides

Wagner accepts favourite's tag

Elsewhere in the first round, VfL Wolfsburg face a different kind of challenge. The Lower Saxony side travel to Berlin to take on VSG Altglienicke, a club from the fourth tier of German football. For Wolfsburg, the tie carries the familiar risk of an awkward afternoon against motivated opposition on a smaller stage, with the likes of Maximilian Arnold and Fabian Reese expected to feature.

VSG Altglienicke, based in the south-eastern Berlin district of the same name, have built a reputation as a competitive cup specialist in recent seasons. Their route to the first round typically includes lower-tier triumphs and the occasional scalp of a professional side, and the visit of a Bundesliga opponent represents the kind of occasion the club has historically savoured.

For Wolfsburg, the equation is straightforward on paper: reach the second round and avoid the kind of upset that has periodically punctuated German cup history. Managerial staff are expected to field a strong XI, though cup ties of this profile often force rotation as clubs balance domestic and continental commitments.

Wolfsburg face Altglienicke test

The DFB-Pokal first round is spread across the weekend, with the bulk of fixtures taking place on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Several other Bundesliga clubs begin their cup runs against amateur or semi-professional opposition, a structural feature of the competition that regularly produces shock results.

Cologne's players will be aware that an early exit would intensify scrutiny on Wagner just weeks into his tenure. The coach, however, has shown no appetite for that conversation in his pre-match remarks, instead projecting the confidence of a side that views the cup as a platform rather than a hazard.

Wolfsburg's players, including Arnold and the in-form Reese, will travel to Berlin with similar expectations. Squad depth, rather than motivation, is widely viewed as the deciding variable when Bundesliga sides meet opponents several tiers below them, and Wolfsburg will hope their bench proves telling if the tie turns tight late on.

Cup form as league springboard

Both clubs are scheduled to begin their Bundesliga campaigns in the days following these cup fixtures. A positive result in the DFB-Pokal would offer a useful springboard into the league season, while an early exit would leave either side scrambling for rhythm before domestic league action begins in earnest.

Coverage of both ties will be available via live tickers and broadcasts, with outlets including Kicker providing minute-by-minute updates from the various venues across the country.