Time to get started in earnest! FC Bayern play their first competitive match of the new season this Friday (20:45 CEST). The German record champions travel to newly-promoted Bundesliga 2 side SSV Ulm 1846 in the first round of the DFB Cup - a clash with real rarity value. fcbayern.com has put together all the key facts relating to the match for you.
Two wins against Ulm without conceding
The two teams have only met twice in professional football, in the 1999/2000 Bundesliga season, with Bayern winning both encounters. The German record champions won 1-0 away from home. The home game at the Olympiastadion was a more clear-cut affair, with FCB winning 4-0.
FCB with best record
In the recent past, Bayern have given nothing away when challenged in the first round of the DFB Cup. Since the 1995/96 season, the men from Munich have won all of their 28 first-round matches. That's a current record - and is encouraging for the upcoming clash.
Müller chasing a record
One player who played in 13 of these first-round matches was Thomas Müller, and Bayern can count on the 34-year-old attacking player's experience again this Friday. The Munich veteran will make his 66th DFB Cup appearance for FCB - only Charly Körbel (70 for Eintracht Frankfurt) and Manfred Kaltz (67 for Hamburger SV) have played in more DFB Cup matches for a single club. Müller scored his 34th goal in this competition in the 2-1 defeat at Saarbrücken last season, equalling Claudio Pizarro's tally. Only eight players have scored more times in the DFB Cup.
Kane set for cup debut?
Harry Kane, meanwhile, could feature in his first ever DFB Cup tie against SSV Ulm. The striker didn't make an appearance in the cup last season. He scored on his maiden games for FC Bayern in the Champions League and in the Bundesliga.
FCB coach Kompany set for competitive debut
The match in Ulm will be a special one for coach Vincent Kompany: The 38-year-old Belgian will be in the dugout for FC Bayern for the first time in a competitive match. Since promotion to the Bundesliga in 1965, only two FCB coaches have made their competitive debut in the DFB Cup, both of them with a win: Jürgen Klinsmann in 2008 (4-3 against Rot-Weiß Erfurt) and Louis van Gaal in 2009 (3-1 against SpVgg Neckarelz).
Ulm the cup giant-killers
SSV Ulm, who went straight into the second tier after just one term in the third divisiion following promotion from the Regionalliga the previous season, are back in the DFB Cup for the first time since the 2020/21 campaign. Back then, the Sparrows were knocked out in the first round after a 1-0 defeat to 1. FC Nürnberg. The Bundesliga 2 club's greatest cup success was reaching the quarter-finals in the 1981/82 season, where they lost 3-1 to VfL Bochum.
Since their relegation from the Bundesliga in 2000, however, Ulm have a positive record against top flight clubs in the DFB Cup: they've won three out of five ties, most recently as a fourth-division team in 2018/19 in the first round against Eintracht Frankfurt. However, Bayern intend to ensure there are no surprises on Friday. Kompany's side aim to build on the momentum from their successful friendlies and get the new season off to a winning start.
FCB won 3-0 in the last friendly against Tirol on Tuesday:
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