FC Bayern Women visit Carl Zeiss Jena in first midweek fixture of 2026

There’s little time for FC Bayern Women to catch their breath now. After the convincing 4-1 win away to Freiburg last Friday, the Munich girls visit FC Carl Zeiss Jena on Wednesday evening in their rearranged Matchday 16 fixture in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga. The game, originally due to take place on Friday 30 January, was postponed because of the weather. Kick-off at the ad hoc Arena im Ernst-Abbe-Sportfeld is at 18:00 CET.

Latest news from Bayern

After the victory in the Breisgau, Pernille Harder left the Dreisamstadion with a big smile on her face. Two goals – the second her 100th in the Bundesliga – for the Dane, who once again set the pace on the night. Edna Imade crowned her Bundesliga debut with her first goal in a Bayern shirt, while Linda Dallmann rounded off the scoring. The defending double winners thus maintain a healthy lead at the top of the Bundesliga table, where Wolfsburg and Hoffenheim are their nearest challengers in second and third place.

José Barcala’s side now travel to Jena for their rearranged Matchday 16 clash with plenty of confidence. Forty-six points from 16 games, 61 goals scored and five conceded – the numbers tell a clear story. And yet one fact remains: Jena are the only side in the league to have taken points from Bayern this season, after holding the champions to a goalless draw in the reverse fixture in Munich. That should be put right in Thurinigia, ideally with the 16th win of the campaign.

📊 The facts on the away match at Jena: 

Opponents: Carl Zeiss Jena 

Carl Zeiss Jena only played their first competitive game of the year last Sunday, winning 2-1 at Union Berlin thanks to a last-minute goal from Olivia Alcaide.

Overall, though, this season has gone against expectations for Florian Kästner’s side. The victory in Berlin was only their second in 15 league games, while they’ve drawn three times and been defeated in 10 meetings. With nine points, the Jena club are currently bottom of the Bundesliga, albeit with two games in hand on their rivals.

History is clearly on Bayern’s side: the two teams have met 27 times to date in the Bundesliga, with FCB coming out on top on 22 occasions and five meetings ending all square. The signs seem to point one way, yet the 0-0 draw earlier this season urges caution.

Team news

Barcala remains without long-term absentees Sarah Zadrazil and Lena Oberdorf (both cruciate ligament). Klara Bühl won’t be risked after picking up a knock against Freiburg, while Alara Şehitler has also been ruled out after sustaining an injury in training.

Barcala: ‘Be efficient’

José Barcala: “We weren’t good in our positional play in the reverse fixture, and Jena were very well organised and compact. We learned a lot from that. Jena are good at defending the penalty box and long balls, we’re prepared for that. We need to play calmly now and be patient, wait for the right moment and be efficient.”

🏟️✨ FC Bayern Women will play their Champions League quarter-final on the big stage: