Matchday 1 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga is done. Bayern beat Stuttgart 5-1 — business as usual, with Ismael Saibari setting up two goals off the bench on his debut, and Musiala still absent while his return is carefully managed following two preseason collapses linked to a neurological issue, not just heat exhaustion as first reported.

The real story: SV Elversberg, newly promoted, population 13,000, beat Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 in their first ever Bundesliga match. 2-0 up inside 9 minutes. Cole Campbell — the ex-Dortmund winger we flagged as their smart summer signing back in July — scored the second. Leverkusen's captain and goalkeeper both admitted their team was disorganized in the first match of their third head coach in a year.

Schalke's long-awaited Bundesliga return went badly — 3-0 away at Augsburg, down to 10 men after a 62nd-minute red card. Edin Džeko made his Bundesliga comeback after 5,734 days away. One road defeat doesn't undo a mid-table prediction — the real test is next week at home against Union Berlin.

Also: RB Leipzig 3-0 Gladbach, a winning debut for new coach Martín Demichelis. Köln 3-2 Hoffenheim, with Said El Mala — who nearly left for Dortmund this summer — on the scoresheet. Union Berlin 3-3 Frankfurt in a six-goal thriller. Dortmund 2-0 Hamburg overshadowed by a serious knee injury worry for Konstantelias. Mainz 0-0 Paderborn. Freiburg 4-1 Werder Bremen.

Next weekend: Schalke host Bayern, Leverkusen host Union Berlin in the match that tells us if their opening-day collapse was a blip.