An unforgettable kung fu move, a legendary shot off the post or crucial title race deciders - this fixture always throws up some very special stories! It's all happening again on Saturday (18:30 CET): FC Bayern travel to Borussia Dortmund for a Bundesliga top-of-the-table clash. fcbayern.com takes a look back at the most spectacular Bundesliga moments from Der Klassiker.
18/10/2025: Finally a Klassiker win again
A big statement in the Klassiker! After three games without a win over their arch-rivals, Bayern defeated Borussia Dortmund 2-1 in October 2025 in the current campaign. That saw the Reds equal the record start in German professional footbal with an 11th win in their 11th game of the season – set by none other than BVB in 2015/16.
Vincent Kompany’s side dominated from the off at the Allianz Arena, with Harry Kane heading them into a deserved lead from a Joshua Kimmich corner and scoring for the seventh competitive match in a row – already his 22nd goal of the campaign and the 400th of his club career. Dortmund came out with more intent after the break but Michael Olise poked in the second goal after good work from Luis Díaz. Julian Brandt reduced the deficit but Bayern grittily saw out the victory – including a Kane tackle in stoppage time. The reward: 21 points, a seven-point lead over Dortmund and a record start, which underlined the impressive show of strength.
04/11/2023: Kane's dream Klassiker debut
It couldn't have gone any better: In his first ever Klassiker, striker Harry Kane was the difference maker. The England captain scored a hat-trick against Dortmund in the first encounter of the 2023/24 season, almost single-handedly firing Bayern to a 4-0 win. Before the striker opened his goal-fest, Dayot Upamecano had put the Reds ahead early in the match. The centre-back headed a corner from Leroy Sané into the net (4th minute). From then on, it was all about Kane. The forward scored three times (9', 72', 90'+3). Bayern fans will be hoping for another Kane masterclass against BVB on Saturday evening.
23/04/2022: Celebrations after clinching the title against BVB
Matchday 31 of the 2021/22 season threw up a very special scenario. Bayern were ten points ahead of second-placed Borussia Dortmund in first place in the Bundesliga and hosted BVB at the Allianz Arena. A home win would secure the team's tenth consecutive title. And the Reds delivered! After a strong first half, FCB went into the break leading 2-0 thanks to goals from Serge Gnabry and Robert Lewandowski. Even when Emre Can pulled one back it didn't rattle Bayern. Jamal Musiala scored the final goal of the match to make it 3-1 and the title celebrations could begin!
06/04/2019: FCB gala to win the title
This game was arguably the crucial step in defending the title last season. On 6 April 2019, FC Bayern hosted Borussia on Matchday 28 at the Allianz Arena and delivered an incredible performance. The Munich team dominated the league leaders from the start, led 4-0 at the break and ultimately celebrated a deserved 5-0 victory. FCB overtook BVB in the table, moved ahead on goal difference and held this lead until the end of the season.
23/11/2013: Götze's return in red
The first Bundesliga match between Bayern and Dortmund after their clash in the Champions League final was very special for one player in particular: Mario Götze had signed for Bayern from Borussia just a few months earlier and faced his former club for the first time. After some hostility from the BVB fans, the attacker chose to warm up in the tunnel before his substitution, but this did not detract from his performance. The future world champion was only on the pitch for ten minutes, but he broke the deadlock, giving FCB a 1-0 lead (66). Arjen Robben (85) and Thomas Müller (87) also contributed to the 3-0 victory for the record champions shortly before the end.
11/04/2012: Setback in the title race
This defeat hurt: A win at direct rivals Dortmund would have returned FC Bayern to first place in the dramatic 2011/12 title race - but it didn’t go their way. With Dortmund leading 1-0, Arjen Robben missed a penalty just before the end of the game, and to make matters worse he then faced taunts from opponent Neven Subotić. BVB went six points clear at the top of the table and Bayern finished in second place. But Robben would not be the legend he is today if he hadn’t picked himself up after this low blow and returned the favour to Subotić and Co - at Wembley in 2013.
12/09/2009: Ribery's celebratory leap onto van Gaal
A thunderbolt strike, then a special celebration: When Bayern won 5-1 in Dortmund early in the 2009/10 season, Franck Ribéry put to bed any rumours of poor relations with the new FCB coach Louis van Gaal. After the Frenchman buried a free kick in the corner to score Bayern’s third (65), he ran straight to the sidelines and jumped into the arms of the Dutch coach. "Franck showed he loves his coach," said van Gaal later.
09/11/2002: BVB giant Koller keeps clean sheet
On Matchday 12 in 2002/03, eventual champions FC Bayern defeated defending champions Dortmund 2-1 in the top-of-the-table clash. Despite BVB’s defeat, the man of the match wore black and yellow - at least for part of the game. Towering giant Jan Koller scored for the visitors in the 7th minute. When goalkeeper Jens Lehmann was sent off in the 67th minute, the Czech had to don the goalkeeper jersey as Borussia had used all of their substitutions. Koller kept a clean sheet and did his job so well he was in the "Kicker" team of the day - as a goalkeeper.
07/04/2001: A flurry of cards and Kahn's fist of celebration
It was a true football battle with an unforgettable ending: On Matchday 28 in 2000/01, leaders FC Bayern (49 points) travelled to second place Dortmund (48) and fought out a highly competitive match. Referee Hartmut Strampe showed ten yellow cards, one second yellow and two straight reds, the most ever in a single Bundesliga game. With goals from Roque Santa Cruz (6) and Fredi Bobic (52) the final score was 1-1. A late free kick by Tomáš Rosický rebounded directly off the inside of the post into the arms of Oliver Kahn, who would have been beaten. The Munich side kept BVB at bay and secured the title at the end of the season.
03/04/1999: 'Kung-Fu-Kahn' leads comeback
Oliver Kahn showed the level of emotion in the rivalry between Bayern and Dortmund in April 1999. In a 2-2 draw at the Westfalenstadion, the 'Titan' caused a sensation before half-time when he jumped towards the approaching Stephane Chapuisat with an outstretched leg. However, as there was no contact and the offside flag had already gone up, referee Bernd Heynemann saw no reason to warn Kahn. For Bayern, who were 0-2 behind by then, it was the spark to catch up: they equalised after the break through Alexander Zickler (58) and Carsten Jancker (63), then Kahn saved a 77th minute penalty from Lars Ricken to rescue a point.
09/08/1986: Mill's legendary miss
After the 2-2 draw between Bayern and Dortmund on Matchday 1 in 1986/87, Udo Lattek thought back to the game-deciding scene at the post-match press conference: "I'm thinking about what bonus I should give him - I don't know whether he’ll accept it,” said the then FCB coach about Dortmund's Frank Mill, whose legendary miss will forever be enshrined in Bundesliga history. After the attacker got past Bayern goalkeeper Jean-Marie Pfaff, he hit the post instead of finding the empty net - to this day perhaps the most famous howler in Germany's top league.
27/11/1971: Bayern celebrate biggest Bundesliga win
In the 1971/72 season, Bayern thrashed BVB 11-1 at the then Grünwalder Straße stadium. Gerd Müller (4), “Bulle” Roth, Uli Hoeneß (both 2), Franz Beckenbauer, Wilhelm Hoffmann and Paul Breitner scored the goals for the hosts, with Dieter Weinkauff netting Dortmund’s consolation goal in the second half. The match gave a clear hint of where the two teams were heading that year: Bayern finished as champions, whereas BVB were relegated from the German top flight for the only time in their history.
Topics of this article