Leipzig Wins the DFB-Pokal for the First Time in History

Leipzig has been crowned the DFB-Pokal champion for the first time in its history after defeating Freiburg in the final on Saturday, winning 4-2 on penalties after finishing the original and extra time at 1-1. Freiburg opened the scoring in the 19th minute through Maximilian Eggestein. Leipzig was dealt a blow in the 57th minute with the red card of player Marcel Halstenberg, forcing them to complete the match with ten players. Despite the numerical disadvantage, Leipzig managed to equalize through their star French player Christopher Nkunku in the 76th minute. The original time ended in a 1-1 draw, leading both teams to extra time, which did not produce any goals, resulting in a penalty shootout that favored Leipzig 4-2. Leipzig had previously reached the DFB-Pokal final twice in 2019 and 2021 but failed to secure the title against Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund respectively, before finally claiming the trophy in their third final today. Meanwhile, Freiburg failed to win the DFB-Pokal in their first-ever appearance in the final of the competition.