Nearly four years after Eintracht Frankfurt lifted the Europa League trophy, another Bundesliga side is poised to make history. SC Freiburg, under second-year coach Julian Schuster, have punched their ticket to the 2025/26 Europa League Final in Istanbul—and with it, a chance to claim a Champions League spot for the first time in club history.

It wasn’t easy. Freiburg entered the second leg trailing 2-1 after a tough away defeat in Braga, and an early goalkeeping error from Noah Atubolu added to the tension. But in front of a roaring capacity crowd at Europa Park Stadion, the Schwarzwaldverein delivered a commanding 3-1 home win, advancing 4-3 on aggregate. On a night where nearly every player stepped up, it was a performance for the ages.

From the opening whistle, Freiburg came out with intent. Inspired by stunning pre-match choreography from their fans, Schuster’s men pressed high and threw themselves into every midfield battle. The early exchanges were physical, with both teams testing the limits of referee Davide Massa. But in the 6th minute, Massa didn’t hesitate: Ivorian attacker Mario Dorgeles brought down Freiburg’s Jan-Niklas Beste just outside the box, and the red card came out—denying a clear goal-scoring opportunity, and leaving Braga with ten men.

From there, the match became one-sided. Freiburg poured forward, with Beste and Lukas Kübler causing havoc down the right flank. Kübler looked dangerous from open play but eventually broke the deadlock in the 19th minute from a chaotic set piece. A Vincenzo Grifo corner wasn’t cleared cleanly; Kübler gathered the ball, drove toward goal, and saw his floppy shot deflect off Braga’s Jean-Baptiste Gorby before nestling into the net. It wasn’t pretty, but it was 1-0.

Freiburg’s Swiss star doubled the lead in the 41st minute with a moment of pure class, flinging open the door to Istanbul. The Bundesliga dream is alive—and this time, it’s wearing black and red.