Elversberg, a village with a population of just 13,000 and no train station, became the smallest in German league history to host a top-flight side this season. The minnows have not been awed by the bright lights, either. Elversberg have won two from two this season, including a 3-2 win over 2023-24 double winners Bayer Leverkusen to open their maiden top-flight campaign. Club technical director Josef Welzmueller credited hard work rather than wizardry for their achievement. "I know that it sounds like magic or like a fairytale," Welzmueller told AFP this month, "(but) we did it step by step, and it didn't feel like a fairytale, to be honest."Elversberg's home stadium usually has a capacity of just over 14,000, but is at 9,500 this campaign as it undergoes renovations to bring it to the Bundesliga minimum of 15,000. Bayern's 75,000-capacity Allianz Arena could fit Elversberg's entire population five times.Elversberg arrived in the Bundesliga after three promotions in five seasons, but faced plenty of setbacks along the way. The club come from Saarland, Germany's smallest non-city state, and are not bankrolled by a wealthy benefactor.
Elversberg shocked Bayer Leverkusen 3-2 in their first Bundesliga match. © Andreas Schlichter / AFP
