Bayern Munich's Harry Kane has scored in each stage of this season's DFB Cup. - © IMAGO/Marco Steinbrenner/DeFodi Images

bundesliga

Bayern Munich edge out Union Berlin in five-goal thriller to reach DFB Cup quarter-finals

02.12.2025

Bayern Munich edged a five-goal thriller against Union Berlin to reach the 2025/26 DFB Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday.

Union Berlin 2-3 Bayern Munich
Goals: 0-1 Ansah o.g. 12' 0-2 Kane 24' 1-2 Querfeld (pen.) 40' 1-3 Leite o.g. 45'+4 2-3 Querfeld (pen.) 56'

It was an eventful opening 45 minutes with chances at both ends in the opening exchanges through Michael Olise and Tom Rothe. However, it was Bayern who took the lead after 12 minutes when Joshua Kimmich's corner was turned in by Ilyas Ansah for an unfortunate own goal.

Bayern doubled their lead midway through the first half when Harry Kane headed in another Kimmich corner, before Union were given a lifeline when Leopold Querfeld fired in from the penalty spot.

Bayern restored their two-goal advantage on the stroke of half-time via another own goal, this time Diogo Leite inadvertently redirecting an Olise free-kick into his own net.

Leopold Querfeld's double from the spot wasn't enough for Union Berlin. - IMAGO/Marco Steinbrenner/DeFodi Images

Union came out for the second half with renewed energy and were rewarded when referee Martin Petersen pointed to the spot for Kane's foul on Leite. Oozing composure, Querfeld scored his second from the spot, calmly slotting the ball beyond Neuer.

Luis Díaz had an excellent opportunity to put the tie beyond doubt but the Colombian's effort was cleared off the line by Leite. As Union pressed for an equaliser, chances came through Ansah and Querfeld but an equaliser eluded them as Vincent Kompany's Bayern booked their place in the next round.

As it happened!

2 - 3

(1 - 3)

Union

FINAL

Bayern

DFB Pokal
Round of 16 Round of 16 Stadion An der Alten Försterei

Full-time: Union 2-3 Bayern

Bayern book their place in the next round but Kompany's side had to work to their absolute best to overcome a hungry Union side that took the game to the visitors. The hosts responded well after going 2-0 and 3-1 down with penalties from Querfeld, but it's Bayern who advance after own goals from Ansah and Leite either side of Kane's header.

Full-time

90'

+ 3

Chance!

Skarke directs his header towards goal but is unable to generate any kind of power, allowing Neuer to collect with ease.

90'

+ 2

Yellow card

Livan Burcu

90'

+ 1

Yellow card

Manuel Neuer

90'

+ 1

Added time

The fourth official has signalled an additional six minutes. Can Union find an equaliser?

88'

Substitution

Stanley Nsoki

Tom Rothe

87'

Yellow card

Aljoscha Kemlein

86'

Substitution

Hiroki Ito

Konrad Laimer

86'

Almost a hat-trick!

What a moment that would have been! Union defender Querfeld rises high, but his header flashes just wide of Neuer's post.

84'

Double change

Baumgart makes a double attacking change as Union continue to look for a leveller.

84'

Substitution

Tim Skarke

Wooyeong Jeong

84'

Substitution

Livan Burcu

András Schäfer

83'

Union in search of equaliser

Haberer does well to get past Díaz down Union's right, firing a dangerous cross towards the penalty spot, but it's cleared by Bayern.

82'

Upamecano booked

The Frenchman halts a Union counter-attack, and enters the referee's notebook. Kompany calls for calm on the touchline.

82'

Yellow card

Dayot Upamecano

77'

Neuer saves

We're straight down the other side. This time, it's Ansah who curls the ball towards goal but it's at a comfortable height for Neuer, who parries the ball clear.

76'

Díaz offside!

Gnabry finds Díaz, who places the ball in the back of the net, but the Colombian had strayed offside.

74'

Off the line!

Gnabry puts Díaz through on goal and he goes one-on-one with Rønnow. The Dane gets an important touch, which takes the momentum out of the ball, allowing Leite to clear it off the line.

73'

Substitution

Serge Gnabry

Lennart Karl

71'

Over!

It's all Union at the moment. Bayern are camped deep inside their own penalty area, allowing Jeong to cut inside from the right before the Union attacker fires his left footed effort over the crossbar. Union are taking the game to Bayern here.

70'

Chance!

Schäfer has an excellent opportunity to equalise for Union, but his low driven effort from inside the area is met by an equally superb save from Neuer.

Can they find an equaliser?

Union have responded well, but will they manage to pull level?

62'

What a save!

As Bayern look to restore their two goal cushion, Kane cuts inside from the left, driving a low effort towards Rønnow's goal from just outside of the area, but the Dane is alert to pull off an excellent save, turning Kane's effort around the post.

60'

Taking the game to Bayern

Union are up for this! Jeong threads a ball through to Ansah in a 2v1 situation, but the forward is unable to bring the ball under control just outside Bayern's penalty area.

56'

Leopold Querfeld

GOAL!

2:3

Penalty

54'

Yellow card

Vincent Kompany

54'

Yellow card

Harry Kane

53'

Penalty!

Taker:

Leopold Querfeld

53'

Penalty!

It's another penalty for the hosts after Kane caught Leite in the face while attempting to clear the ball.

48'

Forced change

Pavlović can't continue, and is replaced by Goretzka.

48'

Substitution

Leon Goretzka

Aleksandar Pavlović

46'

Injury

Pavlović has gone down and is receiving treatment.

46'

We are under way!

Union get the ball rolling, with both teams remaining unchanged.

Kick-off!

Half-time: Union 1-3 Bayern

Union haven't been without their chances, but it's the visitors who hold a comfortable lead. Kimmich's set-piece delivery has been on point, with both of Bayern's first two goals coming from corners, before Querfeld halved Bayern's deficit to one from the spot after Tah handled the ball. Leite's own goal from an Olise free-kick restored Bayern's two-goal cushion.

Half-time

45'

+ 4

Three for Bayern!

After Union pressure, it's Bayern who add another. Olise, who won a free-kick, delivers a dangerous ball towards the far post. Leite tries to clear the ball but sends it over Rønnow.

45'

+ 4

Diogo Leite

OWN GOAL!

1:3

45'

+ 2

Wide!

The hosts are still with the better chances. This time, a free-kick is whipped in which is met by Leite, but it's just wide of Neuer's goal.

45'

+ 1

Added time

The fourth official has signalled three additional minutes.

45'

Wasteful

Ansah passes the ball to Rothe, who is seeing a lot of the ball on the left. This time though, his cross lands on the roof of Neuer's net.

43'

Showing fight

That goal has given Union momentum. They're playing with a certain energy now as they chase an equaliser before the break.

Union reduce the deficit

After a brief VAR review, Tah was judged to have handled the ball in the area. Querfeld makes no mistake in stepping up and firing the ball into the bottom corner.

40'

Leopold Querfeld

GOAL!

1:2

Penalty

It's that man again

Kane has scored in every round of this season's DFB Cup.

32'

Promising

Karl is oozing confidence. Unfortunately after working the space, this time his pass is under-hit.

30'

Relentless

Bayern are hungry for more, even when they're not in possession. The visitors aren't letting up when it comes to pressing the ball.

25'

Over

Union continue to look for a response and it's Kemlein again who shoots from range but just like his first effort, the ball sails over. Bayern are doing a good job at keeping the hosts away from their goal.

Bayern double their lead!

Another Bayern corner, and it's the same result. Kimmich again whips the ball into a dangerous area, and it's met by, Kane who heads the ball into the far corner.

24'

Harry Kane

GOAL!

0:2

22'

From distance

Kemlein has a go from range, but it sails over.

21'

Turning up the pressure

As Bayern look to double their lead, it's Olise who's again at the heart of the move. He tries his luck but it doesn't trouble Rønnow in the Union goal.

14'

Can Union respond?

The hosts look for a quick reply through Doekhi, who scored twice in their previous meeting and heads Rothe's cross into the hands of Neuer.

12'

Bayern lead!

It's unfortunate for the hosts as Kimmich's corner hits Ansah on the thigh and deflects into the back of his own net.

12'

Ilyas Ansah

OWN GOAL!

0:1

10'

Action at both ends

Olise is again proving the dangerman for the visitors. The Frenchman lays the ball off to Karl, who shoots first time but it's blocked by Rothe.

Chance for Union!

It's their first of the game. After a throw-in, Pavlović's header falls to Rothe, who volleys it towards Neuer's goal but it's blocked by Laimer, who deflects the ball out for a corner, which is then cleared by Kane.

Union confident

After their 2-2 draw against Bayern in November, Union know they can trouble Bayern, and they're confident here, pressing the visitors in their build-up.

Early chance!

Bayern almost get off to the best possible start. Olise breaks through on the right and cuts inside before trying his luck from the edge of the penalty area, but it's saved by Rønnow.

We are off!

Bayern get the ball rolling!

Kick-off!

5:01

Neuer still setting the goalie standard

More on those teams

Kompany makes three changes to the team that beat St. Pauli: Upamecano, Stanišić and Olise come in for Kim, Bischof and Guerreiro. There's also three changes for Union: Trimmel and Köhn are benched with Schäfer and Rothe returning. Haberer replaces Oliver Burke in attack.

Union starting line-up

Rønnow - Doekhi, Querfeld, Leite - Schäfer, Khedira, Kemlein, Rothe - Haberer, Jeong - Ansah

Union subs

Raab, Burcu, Juranovic, Skarke, Ljubicic, Trimmel, Král, Nsoki, Köhn

Bayern starting line-up

Neuer - Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanišić - Kimmich, Pavlović - Olise, Karl, Díaz - Kane

Bayern subs

Urbig, Kim, Gnabry, Goretzka, Jackson, Bischof, Ito, Guerreiro, Boey

A cup first

These two sides have never met in the DFB Cup, with all 13 of their meetings to date coming in the Bundesliga. Union are yet to beat them, but they have registered five draws against Bayern within those 13 previous meetings.

Steffen Baumgart on facing Bayern

"We have a big game to look forward to - and we want to treat it as such. We need to keep our chins up [after Saturday’s defeat to Heidenheim] to give ourselves the best possible chance of reaching the next round. It’s a big challenge at home, in front of a sell-out crowd. It’s nice to have another opportunity to face the best side in Germany - and one of the best teams in Europe, in my opinion."

Vincent Kompany on facing Union

"Of course I want to return to Berlin [for the final]. You can always say you want to win everything - but it takes work and attitude. If we show tomorrow how hungry we are for the final, then we have a good chance. We want to put in a good performance and win. We're prepared for anything - for 90 minutes or another 30."

Head-to-head

Union are still waiting for their first win against Bayern - they came close in that recent 2-2 draw. However, they have managed five draws in their 13 meetings with the record champions, although the Bavarians have won eight.

Early Union team news

Robert Skov is out as he continues his recovery from a calf issue. Andrik Markgraf and Dmytro Bogdanov are also sidelined, but other than that, head coach Steffen Baumgart has a full squad at his disposal.

Early Bayern team news

Jamal Musiala and Alphonso Davies are currently the only two absentees for Bayern. Dayot Upamecano was not in the matchday squad against Pauli, but it has been confirmed that he was only rested and is not carrying an injury.

Bayern form

Bayern's campaign has been close to perfect. They started the season with 16 wins in all competitions - a European top-five league record - before drawing against Union in the league. Otherwise, the 3-1 defeat against Arsenal in the UEFA Champions League is the only game they have lost this term.

Union form

Before the weekend, Union had lost just one of their last six games in all competitions. They currently sit comfortably in mid-table after 12 matchdays, having won four games so far.

2:03

Watch: Union Berlin 2-2 Bayern Munich - previous meeting

Another late goal, this time from Harry Kane, denied Union all three points when they hosted the reigning champions before the international break.

2:03

Watch: Bayern Munich 3-1 St. Pauli - highlights

Bayern were pushed all the way by Pauli, but injury-time goals from Luis Díaz and Nicolas Jackson secured an 11th Bundesliga win in 12 for Bayern.

2:03

Watch: Union Berlin 1-2 Heidenheim - highlights

Despite being 1-0 up in the 90th minute, Union still emerged empty-handed against Heidenheim at the weekend as they conceded twice late on.

Union - the story so far

Union began their cup campaign with a straightforward 5-0 away win at fourth-tier FC Gütersloh. In the second round, they came up against last year's finalists Arminia Bielefeld, winning 2-1 after extra time.

Bayern - the story so far

Bayern began their DFB Cup campaign a week and a half after the rest of the competition due to their Franz Beckenbauer Supercup commitments. In the first round of the competition, the Bundesliga champions travelled to third division Wehen Wiesbaden, where they only narrowly overcame their opponents thanks to a 94th-minute winner from Harry Kane. In contrast, the second round proved far easier as Bayern won 4-1 away at Cologne.

Welcome!

Welcome and thank you for joining us for build-up and live coverage of the DFB Cup Round of 16 match between Union Berlin and Bayern Munich. The game is scheduled to kick off at 8:45 p.m. CET on Wednesday.