BERLIN (AP) — St. Pauli and Heidenheim were relegated from the Bundesliga while Wolfsburg grabbed the last chance for survival on a dramatic last day of the season on Saturday.
Wolfsburg won a relegation decider at St. Pauli 3-1 to send the home team down and qualify for a playoff where it will be favored against the third-place finisher from the second division to decide which plays in the top division next season.
Heidenheim, which had been level with Wolfsburg and St. Pauli going into the final round, needed a win at home against Mainz to keep alive its hopes but it slumped to a 2-0 loss.
The last two are automatically relegated to the second division.
Both demoted teams were given shows of support and appreciation by their fans despite their disappointment.
St. Pauli’s defeat extended its winless run to 10 games and left it bottom of the table, but the fans still held their scarves aloft in solidarity.
It was similar in Heidenheim, where the team’s coach of nearly 19 years, Frank Schmidt, expressed how grateful he was.
“To be relegated like this, and yet you go over to our fans and flags are being waved. You really have to let that sink in. It’s something you don’t see very often,” Schmidt said. “I wish society, us here in Germany, had the kind of solidarity that we have within this club.”
Champions League
Stuttgart held on for the last Champions League qualification spot despite conceding two late goals in a 2-2 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt, denying Hoffenheim and Bayer Leverkusen their chance.
Both rivals were hoping for a favor from Frankfurt but they failed to win in any case. Hoffenheim lost at Borussia Mönchengladbach 4-0 and Leverkusen could only draw with Hamburger SV 1-1.
Jonathan Burkardt scored two late penalties for Frankfurt, which endured a tumultuous end to the season under new coach Albert Riera, who fell out with Burkardt and was the subject of protests from the home fans.
“Thanks for nothing, Alberto,” read one banner.
Kane hat trick
Harry Kane scored a hat trick to take his season tally to 36 Bundesliga goals in league champion Bayern Munich ’s 5-1 win at home over Cologne.
Leon Goretzka started his last Bundesliga game with Bayern, which was presented with the league trophy after the game.
Bayern captain Manuel Neuer, who extended his contract the day before, gave the “salad bowl” trophy to Goretzka to hoist to the sky to start the celebrations. The customary beer showers started soon afterward with Dayot Upamecano dousing coach Vincent Kompany.
Bayern next faces defending champion Stuttgart in the German Cup final in Berlin’s Olympiastadion next Saturday.
Eta signs off with another win
Marie-Louise Eta oversaw her second win in charge of Union Berlin as her team ended the season with a 4-0 rout of visiting Augsburg.
Eta, the first female coach in the Bundesliga, is next slated to take over Union’s women’s team, though she may face calls to stay in charge of the men’s after finishing with a draw and two wins from her five games at the helm.
Other results
Second-placed Borussia Dortmund finished with a 2-0 win at Werder Bremen, and Freiburg enjoyed a 4-1 win at home over third-placed Leipzig.
Freiburg next faces Aston Villa in the Europa League final in Istanbul on Wednesday.
Promotions
Second-division champion Schalke will be back in the Bundesliga next season, while three teams — Elversberg, Hannover and Paderborn — are bidding on Sunday to join the Gelsenkirchen-based club. One of the three will face Wolfsburg in the playoff, with the first leg of their contest in Wolfsburg on Thursday.
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