In the last eight years, RB Salzburg has won the title seven times. Only Sturm Graz was able to win the final 1-0 after extra time in 2018 and thus break the dominance of Salzburg. In recent years, RB Salzburg has always won the final quite clearly. How is it this year? Will Salzburg win the title again?
What are the pros
Salzburg has been the permanent winner in the cup and league for several years. Both competitions are absolutely dominated by Salzburg, so that the title race in the league is often decided many games before the end of the season. die too bookmaker agree on the question of the championship this year. If you also look at the long-term betting market of the champion in Austria, you won’t even be able to bet on Salzburg anymore, because such a bet isn’t worth it. If you look at the table, it quickly becomes clear why.
The regular season ended with the series winner a full 18 points ahead, and Salzburg is also in first place in the play-offs, a few points behind. The current form of Salzburg is very good, which is why the opponents in the final, SV Ried, could also get lost here. In contrast to the title favorite, SV’s performance in the last few games has been rather mixed. Everything from victory to defeat was there.
Especially since SV Ried didn’t even make it into the play-offs, but is playing in the relegation round for relegation. Also the last cup final between SV Ried and the RB Salzburg went 3-0 to Salzburg in 2012. The dominance of Salzburg can be explained by the excellent youth work, which has already produced numerous world stars and the largest budget in the league.
What speaks against it
The cup in particular is always good for a surprise due to the game mode. This was last seen in the 2018 cup final, when Sturm Graz won the final 1-0 after extra time. Here, the favorite can dictate the whole game, but if the decisive goal doesn’t come and the underdog counters successfully once, then the impossible can happen. For this reason, the cup is often played differently than it is known from the league. With the exception of the Salzburg football club, the winners of recent years have always caused a surprise.
The winners of the last 10 years are:
- 8x RB Salzburg
- 1x Storm Graz
- 1x Paschen
In addition, Salzburg’s weaknesses could be shown after the last Champions League game against FC Bayern Munich. Salzburg lost this game 7:1. However, it must also be mentioned here that FC Bayern Munich is one of the best teams in the world and is a hot contender for the title again this season.
So it remains to be seen what the outsider can bring to the series winner in the final on May 1st.
Photo credit: Josef Parak