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We are approaching the end of our journey around Europe, visiting arguably the best leagues in Europe and comparing how the New York Red Bulls would fare if they finished with the same amount of points from 2015.
After France, Italy and Spain, we now jump into the land of Oktoberfest and visit our German friends in the Bundesliga. The Bundesliga is the only top 5 league in Europe that plays a 34-game schedule like MLS since there are only 18 teams in the league, so RBNY will have to stick with their 60 points in this comparison. We will compare this to the last five Bundesliga seasons (2010-11 through 2014-15). 60 points would have put the Red Bulls in:
Season | Red Bulls Finish | Team(s) 1 Spot Above | Team(s) 1 Spot Below |
2010-2011 | Tied 4th Place | Hannover 96 (60 pts) | Mainz (58 pts) |
2011-2012 | Tied 4th Place | B. M'Gladbach (60 pts) | B. Leverkusen (54 pts) |
2012-2013 | 4th Place | B. Leverkusen (65 pts) | Schalke 04 (55 pts) |
2013-2014 | Tied 5th Place | Wolfsburg (60 pts) | B. M'Gladbach (55 pts) |
2014-2015 | 5th Place | B. Leverkusen (61 pts) | Augsburg (49 pts) |
These results would put the Red Bulls on the borderline of directly qualifying for Champions League via the play-off round. They still are not on par with Bayern Munich or Borussia Dortmund, but they could consider it to be a successful season. And not to kick the hornet's nest, but could we say it's better than Red Bull Leipzig? Possibly.
In the Bundesliga, the Red Bulls are equivalent to Bayer Leverkusen or Borussia Monchengladbach
But let's flash back to the 2014 MLS All-Star Game in Portland. Yes, it was only an exhibition, but to Pep Guardiola's dissatisfaction, MLS defeated Bayern Munich 2-1. After a Robert Lewandowski goal in the 8th minute, MLS got two second half goals by RBNY's Bradley Wright-Phillips and LA Galaxy's Landon Donovan to complete a comeback victory for the home side.
Final stop: England's Premier League