The VfL Wolfsburg footballers have been unbeaten in the DFB Cup since 2013, and this streak will continue in the 2022 final. Opponents Turbine Potsdam are trying, but in the end they are clearly inferior over the 90 minutes. The women from Lower Saxony complete the double and can celebrate two records at the same time.
More of a walk than a feat of strength – VfL Wolfsburg remains the measure of all things in German women’s football. Thanks to a clear 4-0 (3-0) win over Turbine Potsdam in the cup final, coach Tommy Stroot’s team made the double perfect and equaled the previous record of 1. FFC Frankfurt with a total of nine titles in this competition. It was also an emotional farewell for longtime VfL goalkeeper Almuth Schult, who is moving to the USA for the coming season.
In front of 17,531 spectators in Cologne, Ewa Pajor (11th/33rd), Jill Roord (42nd) and Dominique Janssen (69th) ensured the North Germans’ eighth cup triumph in a row. Turbine Potsdam, on the other hand, has to wait for their first major success since the German championship in 2012.
Unlike in various finals in recent years at the same venue with overtime and penalties, the Wolfsburg team was spared the thrill this time. As in the two Bundesliga games against Potsdam with two 3-0 victories, the defending champions again turned out to be the better team and secured their sixth consecutive double after 2013, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020 with their 40th win in a cup game.
As expected, VfL took control from the start. But the underdog from Potsdam had the first good chance with a counterattack worth seeing. After a pass from Maria Plattner, Karen Holmgaard (8th) appeared free in front of the Wolfsburg goal, but was blocked at the last moment. In contrast to the opponent, the serial winner of the past few years used the first opportunity to take the lead. Pajor headed a corner from Felicitas Rauch into the far corner and didn’t give Turbine goalkeeper Anna Wellmann a chance.
Potsdam continued to rely on fast switching, but mostly lacked precision with the last pass. This harmlessness was to take revenge a little later. Spurred on by the lead, Wolfsburg gained further field advantages and got closer and closer to the turbine goal. The strong Svenja Huth missed the possible 2:0 (25th) with her unplaced shot from 12 meters.
And yet VfL ensured clear conditions before the break. Pajor headed in again from a Lynn Wilms cross and sent the ball over the line from close range. When Roord then scored with a shot from eleven yards, the game was decided early on. Schult was only put to the test after the restart when she skillfully parried a header from Holmgaard (51′). Although the underdog from Potsdam now appeared bolder, the Wolfsburg victory was never in danger. With a deflected free kick from 18 meters Janssen removed the last doubts.
