Bologna vs Borussia Dortmund facts

Bologna's quest for their first UEFA Champions League victory continues at home to Borussia Dortmund on Matchday 7 with last season's runners-up looking to get back on track.

The Italian debutants have two draws and four defeats from their first six games, playing out a 0-0 draw at Benfica on Matchday 6, and have managed a single goal. Dortmund lost 2-3 at home to Barcelona in their most recent fixture but have 12 points thanks to four wins.

This is the sides' first meeting, and only Bologna's third fixture against a German club.

Form guide

Bologna

Record vs German clubs: W0 D2 L0 F1 A1
Home record vs German clubs: W0 D1 L0

Bologna's only previous tie against a German club came in the 1970/71 European Cup Winners' Cup first round, when they lost on away goals to Vorwärts Berlin (0-0 a, 1-1 h).

This is Bologna's first Champions League campaign. They are the 11th Italian side to appear in the competition proper and the first newcomers since Atalanta in 2019/20.

Their only previous European Cup campaign lasted a single tie, Bologna losing on a coin toss to Anderlecht in the 1964/65 preliminary round (0-1 a, 2-1 h, 0-0 play-off).

Bologna are one of five clubs to be making their Champions League debuts in 2024/25, along with Brest, Aston Villa, Girona and Slovan Bratislava.

Bologna have not featured in European competition since losing a UEFA Intertoto Cup final to Fulham in August 2002 (2-2 h, 1-3 a).

A 0-1 loss to Monaco on Matchday 4 was the Italian side's first home defeat in UEFA competition; they also lost the next, 1-2 at home to LOSC Lille on Matchday 5 with Jhon Lucumi scoring his club's first Champions League goal. Bologna have won 15 of their 26 fixtures, drawing against Shakhtar Donetsk (0-0) on Matchday 1 this season.

Champions of Italy seven times – most recently in 1964 – Bologna were fifth in Serie A in 2023/24, setting a new club record of 68 points. It was their highest finish since 1966/67, when they were third.

Thiago Motta, in charge since September 2022, left for Juventus in the summer. Vincenzo Italiano, after guiding Fiorentina to the UEFA Europa Conference League final in each of the last two seasons, was named as his replacement.

Borussia Dortmund

Record vs Italian clubs: W13 D7 L19 F49 A60
Away record vs Italian clubs: W5 D2 L12

Dortmund were drawn in the same group as AC Milan last season, winning 3-1 in Italy on Matchday 5 after a 0-0 draw in Germany on Matchday 2.

That success at San Siro was Dortmund's first in six matches in Italy (D1 L4).

Dortmund's one Champions League triumph came at the expense of Italian opposition in the 1997 final when they beat Juventus 3-1 in Munich.

BVB are in the Champions League proper for the 19th time overall and the ninth successive season. All but two of their last 11 campaigns have extended into the knockout rounds.

In 2023/24, Edin Terzić's team finished first in Group F before beating PSV Eindhoven (3-1 aggregate), Atlético de Madrid (5-4 agg) and Paris Saint-Germain (2-0 agg) to reach Dortmund's third European Cup final. Real Madrid proved too strong at Wembley, however, running out 2-0 winners.

This season's 3-0 wins at Club Brugge and GNK Dinamo Zagreb have made it 13 victories in BVB's last 30 away European matches (D3 L14). They also lost 5-2 at Real Madrid on Matchday 3 in a repeat of last season's final having led 2-0 at half-time.

European champions in 1997 and runners-up in 2013, Dortmund have been eliminated in the last 16 in three of their last six Champions League campaigns.

BVB were fifth in the Bundesliga in 2023/24, their lowest league placing since finishing seventh in 2014/15.

Nuri Şahin replaced Terzić as coach in the summer.

Links and trivia

Has played in Italy:
Emre Can (Juventus 2018–20)

Have played in Germany:
Stefan Posch (Hoffenheim 2017–22)
Juan Miranda (Schalke 2019/20)

Have played together:
Stefan Posch & Maximilian Beier (Hoffenheim 2020/21)
Stefan Posch & Gregor Kobel (Hoffenheim 2017–19)

International team-mates:
Remo Freuler, Michael Aebischer, Dan Ndoye & Gregor Kobel (Switzerland)
Stefan Posch & Marcel Sabitzer (Austria)
Thijs Dallinga & Donyell Malen (Netherlands)
Samuel Iling-Junior & Jamie Bynoe-Gittens (England Under-21)

Bologna coach Italiano was born in Karlsruhe, Germany.

Latest news

Bologna

Bologna have three wins in their six matches in all competitions since Matchday 6 (D2 L1), but were without a victory in three before Saturday's 3-1 comeback victory at home to Monza thanks to goals from Santiago Castro, Jens Odgaard and Riccardo Orsolini.

A 2-3 defeat at home to Verona on 30 December is Bologna's sole loss in their last ten games (W5 D4).

Bologna drew their first two matches in 2025 2-2, conceding an added-time penalty at home to Roma on 12 January, Lewis Ferguson converting a spot kick for his first goal since 3 March.

Three days later the Rossoblù drew at champions Inter, an Emil Holm equaliser earning them a point.

Sixteen points in the first ten away games in Serie A is a club record for Bologna since three points for a win was introduced in 1994/95.

Michel Aebischer has not played since 15 October due to a thigh injury.

Dortmund

For the first time in a quarter of a century, Dortmund lost the first two Bundesliga matches of a calendar year: 2-3 against Leverkusen on 10 January and 2-4 at Holstein Kiel four days later.

Dortmund were also beaten on Friday, going down 2-0 at Eintracht Frankfurt. It is the first time BVB have lost three successive league games since October-November 2017.

Jamie Gittens, who scored against Leverkusen and Kiel, has seven league goals this season; his previous best was three in 2022/23.

Serhou Guirassy, who has 19 goals in 26 games for club and country this season, scored his 50th Bundesliga goal against Leverkusen.

For the first time in 19 years, BVB did not win any of their first six away league matches this season (D2 L4) before prevailing 3-1 in Wolfsburg on 22 December.

Niklas Süle has been sidelined since 7 December with an ankle injury.

On 14 January Dortmund announced Donyell Malen's move to Aston Villa.