BERLIN — St. Pauli and Heidenheim were sent down from the Bundesliga on Saturday as Wolfsburg grabbed the last spot of survival in a dramatic final day of the season.
Wolfsburg won 3-1 at St. Pauli in a winner-take-all relegation decider. The victory sent the hosts straight down to the second division while Wolfsburg advanced to a playoff against the third-place finisher from Bundesliga 2.
The table did the dramatic work without asking anyone to dress it up.
The fans showed up for both doomed clubs anyway. St. Pauli supporters kept the ir scarves raised high even after a tenth consecutive winless game sent the ir team to the bottom of the table. In Heidenheim, coach Frank Schmidt — nearly 19 years in the job — walked to the stands afterward to see flags waving back at him.
“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,” Schmidt said.
Champions League battle
Stuttgart held on for the final Champions League spot despite conceding two late goals in a 2-2 draw at Eintracht Frankfurt. Hoffenheim lost 4-0 at Borussia Mönchengladbach and Bayer Leverkusen could only draw 1-1 with Hamburg, so neither could catch Stuttgart.
Jonathan Burkardt scored two late penalties for Frankfurt, which finished the season in turmoil under new coach Albert Riera. Fans displayed a banner reading “Thanks for nothing, Alberto.”
Kane's finale
Harry Kane scored a hat trick in Bayern Munich's 5-1 home win over Cologne, taking his season tally to 36 goals. Leon Goretzka played his final game for the club and was presented with the league trophy — the “salatnteller” — to hoist into the crowd. Beer showers followed.
Bayern plays Stuttgart in the German Cup final next Saturday in Berlin.
Elsewhere
Union Berlin ended with a 4-0 win over Augsburg.Coach Marie-Louise Eta got her second victory in five games — she's scheduled to take over the women's team but may face calls to stay with the men.
Borussia Dortmund finished second with a 2-0 win at Werder Bremen. Freiburg beat Leipzig 4-1 and faces Aston Villa in the Europa League final on Wednesday.
Schalke clinched promotion from the second division. Three clubs — Elversberg, Hannover and Paderborn — play Sunday to determine who meets Wolfsburg in the playoff.