Historical debut by trainer Carlson: Cologne fights for an important point!

Historical debut by trainer Carlson: Cologne fights for an important point!

On February 8, 2025, the women's team of the 1st FC Köln competed against VfL Wolfsburg in the Franz-Kremer Stadium and reached a 0-0 draw. It was the debut of the new trainer Britta Carlson, who was a player and assistant trainer at Wolfsburg from 2007 to 2018. The spectator for the audience was impressive with 2400 fans, and the team showed a solid performance against one of the top teams in the women's Bundesliga.

Although Cologne was in difficulties at the beginning of the season and previously only scored five points from twelve games, Carlson tried to turn the tide against Wolfsburg. In the first half, the team was equal to the opponent and could even have taken the lead through Dóra Zeller, but her chance was rejected by Wolfsburg goalkeeper Anneke Borbe.

a game with opportunities and challenges

The second half dominated Wolfsburg, but the Cologne defense demonstrated stability. While the guests missed numerous opportunities, Cologne goalkeeper Aurora Mikalsen kept her team from a deficit with several outstanding parades. Mikalsen, who was signed by Brann Bergen in winter, brought valuable experience from the Champions League.

In the final phase, the Cologne women had to accept an injury -related change and outnumbered. Regardless of these challenges, the focus was on defensive performance. A shot from Lynn Wilms bounced on the crossbar in added time, which was given the opportunity to win a last-minute victory.

prospects and strategic orientation

Carlson emphasized that the team wanted to score from the start despite the outsider role. Your strategy for the upcoming games provides for the focus to focus on the defensive in order to create a stable basis before attacking. With the performance against Wolfsburg, the 1. FC Köln can hope to initiate a positive turn.

In a larger context, the development of women's football in Germany shows both progress and stagnating tendencies. A McKinsey study emphasizes that Germany lags behind in comparison to England and the USA, especially in media rights. The DFB plans to make the women's Bundesliga the best women's football league in the world, which also includes measures to increase the league and to increase infrastructure requirements. The transformation costs for these measures are estimated at 80 million euros, and the discussion about possible investors continues to be conducted.

The challenges are great, but the positive development of the league and women's football as a whole cannot go unmentioned. The Cologne women took a first step in the right direction with their game.

For detailed information about the draw, read on Geissblog . The Sportschau also offers an overview of the debut of Carlson and the encounter against Wolfsburg: Sportschau . Context information on the current situation of women's football in Germany can be found in a Study of 90min .