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Wolfsburg routs 5th-tier team Hemelingen 9-0 in German Cup

BERLIN (AP) — Wolfsburg routed fifth-tier SV Hemelingen 9-0 in the first round of the German Cup on Saturday, when other Bundesliga teams also enjoyed big wins over lower-league opposition.
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Wolfsburg's players celebrate the opening goal during the German soccer cup first round match between SV Hemelingen and VfL Wolfsburg in Bremen, Germany, Saturday, Aug 16, 2025. (Carmen Jaspersen/dpa via AP)

BERLIN (AP) — Wolfsburg routed fifth-tier SV Hemelingen 9-0 in the first round of the German Cup on Saturday, when other Bundesliga teams also enjoyed big wins over lower-league opposition.

Two-time champion Leipzig twice came from behind to beat fourth-tier SV Sandhausen 4-2 with new signings Ezechiel Banzuzi and Yan Diomande scoring.

Heidenheim won at 10-man fourth-tier Bahlinger SC 5-0, Hoffenheim won at third-division Hansa Rostock 4-0, and Freiburg won at fourth-tier club Sportfreunde Lotte 2-0.

Hamburger SV, which clinched its return to the Bundesliga last season, survived a scare at fifth-tier Pirmasens, equalizing late to send the match to extra time, where Ransford-Yeboah Königsdörffer headed the winner for 2-1.

Königsdörffer was playing for Hamburg only because a proposed early August move to Nice broke down after his medical check with the French team.

Bochum also needed a late goal to level before prevailing at nine-man Dynamo Berlin 3-1.

St. Pauli needed penalties to get past fourth-tier Hamburg rival Eintracht Norderstedt, while fourth-tier Bavarian team FV Illertissen upset Miroslav Klose's Nuremberg by winning 6-5 on penalties after their game ended 3-3 with extra time.

Also, second-division side Darmstadt won at fourth-tier Lübeck 2-1, and third-division Energie Cottbus won 1-0 to upset Hannover, which is playing in the division above.

Bayern Munich was playing defending champion Stuttgart in the German Supercup later Saturday.

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The Associated Press