GERMANY will be hoping to clinch an additional Champions League spot ahead of England next season, which will give them five spots in the competition.
But even if they secure a place, they will still be a long way from the TWELVE Bundesliga groups that qualified for Europe in the 1996/1997 campaign.
Borussia Dortmund’s win over Atletico Madrid on Wednesday secured their place in Paris Saint-Germain’s Champions League semi-finals.
Meanwhile, Bayer Leverkusen and Bayern Munich will be hoping to make further progress, with either facing Premier League groups to boost Germany’s coefficient chances.
However, almost 30 years ago, no fewer than 12 Bundesligas were competing in Europe after a surprising finish in the 1996/1997 season.
Dortmund won the Champions League that year, confirming their position in the following season’s competition.
Meanwhile, the two most sensible teams, Bayern and Leverkusen, have secured their place in the elite festival thanks to their league results.
Fourth-placed Stuttgart secured a place in the UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup after the German Cup.
This meant that their position in the UEFA Cup, as well as Dortmund’s thanks to their third-place finish, progressed to the next groups in dispute.
Bochum, Karlsruhe and Munich 1860 made seven in Europe for the following season.
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However, the numbers are piling up on the German side.
Suddenly, you can get free tickets for the Intertoto Cup: Cologne, Werder Bremen, Duisburg and Hamburg.
The latter managed to do so after Gladbach, who had finished above them, refused to participate in the competition.
Finally, the 12th and last place is occupied by Schalke, who won the UEFA Cup that season and qualified for it despite finishing in 13th place in the Bundesliga.
These 12 and the competitions in which they participated:
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