FC Koln will host Heidenheim at RheinEnergieStadion on Sunday, May 10, 2026, and Marius Bulter — one of Koln's scorers in their last match — arrives with the club two wins away from a decisive point that will guarantee their Bundesliga safety. The match kicks off at 11:30 a.m. ET and is listed on DAZN Sport 224 in Canada.
The numbers make clear what is at stake. Koln sit 14th with 32 points from 32 matches — seven wins, 11 draws and 14 losses — and a six-point cushion over 16th-placed Wolfsburg that includes a 17-goal difference advantage. A single point this weekend would be enough for Koln to guarantee safety. The home side are searching for their first win in four games after a 2-2 draw with Union Berlin, in which Bulter and Said El Mala scored, but they have lost only one of their last seven fixtures overall.
Heidenheim remain bottom with 23 points from 32 matches — five wins, eight draws and 19 losses — and are three points behind both 17th-placed St Pauli and Wolfsburg. Their season contains reasons for hope: a 3-3 draw with Bayern Munich last Saturday and a run of two wins, three draws and one loss since a March 14 defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt. Still, Heidenheim have managed just one away win all season, a 2-1 victory at Union Berlin on November 29, and they travel to a Koln side eager to close the tie.
Context frames the clash. Koln arrived in the top flight this campaign after lifting the Meisterschale in the 2. Bundesliga last term and have spent the season trying to secure another year in the Bundesliga. Heidenheim, who survived by winning the 2024-25 relegation playoff, are fighting to avoid a return to the drop; with two games left, every point carries outsized weight for them.
Tension centers on availability and timing. Koln will be without Timo Hubers and Luca Kilian because of knee injuries; the club reports Kilian is closing in on a return but not yet ready. Rav van den Berg is a doubt with a muscle issue, and Koln will be missing Eric Martel after he collected his 10th yellow card of the season against Union Berlin and is suspended. Those absences trim Koln's options at a moment when a win would settle any lingering anxiety, while a draw will mathematically secure safety.
Heidenheim's revival makes the situation more complicated than the table alone suggests. Their recent resilience — the draw with Bayern and the steady run since March 14 — has kept them within reach of safety despite remaining bottom. But their single away victory all season underlines how rare success on the road has been for them; beating Koln at RheinEnergieStadion would be a monumental step toward survival.
How Sunday plays out will determine the immediate futures of both clubs. For Koln, a draw will end the relegation threat and turn the final two matchdays into a chance to build for next season; for Heidenheim, the game is another do-or-die chance to keep their faint hopes alive. A point will mathematically secure Koln's Bundesliga status; everything else on Sunday will reshape how both clubs approach the last matchdays of the campaign.
