Friendly Preview: FC RB Salzburg vs. FC Bayern Munich
| First test of 2026 | Adam Pretty/Getty Images |
25,000 fans are expected at the Red Bull Arena as Bayern face RB Salzburg in a midseason friendly on Tuesday. The Bundesliga leaders will resume their Bundesliga action at home against VfL Wolfsburg in the closing fixture of matchday 16.
This will be the fourth time the two clubs play each other before the resumption of their respective leagues. Roger Schmidt’s RB Salzburg famously beat Pep Guardiola’s Bayern 3-0 with a memorable performance from Sadio Mané back in 2014.
In January 2023, they played out another famous warm-up encounter with six second-half goals leading to a 4-4 draw. It was rather a one-sided affair when Bayern played in Salzburg exactly one year ago as Vincent Kompany’s side recorded a 6-0 victory.
The Rekordmeister also scored half a dozen goals twice against RB Salzburg in the Champions League. The friendly games usually draw a large crowd, and more than 25,000 fans are expected for tomorrow’s match.
Thomas Letsch, who lost 6-0 to Bayern six days after his appointment last year, is still at the helm of RB Salzburg. The former Bochum coach said he believed that they’re now in a different situation from that night.
Frans Krätzig, who finally left Bayern permanently in the summer, will face his former club. Similarly, Konrad Laimer and Dayot Upamecano had spells with RB Salzburg. The Austrian giants head into the winter break at the top of the Austrian Bundesliga, but they have lost five games in the Europa League.
Before domestic action returns in the first week of February, Leitsch’s team will end their league phase campaign against Basel and Aston Villa. They will play two more friendlies against Raków Częstochowa and Red Star Belgrade before their first competitive fixture of 2026.
Meanwhile, Bayern are preparing for seven games in the space of 20 days. Lennart Karl will be the center of attention following his controversial statement, while Jamal Musiala, Joshua Kimmich, and Manuel Neuer are not expected to make the matchday squad. The shot-stopper plans to be fit for Sunday’s game. Nicolas Jackson is in Morocco with the Senegal national team for the African Cup of Nations.
Predicted Lineups
Salzburg: Schlager; Krätzig, Rasmussen, Gadou, Lainer; Diabaté, Bidstrup ©; Alajbegovic, Yeo, Baidoo; Ratkov
Bayern: Urbig; Laimer, Upamecano, Tah, Stanisic; Guerreiro, Pavlovic; Díaz, Karl, Olise; Kane ©
