Football Season Guide

Ried are back into the top flight after a three-year absence and achieved their promotion in the most remarkable manner, having claimed a 9:0 last-day victory to win the division on goal difference. The Vikings were Bundesliga stalwarts before their relegation in 2017 and their mid-term goal will be to get back to being what they used to be. The first step on that path would obviously be to stay up this season and they are a major unknown going into the new campaign, having a squad that is crying out for Bundesliga quality, with a few notable exceptions in each line of the team. However, they do have a rather experienced manager in Gerald Baumgartner. What is also notable regarding the Vikings is how young their side is. An ageing team in their season of relegation, they opted to part ways with the majority of their squad after going down and only a couple of players from the 2017 side are still at the club. As things stand, Ried have only three players over the age of thirty in their squad and the average age of the majority of their lineups will be below 25. This could obviously work to their advantage, as their players could quickly develop and prove to be better than initially thought, but their lack of top flight experience might also prove to be a major problem.