Bayer Leverkusen have answered the biggest question in Bundesliga and finally knocked Bayern Munich off their throne in German football.
After last season's impressive march under Xabi Alonso from second bottom up to sixth and Europa League qualification, there was already a feel-good factor around the BayArena ahead of a first full campaign under the Spaniard.
They have, indeed, exceeded all expectations already breaking Bayern Munich's Bundesliga record along the way before managing to make it all the way.
Here at GOAL, we take a look at Leverkusen's past record in the Bundesliga and whether they have lifted the title before.
Have Bayer Leverkusen ever won the Bundesliga?
For the record, a total of 13 clubs have been crowned champions of Germany since the Bundesliga's inception as the country's nationwide championship in 1963.
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Bayern Munich leads the way with their record 32 titles, while Borussia Dortmund, Werder Bremen, Hamburg, VfB Stuttgart, Cologne, and Kaiserslautern have all lifted the Meisterschale multiple times.
Bayer Leverkusen have now become the 13th side to win the German top flight. They have finished as runners-up five times, which was the most of any club without ever lifting the title until Xabi Alonso and Bayer Leverkusen broke the 'Neverkusen' curse and won their first Bundesliga title and ended Bayern Munich's dynasty.
Why were Leverkusen called Neverkusen and the Eternal Bridesmade?
Leverkusen are often viewed in a bright light in Germany, as they remain a popular team internationally thanks to their European exploits and often swashbuckling, free-flowing style of play, combined with young, exciting players.
They are also known to boast a rather cruel nickname in Germany, 'Bayer Vizekusen.' This essentially means 'second-queen' and it can be anglicised as 'neverkusen.' In any language, the meaning is the same. Namely, Bayer are the nearly men of German football, having fallen agonisingly short of top honours since their promotion to the Bundesliga, and this failure has somehow become emotionally ingrained in everyone at the club.
Back in 2001-02, a brilliant Leverkusen side featuring Michael Ballack, Oliver Neuville, Dimitar Berbatov, Lucio, and Ze Roberto came within a whisker of not just one but three major honours, but they were left with nothing to show for their efforts, eventually finishing runners-up in the Bundesliga, DFB Pokal, and Champions League. It was that unlucky campaign that earned the team the awful nickname 'Neverkusen'.
They last finished second back in 2010-11. In fact, Die Werkself has gone almost 31 years without having a taste of major silverware, their last being the DFB-Pokal in 1992–93 when they defeated the second team of Hertha Berlin 1-0 in the final.
It was ultimately for serial winner Alonso – with two Champions League wins, one in La Liga, three in the Bundesliga, two European Championships, one World Cup and multiple other individual honours – to change the script in Leverkusen's 119-year wait for the Bundesliga title.
