Harry Kane scored three times as Bayern beat VfB Stuttgart 3-0 in the DFB-Pokalfinale in Berlin, clinching the club’s 21st DFB-Pokal title and ending a wait that stretched back to 2020. Kane struck in the 55th, 80th and 91st minutes to turn a tense final into a one-man finishing act and deliver the first major final win of his career.
Stuttgart had started sharply and gave Bayern problems early. Deniz Undav forced the first shot of the match in the second minute, Angelo Stiller threatened after a Bayern buildup error in the fourth and Maximilian Mittelstädt hit the outside net in the ninth, a burst that reflected how aggressively Sebastian Hoeneß’s side pressed in the opening spell. Bayern, though, held on through the pressure and then found the quality that mattered most when Kane broke the deadlock after 55 minutes.
The final was supposed to test Bayern’s depth as much as their nerve, and it did. Manuel Neuer was unavailable because of calf problems, so Jonas Urbig started in goal, while Stuttgart kept believing after a strong first half-hour. But once Bayern got in front, the game followed the pattern that top sides often impose in finals: patience, control and, in the end, ruthless finishing. Kane added his second in the 80th minute and completed the hat trick in the 91st, putting the result beyond doubt and wrapping up a trophy Bayern had not lifted since 2020.
Afterward, Kane said the win was deserved because Bayern had “a little more quality” at the end, adding that the team stayed patient as Stuttgart’s energy faded and that the night would be something he never forgets. Kompany called it a very close final against a very strong opponent, while Hoeneß said his players had made Bayern feel the strain for 55 to 60 minutes and were only a step away from taking the title race to the edge. Undav, for his part, said Stuttgart could still be proud of a superb season and that there are worse ways to lose than against Bayern.
For Stuttgart, the defeat stung, but the consolation was already secure: Champions League qualification. For Bayern, the bigger picture was just as clear. The club returned to the top of German cup football after five years away from the trophy, and Kane finally got the kind of final moment that had eluded him for so long. Uli Hoeneß had called him the best transfer in Bayern history, and on a night in Berlin, that claim sounded less like praise than a verdict.
