RasenBall Sport Leipzig, or RB Leipzig, are based in the city of Leipzig, in Saxony in east Germany. The club is one of the newest-formed clubs in the Bundesliga, being created in 2009 when the sports drink manufacturer Red Bull purchased the playing rights of the fifth-tier side SSV Markrandstadt and re-branded it. The stated aim of Red Bull was to have the new club playing in the Bundesliga within eight years, and it did so when RB Leipzig gained promotion for the 2016-17 season by finishing second in the 2.Bundesliga. The club have won the sixth, fifth and fourth divisions in German football, while finishing runners-up in the third and second divisions. They have also reached and lost the final of the DFB-Pokal last season, and are currently competing in the UEFA Champions League for only the second time in their history.
RB Leipzig play their games at the Red Bull Arena in Leipzig. It was formerly known as the Zentralstadion, before Red Bull purchased the naming rights. It has a capacity of almost 43,000, making it the largest football stadium in east Germany. The club play in the traditional red and white colours associated with Red Bull football teams, and the crest is a modification of Red Bull’s logo, featuring a football instead of a yellow sun, along with some other modifications.
RB Leipzig are part of the wider Red Bull football network. Red Bull owns and operates Red Bull Salzburg and FC Liefering in Austria, Red Bull Brasil in Brazil, and the New York Red Bulls in the USA, along with RB Leipzig. As such, there has often been a lot of coordination and sharing of resources between these clubs, with players and coaches moving between the clubs often. Former manager Ralf Rangnick is now head of sport and development for the Red Bull group, overseeing the football activities at all the clubs. The current manager is Julian Nagelsmann, who, at 32 years of age, is the youngest manager in the Bundesliga. He formerly managed 1899 Hoffenheim, moving to RB Leipzig at the start of the current season. The current captain is Hungarian Willi Orban. He joined RB Leipzig from FC Kaiserslautern in 2015, and was named club captain in 2017.
This season, RB Leipzig were mounting a challenge for the Bundesliga title before it was suspended. At the time of suspension, RB Leipzig were in third place, one point behind Borussia Dortmund, and five behind league-leaders Bayern Munich, having played 25 games.
