1. FC Koln vs FC Kaiserslautern Best odds and tips

1. FC Koln are the bookmakers’ clear favourites at 1.62 to beat FC Kaiserslautern on Sunday, while the visitors are 5.40 outsiders and the draw is 4.60. Koln are second in the 2. Bundesliga table on 58 points from 33 games and Kaiserslautern are sixth with 53 points from the same number of matches. Koln have won one and drawn one of their last two games, which has helped to lift them into the top two after a morale-boosting 2-1 away win over Nurnberg and a frustrating 1-1 draw at home to Jahn Regensburg. Torsten Lieberknecht took over at Kaiserslautern in late April 2025 and has been working hard to tighten up a leaky defence and get his team back into the playoff places. The Red Devils have been a mixed bag of results recently, winning two, drawing one and losing two of their last five league games. They drew 2-2 away at Karlsruher SC before beating Darmstadt 2-1 at home to reignite their promotion hopes. Ragnar Ache, who has scored 18 goals in 29 2. Bundesliga starts, is the danger man for Kaiserslautern and their best bet of getting on the scoresheet on Sunday.

Friedhelm Funkel has done a great job since taking over at 1. FC Koln on May 5, 2025, bringing stability and tactical discipline. Koln have always played a structured, defensive game and then tried to catch their opponents on the counter-attack, but Funkel has added more composure in possession and the ability to control matches, as they showed in the win over Nurnberg. Damion Downs is Koln’s top scorer this season with ten goals in 28 league appearances and should be backed to get on the scoresheet on Sunday. The Billy Goats are a solid bet to edge this tight and potentially promotion-deciding clash given their home form, defensive solidity and the fact that Kaiserslautern have failed to win either of their last two away games. Backing under 2.5 goals could be a smart move here as Koln are unlikely to chase the game and are more likely to keep it tight at the back, which has been their forte this season.