On Matchday 3, Bayern Munich and Hamburg meet for the first time since 2018, marking a welcome return to the top-flight for one of German football's oldest rivalries.
The Nord-Süd-Gipfel - or North-South Summit - between Bayern and Hamburg is back for the first time since 2018. It is a fixture built from geographical allegiances but not with the typical closeness of such rivalries. Instead, it pits a traditional giant German club from the north against a heavyweight from the south.
In the red corner are Bayern - the German record champions who have dominated the landscape for years. In the blue, are Hamburg - fifth on the list of top-flight winners, with six trophies to their name.
Their rivalry was at its peak from the late 1970s to the early 1990s, spanning a decade in which Bayern (seven) and HSV (three) claimed 10 of a possible 12 titles from 1979-1990.
From the 1978/79 season to 1982/83 - during which period Hamburg claimed those aforementioned three titles - the Bundesliga was won exclusively by these two sides, such was their dominance.
Their fortunes may look very different in 2025, with Bayern regaining the title last season and Hamburg finally ending their Bundesliga 2 exile by gaining promotion, but they once regularly went toe-to-toe for titles. This fierce competition sparked a zealous rivalry, the spirit of which HSV supporters will be hoping their team are able to channel.
In recent history, Bayern won nine of the last 10 meetings with Hamburg, scoring 38 times and conceding just three goals. The last time Hamburg beat Bayern was in 2009 and their last four visits to the Allianz Arena have ended in miserable defeats, the sequence reading: 6-0, 8-0, 5-0, 8-0.
Current form also favours Vincent Kompany's team, who have won four out of four this term and already lifted the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup to claim the first trophy of the season on their first attempt.
Kompany, who played for HSV from 2006 to 2008, still raves about his time at the club: "My time in Hamburg was simply very important and wonderful. I still have many friends there. It was a hard school with Huub Stevens and Thomas Doll!"
In the opposite dugout on Saturday will be Merlin Polzin; the man who took Hamburg back to the promised land last term. After the 0-0 draw at Borussia Mönchengladbach and a 2-0 loss to St. Pauli in the Hamburg derby, coach and club are now looking for a first Bundesliga win since their return.
Doing so against Bayern would be quite the feat.