Borussia Dortmund not yet a top team, says club boss

According to Lars Ricken, Borussia Dortmund still have a few areas to improve before they can be considered a top team.

Despite Borussia Dortmund finishing 2025 in second place in the Bundesliga, managing director for sport Lars Ricken does not yet see the Black and Yellows as a true top team.

“We’re still missing a few attributes,” Ricken told Kicker, adding:

“The final determination and hunger – the decisive step to win tight games – are still lacking at times. Too often, it’s been the opponents celebrating late points and goals.”

Most importantly, though, he believes Niko Kovac has stabilised the team since taking charge at the end of January.

“Our goal – and I made this very clear to Niko – was to avoid being on the back foot again. We’ve achieved that and can check that off,” Ricken explained.

“And of course, we don’t want to give up this second place at the end of the year. That’s obvious. Once you have it, you want to keep it.”