ÖFB Frauen Bundesliga round-up: Sturm Graz go top after eight-goal thriller as St. Pölten gain revenge — Yahoo Sports

RESOLVING THE LEDGER

ÖFB Frauen Bundesliga round-up: Sturm Graz go top after eight-goal thriller as St. Pölten gain revenge

The 2026/27 season got underway as reigning champions Austria Wien hosted former champions SKN St. Pölten at the Generali Arena in Vienna, Austria. In total, there were five fixtures across the league in this opening weekend, with every team taking part.

The ÖFB Frauen Bundesliga is made up of 10 teams, and for the first season in over a decade, it feels as though several teams could claim the title. SKN St. Pölten had won every league title since 2015 before Austria Wien ended that run last season .

Let’s dive into the first round of results as the 2026/27 season in Austria gets underway.

FK Austria Wien vs SKN St. Pölten

Reigning champions Austria Wien got their title defence off to a halting start in a particularly tense game. The match was played at a slower tempo for long spells than this headline fixture usually produces. Contributing to this was the need for hydration breaks in the extreme midsummer heat affecting Austria.

Despite Austria Wien investing heavily in their starting line-up with signings such as Austrian football legend Verena Hanshaw, they succumbed to a wonder strike from Fanny Vágó. The Hungarian, who has just shy of 150 caps for her country, rejoined St. Pölten this season after leaving in 2019.

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Vágó’s shot from just under 30 yards flew gracefully into the top-right corner of the Austria Wien net, beyond goalkeeper Jasmin Pal. It was an important victory for St. Pölten and a devastating early blow for Austria Wien.

On a positive note for Austria Wien, there were plenty of encouraging individual performances. Notably, defender Louise Schöffel’s pace meant she rarely lost out on a through ball, while her strength helped her recover when caught out. This created plenty of space and chances for her teammates throughout the fixture.

First Vienna FC 1894 vs SK Rapid

The two Vienna-based teams cancelled each other out as the game finished 3-3. There were plenty of positives for both teams to take away.

SK Rapid youngster and Austria youth international Sophia Zöger scored the opening goal of the game. Zöger is a player that’s almost certainly going to be influential for Austria in this new generation of talent.

Rapid’s other two goals came from Lilli Brandl, who signed from SK Sturm Graz this season, and Jasmin König.

Karla Kurkutovic and Leonie Gebert scored First Vienna’s first two goals. Helena Milanovic then grabbed the equaliser with a composed finish only moments after coming off the bench, rewarding a clever tactical change from First Vienna boss Mark Dobrounig.

Both teams also have the right to be disappointed with the result, although a draw was fair. First Vienna are looking to establish themselves as one of the stronger teams in the league again. Meanwhile, SK Rapid are hoping to make an immediate impact on the league following their promotion.

FC Red Bull Salzburg vs SpG Südburgenland/TSV Hartberg

RB Salzburg invested heavily in their squad over the season break. Their season got off to a tepid but successful start against last season’s bottom-placed team, who remained in the league after USV Neulengbach lost their licence.

New signing Maria Plattner, who joined from Bayern Munich , grabbed a classy goal just before half-time.

Valentina Akrap, the 17-year-old Croatian-Austrian talent, sealed the result in the 93rd minute. The 2-0 defeat marked a difficult, if perhaps expected, start to the season for Südburgenland as they face the challenge of staying in the ÖFB Frauen Bundesliga.

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SPG Blau-Weiß Linz/Union Kleinmünchen vs LASK

In a five-goal thriller, LASK took home the three points with a 3-2 victory at the Hofmann Personal Stadium. New signings were the key for LASK, with Dayna Sunshine Tuppinger and Ella Herbst both finding the net for the away side. Evelina Kos grabbed the other goal.

Blau-Weiß will be disappointed to lose the Linz derby. Sarah Lackner and Valerie Sprung scored their two goals, but it proved not to be enough. Blau-Weiß finished second from bottom in the 2025/26 season and will look to collect as many points as possible to avoid dropping to the Frauen Bundesliga 2.

SK Sturm Graz vs SCR Altach

New Sturm Graz loan signing Brigitta Pulins repaid the faith placed in her by scoring four consecutive goals in 47 minutes. It was an immense performance that put her immediately at the forefront of the Golden Boot race.

Lena Breznik and Laura Krumböck added two more goals to the Sturm tally, sending the club straight to the top of the ÖFB Frauen Bundesliga standings.

Sturm manager Tode Djaković, a tactician at heart, will be pleased with his side’s dominant performance. At just 30, he is also the youngest manager currently serving in the league.

Lilla Sipos of SK Sturm Graz battles an SC Rheindorf Altach player for possession. (Photo by SK Sturm Graz)

The Graz-based club invested heavily during the break between seasons, both in transfers and player facilities. They finished the 2025/26 season comfortably in third place and made it clear with this performance that their sights are set higher this time around.

SCR Altach, who finished last season in fifth place, will have plenty of work to do after this fixture. It wasn’t all bad news for Altach, who managed two consolation goals through Nayana Ebersold and Julia Kofler. The Rheindorf-based club will be looking to push themselves this campaign and challenge for a place in the championship group when the league splits after the regular season.