The 2019/20 season had already been a disaster. Werder only saved themselves from relegation on the penultimate matchday. A year later, in 2020/21, there was no escape — but the drop had a long prehistory.
Even the 2020 relegation playoff against 1. FC Heidenheim had been dramatic: 0–0 in the first leg, 2–2 in the second — Werder surviving only on away goals. That they had to go down a year later, after 40 years as permanent Bundesliga furniture, felt traumatic to many fans.