Wolfsburg relegated from Bundesliga in playoff loss to Paderborn

PADERBORN, Germany -- Christian Eriksen and VfL Wolfsburg were relegated from the Bundesliga on Monday after losing at SC Paderborn 2-1 in the second leg of their end-of-season playoff to determine which plays in Germany's top division next season.

Laurin Curda scored Paderborn's promotion-clinching goal in the 10th minute of extra time after Wolfsburg played all but the first 13 minutes with 10 players.

It gave Paderborn, which finished third in the second division, a 2-1 win on aggregate after the teams drew 0-0 in the first leg of their playoff in Wolfsburg on Thursday. After the referee blew the final whistle, the home fans erupted before running onto the field to celebrate with the team.

It's Wolfsburg's first relegation since the Volkswagen-backed club was promoted to the Bundesliga in 1997. Wolfsburg won the championship in 2009, but has struggled in recent seasons. It survived playoff deciders against Eintracht Braunschweig in 2017 and Holstein Kiel the following year and was forced into another showdown for survival this season after again finishing third from bottom.

It marks the end of a bitterly disappointing season for Eriksen, the Denmark star who signed a two-year deal when he joined Wolfsburg in September. Eriksen captained the side in Paderborn.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.