FC Augsburg signs defender Maximilian Bauer permanently from Arminia Bielefeld. The 26-year-old was on loan from the Bundesliga club since January. Bauer played 17 games for the second-division club. According to Augsburg, the contractually agreed-upon purchase clause was triggered after Bielefeld's league survival. The clubs did not provide any further information on the timing. Bauer moved to Augsburg on a free transfer for the 2022/23 season from SpVgg Greuther Fürth. For the Fuggerstädter, he played 55 official games, scoring one goal and providing one assist. Before his loan to Bielefeld, Bauer played on loan for 1. FC Kaiserslautern in the second half of the 2024/25 season. »Maxi has brought a lot of stability to our team with his quality, maturity, and personality over the past few months. We're happy to have Maxi on board permanently. Despite his experience, we still see potential in him that we want to develop further«, said Bielefeld's sports director Michael Mutzel.