Germany coach Joachim Low has backed Wolfsburg to become the Bundesliga's second most powerful team behind Bayern Munich after their first-ever DFB-Pokal victory on Saturday.
Dieter Hecking's team spoiled Jurgen Klopp's final game in charge of Borussia Dortmund as they won 3-1 to lift the trophy thanks to goals from Luiz Gustavo, Kevin de Bruyne and Bas Dost.
Die Wolfe also finished second behind Bayern in the Bundesliga table, and Low believes the cup final win signalled the beginning of a changing of the guard after Dortmund's years of success.
"It won't be easy for Dortmund to challenge at the very top again next season," he told reporters in Berlin. "Wolfsburg have the potential to become the second force behind Bayern Munich."
Wolfsburg are owned by car manufacturer Volkswagen, and their financial muscle means they will not have to let key players leave.
Volkswagen chief Martin Winterkorn, who is also a member of Bayern's supervisory board, recently said hopes of keeping sought-after midfielder De Bruyne -- a Munich target -- were "very, very high."
On Monday, kicker reported that Bayern would now wait until summer 2016 before making another move for De Bruyne, who is under contract until 2019 but is set to sign a new deal with a release clause in the region of €70 million.
The Belgium international did not comment on speculation about his future after the DFB Pokal win, saying: "This is not the right time to talk about it."
He said the memory of midfielder Junior Malanda, who died in a road accident in January 2015, had inspired Wolfsburg to their win.
"He's always with me. He's always in my head. It's difficult to think about it, but he helped us," he added, while teammate Naldo said: "We played for Junior."