The match was dominated by a first-half controversy. England captain Harry Kane, who had converted all 24 of his previous Bundesliga penalty attempts, dragged a spot-kick wide of the right post in the 36th minute after Konstantinos Koulierakis was adjudged to have fouled Michael Olise inside the area.
Television replays showed that VfL Wolfsburg midfielder Jeanuël Belocian had deliberately scuffed the penalty spot before Kane's run-up, scraping the turf with his boot on multiple occasions. Kane appeared to slip on his left foot as he struck the ball, sending it into the stands. Whether Belocian's intervention was the direct cause remains uncertain, but the images triggered widespread debate about the legality and ethics of the manoeuvre.
Bayern Munich head coach Vincent Kompany chose not to condemn it, though he acknowledged its impact.
"What do you expect the Wolfsburg players to do? Should they just clap when we score a goal? Should they just get relegated without giving everything? That the Wolfsburg player did that — of course he shouldn't have. But I can understand it too."
He also conceded Bayern should have taken precautions, taking an oblique dig at UEFA in the process.
"If we had gotten a penalty against Paris on Wednesday, we'd have had 2 or 3 guys there. It's sometimes these little details that make a difference."
Wolfsburg midfielder Patrick Wimmer was unapologetic about his teammate's gamesmanship.
"These are the sort of dirty little tricks you might have to resort to sometimes when you're down there."
Olise settled the match in the 52nd minute, controlling a through ball and curling a composed finish into the far corner past Wolfsburg goalkeeper Kamil Grabara. It was his 17th league goal of the season. Bayern midfielder Tom Bischof, speaking to Sky after the final whistle, was relaxed about Kane's miss.
"With Harry you are normally pretty sure he is going to score, but I guess he is also allowed to miss one sometimes."
Wolfsburg remain in the relegation play-off place on 26 points. They face St. Pauli next Saturday in a match that will determine their Bundesliga status. Bayern, who have already secured the league title and eliminated Real Madrid from the Champions League, prepare for the DFB-Pokal final against Stuttgart on May 23.