The 20-year-old Wolfsburg midfielder died on Saturday after a car accident.
Malanda was said to be travelling towards Hannover on his way to meet Wolfsburg team-mates for a training camp in South Africa.
Police said the vehicle - which Malanda was a passenger in - went off the motorway "for as yet unknown reasons".
They added: "The car broke through the right guardrail, hit a tree, and flipped over several times in the embankment.
"The car came to a stop on its roof.
"One person was thrown out of the vehicle by the accident and died at the scene.
"This was the 20-year-old Belgian Bundesliga player of VFL Wolfsburg, Bernhard Geoffrey Malanda Adje.
"The car was totally destroyed in the accident. At the time, there was heavy rain and gale-force winds."
The driver and another passenger were taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Malanda, considered one of Belgium's best young players, had been a regular at youth levels for the nation.
The midfielder had played in 10 Bundesliga matches for Wolfsburg this season.
Tributes flowed in from a range of football figures, including FIFA president Sepp Blatter, Belgium stars Vincent Kompany and Kevin De Bruyne, and national team manager Marc Wilmots.
