Sporting managing director Rudi Völler, who leaves his current post on 1 July to join the Bayer 04 Leverkusen shareholders committee, was very happy with the "result of many constructive meetings in the past few weeks. We were able to show one of the best German players in the coming decade important and convincing perspectives: above all, of course, a great squad who can help Florian display his strengths," said the 62-year-old. "Florian knows we will be competitive at Leverkusen in the coming years on the national and European stages. And he will be an important part of that. I'm looking forward to watching this lad play football in a Werkself shirt for a long time."
Sporting director Simon Rolfes, who will take over Völler’s role and duties in a few days, said about the new agreement with Wirtz: "In trusting and very good discussions with Florian and his family we were able to continue with commitment to the path we took in January 2020. The fact we have extended the contract again here and now underlines the absolute satisfaction on both sides. The partnership between Bayer 04 and Florian Wirtz is already an exceptional success story," declared Rolfes. "In that respect, we want to write another chapter. Florian is a special player. He has great sporting significance for our club and equally we can provide him with the best opportunities for a fantastic sporting career. We know we can still achieve a lot here together."
The 19-year-old Wirtz has played a key role in the Bayer 04 team for a long time. "The development over the last two years is almost breathtaking from my point of view and it was definitely not to be predicted in that form. It's clear to me that I also have to thank the team that makes it all incredible fun," explained Wirtz. "The lads are a decisive factor in me feeling at home here and everything has gone so well. We have a lot to give in ourselves and at this club. We want to show that to all Bayer 04 fans. And to those who aren't yet."
Werkself TV shows highlights of the 2-0 win at Olympiacos in the first leg of the play-offs of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 league...
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The Werkself beat Olympiacos 2-0 in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League play-off first leg to claim a crucial victory in the Greek capital. After a focused first-half display with a number of presentable chances, Patrik Schick crowned a textbook counter to hand the Werkself the lead on the hour (60’). The Czech rounded off his brace when he headed in from a corner just 144 seconds later. Bayer 04 maintained their lead with aplomb to achieve a good position for the return leg in Leverkusen.
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Bayer 04 and Olympiacos had only met twice before the current UEFA Champions campaign. After the encounter on Matchday 7 of this season’s league phase, the Werkself travel to face the Greek side for the second time in just four weeks for the knockout play-off first leg. The Black and Reds were dominant for large spells in mid-January but lost 2-0 after missing a number of presentable chances. The Werkself aim to do better on Wednesday night to “seize the chance for revenge,” as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.
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A bitter end to the fifth showdown of the 2025/26 VBL Club Championship as the #B04eSports team failed to take any points in the three remaining matches of the preliminary online round of the fifth and final showdown, missing out on the offline round. They can no longer take points in the overall table. Bayer 04 slipped out on the top eight, so direct participation in the final event for the German Club Championship is no longer possible, with Bayer 04 having to contest the play-offs.
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