The third of these charity matches saw the Schumacher & Friends team beat the Nowitzki All-Stars 7-5. Mick Schumacher, the captain of his team, scored to make it 2-0 by beating Dirk Nowitzki. The basketball legend played alternately in goal with Jens Lehmann, who was also on penalty duty – albeit with a shot against the bar. The list of goalscorers included Bayer 04 legend Stefan Kießling and Ulf Kirsten and Torben Hoffmann netted a hat-trick. Simon Rolfes, Fredi Bobic (Eintracht Frankfurt sporting director), Maxi Kleber (basketball) Moritz Fürste (hockey), Stefan Kretzschmar (Handball), Leon Draisatil (ice hockey), Fabian Hambüchen (gymnastics) and a host of other athletes, including para-athletes, made up the two sides.
Pietro Lombardi was also amongst the goalscorers and, after the trophy was presented, he performed two of his songs 'Señorita' and 'Phenomenal'. There was also music at half-time for the 11,028 spectators provided by Lucas Rieger. Dirk Nowitzki and Mick Schumacher received a cheque in the sum of €100,000 for the Dirk Nowitzki Foundation and the Keep Fighting Foundation and afterwards they spent over an hour signing autographs for the fans at the BayArena.
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Ten years after retiring as a player, Kristina Sundov is returning to the Bayer 04 Women’s team as assistant coach. The 39-year-old former Croatia international takes over from Remzi Kahraman, who has taken up a new challenge abroad. She has been given a contract to 30 June 2028.
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The training pitches at the BayArena are already buzzing with activity again, even before training officially begins next week. On Monday morning, a small group from the Werkself first-team squad completed a session lasting around an hour. Both new and familiar faces were present.
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One ticket, two matches – and a varied programme of events, including appearances by players from the professional teams: Bayer 04 has come up with something very special for the 2026 season launch on Saturday, 8 August. From morning right through to the evening, Werkself fans can use just one ticket to not only enjoy top-class football from the Bayer 04 teams live, but also to experience unforgettable moments with the whole family through a variety of hands-on activities around the BayArena and the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The day will also end on a real high note: after both matches, Bayer 04 supporters will have the opportunity to interact directly with the players during joint activities and get to know them from a different angle.
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Issa Traoré is moving from Bayer 04 Leverkusen to Slovakian top-flight side AS Trencin. The club has loaned the centre-back out for one year to this year’s ninth-placed team in the Slovakian league.
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