"We've got a young team with lots of promise and we want to keep them together. The fact we convinced Jonathan to stick with us says a lot for everybody involved," said CEO Michael Schade.
Jonathan Tah joined Bayer 04 in 2015 from Hamburg SV. The 1.94 metre central defender has made 112 appearances for the Werkself in domestic and European competitions and made his full international debut for Germany. Sporting director Rudi Völler: "Jonathan has progressed fantastically at Leverkusen, exceeded our expectations and is now one of the top German defenders. A number of top clubs have shown an interest in him. It's a big success for Bayer 04 that he's decided to extend his stay at the club. Jonathan knows what he's got at Leverkusen and he'd like to take the next steps in his career here."
Head coach Heiko Herrlich is looking forward to continuing to work with the number four: "Jona has outstanding assets. He's quick, technically strong, has great physical strength, is calm and has vision. But he still feels he has room for improvement. He will bring us a lot of pleasure and have fun."
The player takes a similar view: I've always said I really feel at home in Leverkusen. The club and the rest are perfect for me. I became a full international at Bayer 04 and I can develop at the highest level here. We can achieve a lot with this young team. And I want to play my part," said Jonathan Tah.
Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career working as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personal Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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Bayer 04 host top French club Marseille at the BayArena on matchday four in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League group stage. The match kicks off on Thursday 5 November at 21:00 CET. The latest information on ticket sales.
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During the international break, Bayer 04 will face third-division newcomers SC Fortuna Köln on Friday 2 October (kick-off: 11:00 CEST). The match will be played on training pitch 1 at the BayArena, as preparations are already underway at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium for the Bayer 04 women’s Bundesliga home match against Werder Bremen, which is due to kick off in the early evening. To ensure the friendly against Fortuna Köln runs smoothly and without disruption, it will be played behind closed doors.
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The BAYER 04 HILFT Day is celebrating an anniversary: for the tenth year running, a large number of employees of the Bundesliga club have been getting involved in a community project in Leverkusen and the surrounding area. Following the refurbishment of the city library last year, this time around some 70 staff members rolled up their sleeves to help out at the Bunker Youth Centre in Leverkusen-Wiesdorf. With the support of the Lebenshilfe workshops in Leverkusen and partner Coca-Cola, a rubber football pitch was laid, a Bayer 04-style lounge was created and other projects were carried out. Werkself players and coaching staff also gave their all.
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