
In addition to Julian Brandt, Jonathan Tah and Kai Havertz (Germany), Julian Baumgartlinger and Aleksandar Dragovic (Austria), Lukas Hradecky (Finland), Charles Aránguiz (Chile), Tin Jedvaj (Croatia) and Adrian Stanilewicz (Poland U20s) are currently away on international duty.
In Austria's 1-0 defeat against Poland on Thursday night, Aleksandar Dragovic and Austria skipper Julian Baumgartlinger were both in the starting line-up. Both the Werkself players went the full distance in the European qualifier. In contrast, Tin Jedvaj was not in the squad for the World Cup runners-up Croatia on their 2-1 win against Azerbaijan in a European qualifier. Youth player Adrian Stanilewicz was not only in the starting eleven for the Poland U 20s but he also completed the full 90 minutes. His team registered a convincing 4-1 victory over Japan.
Remaining fixtures for our lads:
Julian Brandt, Kai Havertz und Jonathan Tah (Germany)
Sunday, 24 March (20.45 CET, Amsterdam): Netherlands vs Germany (European qualifier, Group C)
Julian Baumgartlinger, Aleksandar Dragovic (Austria)
Sunday, 24 March (18.00 CET, Haifa): Israel vs Austria (European qualifier, Group G)
Lukas Hradecky (Finland)
Saturday, 23 March (20.45 CET, Udine): Italy vs Finland (European qualifier, Group J)
Tuesday, 26 March (18.00 CET, Yerevan): Armenia vs Finland (European qualifier, Group J)
Tin Jedvaj (Croatia)
Sunday, 24 March (18.00 CET, Budapest): Hungary vs Croatia (European qualifier, Group, E)
Charles Aránguiz (Chile)
Saturday, 23 March (03.15 CET, in San Diego): Mexico vs Chile (Friendly)
Wednesday, 27 March (02.00 CET, Houston): USA vs Chile (Friendly)
Adrian Stanilewicz (Poland U20s)
Tuesday, 26 March (18.00 CET, Bielsko-Biala): Poland U20s vs Germany U20s (Elite League)

It was another incredibly close call in the end: The second showdown in the 2026/27 VBL Club Championship saw the #B04eSports team once again narrowly miss out on a place in the top 16 of the preliminary round – and with it, a spot in the in-person knockout stage. It was a bitter blow: Marc and Sean Landwehr again fell just short, despite being level on points with their rivals. As was the case last month, their weaker record across the twelve individual matches in the six preliminary round fixtures proved decisive.
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“They stuck with us over the past few weeks when things weren’t going so well,” said captain Edmond Tapsoba, thanking the fans for their support after the 2–1 win in Cologne and dedicating the derby victory to them. Throughout the 90 minutes, the Werkself had looked unfazed and in command, inflicting the first home defeat of the season on FC Köln. It was the sixth consecutive win against the Cologne team for Bayer 04 – head coach Carles Martínez, on the other hand, was facing the team from the neighbouring city for the first time and “now really knows what this derby win means”. The Werkself derby review.
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Following the 2–1 derby victory away at FC Köln on Bundesliga matchday 9, Edmond Tapsoba, Malik Tillman and Aleix Garcia spoke to Werkself TV...
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Werkself TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 2-1 derby win at 1. FC Köln Matchday 9 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season...
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There were celebrations among those in black and red at the RheinEnergieSTADION. On Matchday 9 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season, the Werkself beat 1. FC Köln 2-0 and registered their sixth successive win in the derby. Aleix Garcia put Bayer 04 in front after just seven minutes with a direct free kick. Leverkusen played with discipline and energy after that and didn't allow some fierce challenges to unsettle them. Patrik Schick made it 2-0 in the 86th minute, and Said El Mala's goal in stoppage time for Köln proved nothing more than consolation. Jonas Hofmann crowned the derby win with his 100th appearance for the club.
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