
The BayArena was lit up in purple for several hours on Tuesday night. For the fifth year in succession, Bayer 04 sent out a colourful signal for World Prematurity Day to raise awareness of the subject of premature births and the associated consequences for children and parents. In Germany, around 60,000 children are born premature every year. The Leverkusen Clinic, with an association with Bayer 04 for many years, is considered to be one of the most experienced maternity clinics in the region with 1,600 births per year. Over 80 premature babies weighing less than 1,500 grammes – including 40 premature babies weighing less than a thousand grammes – were cared for at the Leverkusen Clinic last year. Due to the especially high quality of care, even the smallest premature babies with a birth weight of 500 grammes or less survive. "Strong start for little heroes" is this year's motto for the worldwide information campaign that saw the involvement of the team from the mother and child centre at the Leverkusen Clinic, which is supported by Bayer 04.





Rudi Völler will be the guest on the Sky 90 TV programme on Sunday 22 November. In his weekly talk show, Patrick Wasserzier discusses the Bundesliga matchday for 90 minutes – the Werkself game away to Arminia Bielefeld will also be a topic for discussion. It starts at 11.30 CET – live and available for free on Sky Sport News HD as well as on a live stream at skysport.de.
The last international break of this year is slowly but surely drawing to a close. Only two Werkself players are in action with their national teams on Wednesday night: In the Nations League, Julian Baumgartlinger is set to play for Austria against Norway. Due to suspension, Aleksandar Dragovic left the Austria team at the weekend and is now training with the Werkself again after a negative coronavirus test on Tuesday. Keeper Lukas Hradecky with Finland is in Wales also in the Nations League. Both matches kick-off at 20.45 CET and are live on DAZN. Lucas Alario has already been able to set off on his return journey. Argentina beat Peru 2-0 overnight in a World Cup qualifier but our number 13 did not play.
Autumn is time for pumpkins, thought Alexander Wagner, head chef with the Werkself, and he has prepared a tasty pasta dish with pumpkin sauce together with the Bayer 04 health partner, BERGISCHE KRANKENKASSE. A genuine athletes dish as Wagner revealed as when he's cooking for the Peter Bosz team, he particularly pays attention to sufficient carbohydrates, proteins, fats and vitamins. In this video he shows the preparation step-by-step and the recipe is available to print in the comments section.
Black and Red congratulations on your 59th birthday, Alois Reinhardt. Never to be forgotten is his winning goal in the semi-final first leg of the 1988 UEFA Cup tie against Werder Bremen that also secured a place in the final after a goalless second leg. Reinhardt played for Bayer 04 from 1984 to 1991 and he also played for Germany while he was under the Bayer Cross.

This special event showed once again how strong Bayer 04 are as a team: As part of ‘BarmeniaGothaer gives joy’, the Werkself players Edmond Tapsoba, Ibrahim Maza and Christian Kofane supported the sale of individually designed T-shirts for a good cause at the Fanwelt on Thursday. Several hundred fans came to take part in the charity campaign. Leverkusen's main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer donated the proceeds to the Fondation Edmond Tapsoba, which helps people in Tapsoba's home country of Burkina Faso in their challenging everyday lives.
Show more
With three games to play before the end of the season, the Bayer 04 Women can break one record and equal another at SGS Essen. After three wins on the bounce, coach Roberto Pätzold's team are aiming to maintain the chance of third place in Sunday’s away game (14:00 CEST, Stadion an der Hafenstraße).
Show more
From Ouagadougou to Leverkusen – and back: in March, Bayer 04 travelled with Edmond Tapsoba for a special project in his homeland Burkina Faso. The country where his roots and heart lie. The country where he’s more than a world-class defender: a symbol of hope and a role model for an entire generation. The result is a 45-minute documentary about Tapsoba’s long journey from Africa via Portugal to Leverkusen, which offers extraordinary, one-off and emotional insights.
Show more
Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
Show more
A special surprise: during the preview for the 'Fierté Burkinabè' documentary about Edmond Tapsoba, Bayer 04 directors Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes announced Tapsoba's contract extension until 2031 together with the centre-back. He then spoke to Werkself-TV about his time in Leverkusen so far and future ambitions...
Show more