Before the start of the season, Charles Aránguiz took over the captain’s armband from Lars Bender, who gave up the role after five years. Peter Bosz has opted for a defensive duo as the vice-captains for the Chilean as the 56-year-old announced on Thursday night at the press conference after the 6-2 victory over Nice in the Europa League. Lars or Sven Bender will captain the team this season if the South America midfielder is unavailable. That happened in the second half at Mainz (1-0) and against Nice. For those 135 minutes, the armband was again worn by Lars, the older twin brother by a few minutes.
The Werkself team committee this season is made up of six players. The skipper and his two vice-captains are joined by experienced player Julian Baumgartlinger, Germany international Jonathan Tah and Wendell.
The 6-2 scoreline against Nice was not only a more than successful start to the new Europa League campaign but also the biggest win for Bayer 04 on the European stage. “I’m happy with the result,” said Bosz. Moreover: The Werkself are now unbeaten in 13 European games at the BayArena. And hopefully that will continue on 26 November against Hapoel Be’er Sheva – the Israelis sprang a surprise with their 3-1 win against Slavia Prague in their opening game on Thursday night.
As usual, UEFA published their top team of the Europa League matchday on Friday afternoon. In addition to Hoffenheim’s Christoph Baumgartner, who opened the scoring in the 2-0 win for TSG against Red Star Belgrade, UEFA also chose two Leverkusen players: Nadiem Amiri and Karim Bellarabi. Congratulations lads - you deserved it!
Daniel Schwaab played as a defender for the Werkself for four years and in his four seasons at Leverkusen (2009 to 2013) he made almost 100 Bundesliga appearances for Bayer 04. After his time under the Bayer Cross, the Waldkirchen-born joined VfB Stuttgart and then moved on to PSV Eindhoven where he played up to the summer. Schwaab has now decided to hang up his boots at the age of 32. “I’ve decided to stop because I want to dedicate myself to new challenges,” said the defender to kicker.
The German Football Association (DFB) wants to provide more transparency with refereeing decisions in the Bundesliga via a Twitter account. From the next matchday, information on intervention by the Video Assistant Referee (VAR) will be published on Twitter at @dfbschiris. This is intended to enable “faster and better understanding of individual decisions.”
Bayer 04 Leverkusen welcomes a new official member to the Sponsors’ Club at the start of the 2026/27 campaign. KKV Kabelverlegung GmbH & Co. KG is expanding its existing partnership and will, with immediate effect, act as a supporter of the Bundesliga club at the second-highest partner level, just below the premium tier. As an official partner in the Sponsors’ Club, KKV will now enjoy significantly enhanced visibility during Werkself matches at the BayArena. The new contract is initially valid until 30 June 2028.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen has extended the existing partnership agreement with EDO Personalservice GmbH and, at the same time, expanded its collaboration with the Cologne-based company. The official partner in the Business Club has been upgraded within Bayer 04’s partner network. The revised and enhanced support for the club has initially been agreed for two years, running until 30 June 2028.
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Video games developer Electronic Arts (EA), in collaboration with the Bundesliga, has announced the six nominees for the Bundesliga ‘Player of the Month’ award for September – Bayer 04’s Miguel Gutiérrez has made it into this select group after just four Bundesliga matches. Fans of the Black and Reds can vote from now until Sunday 27 September (23:59 CEST).
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Calling all Werkself fans: Even during the three-week international break – a first for September and October – you have the chance to visit the BayArena – and for a very special occasion. Bayer 04 is hosting a Health Day on Saturday 3 October, from 10:00 to 14:00 CEST in the Premium Lounge. Together with Bayer Vital and main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer, the Bundesliga club invites you to an interactive, free event centred on the theme of health. Partners will be present on site with their own exciting activities. Here is an overview of the programme of events.
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