News in brief: Countdown to digital season launch

FINALLY! AGAIN! FOOTBALL! As is the case every year, the summer break felt too long again. And not only the Werkself and Bayer 04 fans can hardly wait for the opening match but the whole of the football community in Germany will be happy that the new season is finally kicking off. Ahead of the first match for the team under head coach Gerardo Seoane in the first round of the DFB Cup against FC Lokomotive Leipzig (Saturday, 7 August, 15.30 CEST), we want to celebrate the start of the new campaign with you. Of course, we want to start the new season with all Bayer 04 fans but that remains impossible due to the continuing coronavirus pandemic. The season launch will again be held digitally as was the case last year.

Three quarters of an hour before kick-off in the cup tie, we will get the ball rolling on the Bayer 04 YouTube channel with a broad programme live from the Schwadbud. We will look back at the pre-season, look forward to what the Werkself can expect, speak to CEO Fernando Carro and join Stefan Kießling in Leipzig. In addition, our new captain Lukas Hradecky will answer questions from the U13 lads, we introduce our Bayer 04 Women's squad and then switch to the Bruno Plache Stadium for the arrival of the Werkself.

Anybody joining in and looking out can also win a brand-new Bayer 04 away shirt – signed by all the players. So join us: On Saturday, 7 August, from 14.45 CEST on the Bayer 04 YouTube channel.

2 days to #LOKB04

The Werkself had their penultimate session on Thursday morning ahead of the cup tie at FC Lokomotive Leipzig. While Jonathan Tah and Co. did recovery training after the practice match on Wednesday, Copa America winner Exequiel Palacios and Julian Baumgartlinger worked out on the training ground individually today. New signing Mitchel Bakker completed a session in the Werkstatt and Timothy Fosu-Mensah made progress on the speed court at the BayArena.

Hannes Wolf visits the BayArena

Thursday afternoon brought a reunion with Gerardo Seoane's predecessor Hannes Wolf. The 40-year-old returned to his old workplace in his new and former function as the Germany U19 coach to give a lecture to the coaches at the Performance Centre on the subject of 'intuitive match ability'. Before and after the lecture in the Schwadbud there was time to catch up with former colleagues. See you again soon, Hannes.

congratulations  go to Ohio

There was a birthday on 5 August for one of the four previous Bayer 04 USA internationals: Frankie Hejduk was 47 on Thursday. The Californian-born player left his home country for the first time in the summer of 1998 with the full-back following the call from the Werkself. In the following four years, the 85-time international made 28 appearances in Black and Red. After a loan spell at Swiss club FC St Gallen, Hejduk return to the states in 2003. Today he is working for his former club Columbus Crew in the state of Ohio. Happy birthday, Frankie.

Another absolute Bayer 04 legend would have celebrated his birthday on Thursday too: Harold Wohner, who reliably works as part of the support staff for six decades from 1956, would have been 86 years old. "Harry would never have considered anything else other than Bayer 04," declared sporting managing director Rudi Völler shortly after Wohner passed away in June 2018. We will never forget you, Harry.