Bayer 04 stands for diversity, inclusion and integration and on the Holocaust Memorial Day as with any other day is clearly against every form of violence, extremism, racism, anti-Semitism and discrimination.
With the Day of remembrance in German football, DFB, state associations, professional and amateur clubs remember the victims of National Socialism. The day of remembrance was introduced by the 'Nie Wieder' (Never again) campaign to carry the message from the survivors of the former concentration camp at Dachau into the present and future.
On this day of remembrance, the German Football Museum in Dortmund has published an online biographical dictionary of persecuted Jewish football players, which Werkself legend Rüdiger Vollborn helped to compile. "Never forget!" has been created in cooperation with the network of German football museums and club archives and contains over 200 life stories and destinies. The digital collection can be accessed HERE free of charge.
At the Africa Cup of Nations, the Ivory Coast lost 5-4 on penalties in the Round of 16 against Egypt including Liverpool star Mo Salah and are now out of the competition. Werkself defender Odilon Kossounou did not feature.
Burkina Faso, with Bayer 04 player Edmond Tapsoba, are already through to the quarter-finals at AFCON with the next match on Sunday evening. Tapsoba and Co. went through with a 7-6 win on penalties against Gabon. The Black and Red number 12 played the full 90 minutes and also converted his penalty in style. They face Tunisia in the quarter-finals with the FC Köln player Ellyes Skhiri in their ranks. The kick-off on Saturday 29 January is at 20.00 CET. It will be broadcast live by the streaming service DAZN.
Bayer 04 congratulates Martin Kree on his 57th birthday. The former Werkself player wore the Black and Red shirt from 1989 to 1994. The central defender made 189 appearances, scored 27 goals and won the DFB Cup in 1993. The left-footer joined Borussia Dortmund for the 1994/95 season where he went on to win the Champions League and the World Club title three years later. Many happy returns.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have agreed a loan deal with Bundesliga club Borussia Mönchengladbach for Argentinian striker Alejo Sarco. The 20-year-old joins Mönchengladbach with immediate effect for the rest of the season.
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The Werkself are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday 7 in the league phase of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. Tonight, 20 January (kick-off: 22:00 local time/21:00 CET), Bayer 04 will not only face a familiar face in Panagiotis Retsos, but also an experienced and successful team in their Greek top-flight opponents. The Olympiacos midfield and forward line in particular are peppered with seasoned veterans from top European clubs - but even they will first have to find solutions against the Werkself defence that has recently performed with aplomb in the UCL. The matchday news.
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The Werkself are away to Greek double winners Olympiacos on matchday 7 of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League league phase. Ahead of the clash on Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about anticipation for the game. Werkself player Ibrahim Maza also gave an insight into dealing with the recent setbacks.
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After their first win on matchday 6 in the UCL league phase, Olympiacos are still in with a good chance of reaching the play-offs in the UEFA Champions League. The 2024 UEFA Conference League winners will be looking to go one better in their home match against Bayer 04 this Tuesday, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), but their stop scorer is unavailable. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Panagiotis, known as Panos, Retsos wore the Bayer 04 jersey for three years. Including his loan spells, he was under contract with the Werkself for a total of four and a half years. "It's a very special club for me," said the 27-year-old, who returned to his boyhood club Olympiacos in 2022, in an interview with bayer04.de. The former Leverkusen man is now captain and a first choice for the Werkself's next opponents in the UEFA Champions League. Ahead of the clash on Tuesday night, 20 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), Retsos talks about his fond memories of his time in Leverkusen and the imminent reunion with some of his former team-mates. He also talks about who brought him to Leverkusen and why he likes getting older.
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