Patrick Helmes scored 28 goals in 57 Bundesliga games for Bayer 04 between 2008 and 2011. After injury forced him to end his playing career in 2015, the central striker became a coach. Helmes returned to Leverkusen as youth coach in 2018 to train the U15s. The now 36-year-old is moving on to the Alps this summer. Just outside Vienna, Helmes, who also played for Germany during his time at the Werkself (23 caps), will be assistant to head coach Zvonimir Soldo as well as youth coach for the Austrian top-flight club FC Flyeralarm Admira.
On Saturday, 11 July, Bayer 04 distributed the T-shirts placed on the seats at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin for the DFB Cup final against FC Bayern free of charge to 3,500 fans at the BayArena via a drive-in system. Over 12,000 shirts were handed out and, in return, the supporters donated the considerable sum of €6,516.35 to the Reuschenberg Wildlife Park in Leverkusen. Bayer 04 would like to thank everyone who donated.
The German Football Association (DFB) have announced the first details for next seasons DFB Cup. The draw for the first round (11 to 14 September) will be made on 26 July, "to enable amateur clubs to make detailed plans for the venues," said the DFB. The draw will be broadcast live on ARD.
Participants from the state associations will not be known by the time of the draw as the majority of the teams in the amateur sector remain to be confirmed due to the coronavirus pandemic. The state finals day for the amateurs is set for 22 August. By the middle of August, all of the participating amateur clubs must inform the DFB of possible home venues for the first round ties and also present agreed hygiene protocols to the relevant authorities.
DFB Cup dates 2020/21:
First round: 11 to 14 September
Second round: 22/23 December
Round of 16: 2/3 February 2021
Quarter-finals: 2/3 March 2021
Semi-finals: 1/2 May 2021 (subject to later confirmation)
Final: 13 May 2021
After the Bundesliga restart, Bayer 04 reacted in the area of catering to the changed circumstances due to the coronavirus pandemic. That involved the Bundesliga club – based on the hygiene protocol of the DFL – supplying the few journalists permitted access to the BayArena with lunch packages, which has inspired the Süddeutsche Zeitung to compose a short message of praise. "At Leverkusen, the bags were so full they could have fed a family of four," wrote the SZ. "There were sandwiches, rissoles, fruit, chocolate bars and a biscuit that was as big as a cake."
The route for the Werkself to a possible Europa League final in Cologne has been known since Friday, 10 July. UEFA completed the draw in Nyon in Switzerland. After the 3-1 away win in the Round of 16 first leg at Glasgow Rangers, Bayer 04 are in with a good chance of reaching the quarter-finals. The opponents would be Getafe or Inter Milan. The two top South European teams are completing their Round of 16 tie in one game as the first leg in March fell victim to the coronavirus pandemic. Moreover: Both Getafe (19.30 CET at Deportivo Alavés) as well as Inter (21.45 CET against Torino) are playing on Monday night – both games are live on DAZN. Assessing the opposition can begin…
This cheerful soul is celebrating his birthday: The former Leverkusen youth player and Werkself first teamer Danny da Costa is 27 years old today (Monday). Born in Neuss, he signed for Bayer 04 as a youth player from Winfriedia Mülheim. In 2012, he went out on loan to FC Ingolstadt before signing a permanent deal with the club from Upper Bavaria in 2014. After playing for Leverkusen again in 2016/17, da Costa has been at Eintracht Frankfurt for the past three years. Bayer 04 wish Danny a very happy birthday!
Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career working as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personal Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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Bayer 04 host top French club Marseille at the BayArena on matchday four in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League group stage. The match kicks off on Thursday 5 November at 21:00 CET. The latest information on ticket sales.
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During the international break, Bayer 04 will face third-division newcomers SC Fortuna Köln on Friday 2 October (kick-off: 11:00 CEST). The match will be played on training pitch 1 at the BayArena, as preparations are already underway at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium for the Bayer 04 women’s Bundesliga home match against Werder Bremen, which is due to kick off in the early evening. To ensure the friendly against Fortuna Köln runs smoothly and without disruption, it will be played behind closed doors.
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The BAYER 04 HILFT Day is celebrating an anniversary: for the tenth year running, a large number of employees of the Bundesliga club have been getting involved in a community project in Leverkusen and the surrounding area. Following the refurbishment of the city library last year, this time around some 70 staff members rolled up their sleeves to help out at the Bunker Youth Centre in Leverkusen-Wiesdorf. With the support of the Lebenshilfe workshops in Leverkusen and partner Coca-Cola, a rubber football pitch was laid, a Bayer 04-style lounge was created and other projects were carried out. Werkself players and coaching staff also gave their all.
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