Our head coach has now been in post for a year. The Dutchman took over the coaching hot seat from Heiko Herrlich for the second half of the 2018/19 season. The first game in charge of Bayer 04 for the 56-year-old was a home game against Borussia Mönchengladbach on 19 January 2019 (0-1). Since then there have been 44 other fixtures in the Bundesliga, the Europa and Champions Leagues plus the DFB Cup.
In the second half of last season, the Werkself produced an outstanding comeback to achieve the season's target in the chase for points. For the first time in the season, on the last matchday in the Bundesliga, the Black and Reds jumped up to fourth place in the table away to Hertha Berlin to secure a place in the UEFA Champions League.
The record (with the first match of the second half of the season being played in December 2018): Twelve wins, one draw, five defeats.
For the last home game of the 2018/19 season against Schalke 04, Bayer 04 celebrated the '40 years in the Bundesliga under the Bayer Cross' anniversary for three days. The back story: Bayer 04 finally reached their target on 13 May 1979: A 3-3 draw against Bayer 05 Uerdingen at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium saw the team coached by Willibert Kremer secure promotion to Germany's top flight. The Bundesliga adventure started on 11 August 1979 with an away game at Bayern Munich. Bayer 04 have remained in the top division since that day.
Bum-kun Cha, Christoph Daum, Erik Meijer, Jens Nowotny, Bernd Schneider, Zé Roberto and Paulo Sergio joined the promotion heroes from 1979 and many other Bayer 04 All Stars at the event. It was a great party!
The summer of 2019 brought 04 new faces and squad numbers: Kerem Demirbay, Moussa Diaby, Daley Sinkgraven and Nadiem Amiri joined Bayer 04. Their first competitive appearances in black and red:
Back to Salzburger Land: Once again, the Werkself held their summer training camp in Zell am See-Kaprun. Strenuous training sessions and two friendlies against Watford and SD Eibar were on the agenda for the Werkself for a week in July:
The first half of the campaign in this season has been rather up and down for the Werkself. On the one hand, we are happy to remember the outstanding away win at FC Bayern or the three points at home to Schalke, away to Wolfsburg and Düsseldorf. On the other hand, the derby defeat in Cologne still hurts as do the dropped points against Hoffenheim, Werder Bremen and Hertha Berlin… The first half of the season in pictures:
The Werkself had three ties in the DFB Cup in 2019. Memories of the first in February last season are less good – the Werkself were knocked out in the Round of 16 away to FC Heidenheim after a 1-1 draw. The Werkself are looking to do better this season – and are again in the last 16. The route there was via a 4-1 away win in the first round at Alemannia Aachen followed by a 1-0 home win against SC Paderborn in the second round.
The Werkself have certainly travelled a lot this year. The second half of last season saw Peter Bosz and his players travel to Russia to play FK Krasnodar but the last 32 of the Europa League but Bayer 04 were knocked out at that stage. A new season, another competition: The Werkself were back in the Champions League in the summer after two and a half years. The draw put Bayer 04 in Group D with some impressive opponents: Lokomotiv Moscow, Juventus and Atletico Madrid. Impressions:
Bayer 04 supporters again produced some great fan choreography in 2019. The pictures speak for themselves…
Calling Bayer 04 families – this matchday is all yours! As part of the Family Matchday on Sunday 20 September, not only will the Werkself take on RB Leipzig at 15:30 CEST but there will also be a variety of activity zones for young and old alike be set up around the BayArena. What’s more, genuine Bayer 04 rarities await Black and Red fans at the Fantrödel flea market. By taking part in the fan travel survey, Leverkusen supporters can help the club gather important information and even win a jersey before the Werkself hit the ground running against Leipzig on the pitch. The matchday news for RB Leipzig game.
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It has been a mixed start to the season for RB Leipzig. The team from Saxony have a flawless record at home but are less successful on the road to date. RBL are looking to change that in their away fixture at the BayArena on Sunday, 20 September (kick-off: 15:30 CEST). However, head coach Martin Demichelis will have to manage without a number of key players. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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From the 2027/28 season, the Women’s Bundesliga will be organised by an independent league association. Following the unanimous decision taken at the DFB Bundestag (national conference) on Friday afternoon, the league’s separation from the DFB is now official.
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The next home fixture is here: Following the winning start to the UEFA Europa League against NK Celje, the Werkself host RB Leipzig at the BayArena on matchday 4 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga campaign. The match on Sunday, 20 September, kicks off at 15:30 CEST. At the pre-match press conference, head coach Carles Martínez spoke about the qualities of the opposition and the work being done to improve his team’s performance. The Spaniard also provided updates on Ibrahim Maza and Montrell Culbreath.
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