The evening started with a setback for Bayer 04: Fabian ‘B04_Dubzje’ de Cae was 3-0 down after 25 minutes against the Mainz player Deniel ‘Denii_10’ Mutic on XBOX; and the final score was 4-0. “I lost the game by a country mile,” said a disappointed de Cae. “I was unlucky at times but the defeat was obviously deserved.”
All the more important was the victory for Kai ‘Deto’ Wollin in the following one-on-one on PlayStation. Up against the Mainz 05 player Francesco ‘Bajazzo_7’ Mazzei, the two-time world champion in Black and Red spent “ten minutes where I was just chasing the game.” However, thanks to an improved performance, ‘Deto’ ended up winning the clash 2-0. There was a change of formation to 4-4-2 in the two-on-two game – and that brought the next three points. “I’d like to thank ‘Deto’ for “helping me bounce back after my defeat. The six points against direct rivals are very important,” was de Cae’s assessment of the first part of the double matchday.
In contrast to the Mainz game, ‘Deto’ was more successful in the opener against HSV. The B04 eSports player controlled the clash with Hamburg’s Leon ‘HSV__Leon’ Krasniqi and he earned a deserved 3-0 win on PlayStation. And de Cae also performed better than against Mainz, earning a 2-1 win against Christoph ‘HSV Chrissi’ Strietzel “thanks to an improved performance” (SOT de Cae).
Bayer 04 only failed to win maximum points in the two-on-two against the Hamburg players Niklas ‘HSV NHeisen’ Heisen and Quinten ‘HSV Quinten’ van der Most – the final score 1-1. “We could have got three points here too,” declared Leverkusen’s de Cae. His partner ‘Deto’ summed up proceedings as follows: “13 out of 18 points against direct rivals – that’s a good result!”
‘B04_Dubzje’ and ‘Deto’ are back in action on Wednesday, 22 January with games against VfL Wolfsburg (18.00 CET) and Schalke 04 (20.30 CET). In a change from Monday games in the first half of the season, the regular VBL matchdays will now be on Wednesdays.
A special visit to the BayArena: 222 members from volunteer fire brigades in Leverkusen, the Rheinisch-Bergisch district and the Oberbergisch district watched the Werkself’s 2–0 home win over Slovenian champions NK Celje live in the stadium. Bayer 04 had invited them to the 2026/27 Europa League opener as a thank-you for their tremendous dedication. They watched the match together in Block F4.
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The Bayer 04 U19s have extended their winning run with a fifth consecutive victory on Matchday 5 of the DFB Youth League’s preliminary round. Coach Patrick Greveraars’ side secured a 3–2 (2–1) win in their match against second-placed FC Viktoria Köln, with Burak Kir and Nebe Domnic scoring for the hosts in the first half before captain Ben Hawighorst found the net after the break.
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Bayer 04 will have to manage without defender Guéla Doué for the time being. The Ivory Coast international sustained a muscle injury to his right calf during the final Werkself training session yesterday ahead of the Europa League clash with Slovenian champions NK Celje.
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For the first time since reaching the final against AS Roma (2–2, first leg 2–0) in May 2024, Bayer 04 are playing another home match in the UEFA Europa League – and they will be wearing their new European kit. On Wednesday 16 September (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), the BayArena will welcome Slovenian champions NK Celje, who appointed a new coach this week following a mixed start to the season. Under the slogan “40 Years Across Europe. Still Creating History.”, the Black and Reds now aim to add the next chapter to their European history, which has seen so much success in recent years. Bayer 04 fans can follow the match on free-to-air TV on RTL, as well as on Sky and Werkself Radio. The matchday news.
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European football returns to the BayArena: Bayer 04 host Slovenian champions NK Celje on matchday 1 in the group stage of the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. Ahead of the match on Wednesday 16 September (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), head coach Carles Martínez and midfielder Aleix Garcia spoke at the pre-match press conference. The focus was primarily on the great anticipation surrounding the competition and the clear objectives for it – and, given the circumstances, on a last-minute change to the opposition line-up.
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