
The Leverkusen youth teams each start with a group match against Alemannia Aachen. The U19 players kick off their first match in the NRW League Cup at the Kurtekotten Performance Centre at 10.30 CEST. However, due to the crowd restrictions in response to the coronavirus pandemic, only parents and relatives of the players will be able to watch the U19 fixture against Aachen at the stadium. The players' families have already been informed about access procedures.
There will be 329 seats available for Bayer 04 youth matches at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. That means spectators will be able to attend the U17 NRW League Cup opener on Saturday. The clash with Alemannia Aachen kicks off at 11.00 CEST.
Access begins approximately 45 minutes before kick-off via the North/West entrance to the BayArena. Spectators are asked to check in via QR codes before entering UHS. In addition, spectators must be fully vaccinated, recovered or tested (3G - geimpft, genesen, getestet). Children from the age of six need a certificated, negative test result that is not more than 24 hours old. The relevant documents are to be presented at the entrance to the stadium.
Face coverings are to be worn throughout the stadium and may only be taken off at your seat. Bayer 04 will not provide any catering but spectators can bring their own food and drink (up to 0.5 litres, exclusively in PET bottles and non-alcoholic).
The West German Football Association (WDFV) have set up the NRW League Cup to bridge the long gap before the start of the Western sections in the U19 and U17 Bundesligas at the start of September and also to provide the talented youngsters with an additional stage to perform on. This is open exclusively to clubs from the U19 and U17 Bundesliga West leagues with each team having to play at least three games. The teams play each other in four groups and each group winner will qualify for the semi-finals.
The Leverkusen U19s will play Aachen, Borussia Dortmund and Preußen Münster in Group 3. The Bayer 04 U17s will face Aachen and the youth teams of Fortuna Düsseldorf and Münster in Group 2. The group matches will be played on three weekends starting this weekend (7/8 August). The U17 League Cup final as in the first week of September and the U19 final is set to be played on 20 November.

In their third friendly of this pre-season, Bayer 04 played on home soil for the first time – and won there too! The Werkself claimed a comfortable 4-0 victory against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion. Jeanuel Belocian (9’) and Nathan Tella (42’) gave a dominant Leverkusen a 2-0 lead at the break, which Afonso Moreira (51’) and Christian Kofane (53’) doubled after the break. Among the many second-half substitutions was Patrik Schick, who made his first friendly appearance of the summer.
Show more
The Werkself are finally back. On Saturday 8 August, Bayer 04 kick off the 2026/27 campaign with their opening match. But there’s far more than just a double-header in store for Werkself supporters. True to the motto ‘One day. Two teams. One club’, the BayArena and the Ulrich Haberland Stadium will be transformed into a world of excitement.
Show more
The Werkself continue their 2026/27 pre-season preparations with their third friendly against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion on Wednesday 29 July (kick-off 15:00 CEST). Werkself-TV is broadcasting the match live and in full in a stream from 14:50 CEST...

After the children from the Bayer 04 Football Academy grilled Janis Blaswich and Simeon Rapsch last week, another group of 20 young Werkself fans gathered at the BayArena press conference room on Tuesday afternoon, 28 July . This time, the kids directed their questions at Tim Oermann and Jonah Berghoff. Defender Oermann raved about his school days, whilst talented midfielder Berghoff revealed to the young footballers, amongst other things, who his favourite player is – and he is also at Bayer 04. To round things off, the pair naturally obliged with all requests for autographs and selfies.
Show more
Bayer 04 are back on the pitch. Following the first training sessions, the Werkself play the first pre-season friendly on Saturday, July 18. The match against Oberliga club Sportfreunde Baumberg kicks off at 15:30 CEST in Monheim am Rhein. Fans unable to attend the match can watch head coach Carles Martínez’s first game in charge for free via a livestream at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app, as well as on Werkself.tv (exclusively for members). Just log on and watch the games live. All the other Werkself preseason friendlies leading up to the 2026/27 season will also be streamed live for free.
Show more