Bayer 04 is not only one of the largest football clubs in Germany, but also a medium-sized business enterprise with a commitment to its home town of Leverkusen and Bayer AG. This also goes hand in hand with a high standard of integrity and compliance. The club is committed to fair play – both on and off the pitch. After all, Bayer 04 is an attractive employer brand with some 350 staff at present. Fair competition is therefore not only practised on the pitch, but also in the procurement and selection of partners and service providers. The club consistently focuses on innovation and progress and continuously engages in close dialogue with its stakeholders as a basis for its own actions.
B04 stands for a family-like atmosphere and a transparent club policy, both internally and externally. Transparent management culture is the motto. This means involving employees in all important issues, holding regular staff meetings, but also engaging in an open exchange with the outside world and involving fans, for example with regard to the jersey or catering offers within the framework of various discussion formats. On the one hand, this togetherness promotes the positioning of B04 as an attractive employer brand and, on the other hand, is the basis of the work "for the dream of our fans".
Fan dialogue, partner exchange and communication on one level links Bayer 04 with a holistic lead stakeholder dialogue with the aim of hand-in-hand progress for a common direction for the club and its future. Bayer 04 is in constant dialogue with all its stakeholders including fans, sponsors, local authority and associations. That is the only way a successful partnership is possible and thereby effective for the smooth running of matchday operations. The dialogue is particular in the form of a completed material analysis, the base of all the sustainability efforts of Bayer 04.
Sustainability is also a topic of innovation for Bayer 04. To make football more sustainable, new ways and solutions are needed, especially digital ones. Bayer 04 pioneered the eTicket, which saves a huge amount of paper for printed tickets. The same applies to digital receipts issued by the stadium catering services. The print media circulation has also been greatly reduced, with the club now relying on digital channels and solutions. Innovative technology for more sustainable turf management, composting facilities for recycling green waste and food waste, or the latest artificial turf technology are emblematic of an innovative approach to sustainability transformation.
Bayer 04 first published an activity report on its commitment to sustainability in 2017. The club is currently revising its sustainability reporting. In future, an up-to-date sustainability report based on a recognised reporting standard will be published here.
Compliance at Bayer 04 is a question of attitude: reliability, honesty, credibility and integrity are part of the corporate philosophy. The highest standards of fair competition apply at Bayer 04. As a subsidiary of Bayer AG, strict compliance guidelines apply at Bayer 04, something all employees are reminded of through regular training. This also applies to sports: all licensed, women's and youth players undergo regular training and workshops on various topics, including: fair play, anti-doping, anti-discrimination and bullying prevention. B04 also publicly positions itself against any form of discrimination and lives this internally as well as externally.
Bayer 04 strives to deal responsibly with fan articles and internally used products. A clean supply chain is the basis for the club's actions. Among other things, Bayer 04 does not tolerate child labour in the entire supply chain (in accordance with ILO Convention 182) and demands social and fair standards at the production sites. The club has its products produced as locally as possible, preferably in Europe. Some of Bayer 04's fan merchandise bears various fair trade labels or common environmental labels. The club is working to gradually increase the proportion of sustainably certified fan merchandise. At the production sites, Bayer 04 demands socially responsible and fair standards. When shipping its packages from the warehouse, Bayer 04 relies exclusively on DHL Go Green, DHL's climate-neutral shipping service.
Bayer 04 are again participating in the Orange Your City campaign on this year's International Day For the Elimination of Violence Against Women. The BayArena will be floodlit in orange from 17.002 23.00 CET on 25 November.
Show moreA white spot, bags of nerves and special guests: As part of the Bayer 04 campaign of district matchdays, the club organised a penalty tournament in Quettingen for the second event matchday in this Bundesliga season the game against Union Berlin. A prominent trio led by club representative Stefan Kießling called in on the city penalty competition between Opladen, venue of the first event matchday, and its successor Quettingen.
Show moreTogether under the Cross: During the new Bayer 04 campaign of district matchdays, the Werkself will be visiting the different districts of Leverkusen in the coming months. Opladen is centre stage for the first of six special matchday events ahead of the home game against SC Freiburg. The GGS Herzogstraße school was the venue for the first event on Tuesday 17 October.
Show moreIt was once again time for sleeves to be rolled up for a good cause as Werkself players and staff from both the men and women’s teams came together for the seventh edition of the BAYER 04 HILFT Day on Tuesday, 12 September. After last year's event at the Burgloch allotment club, this time Xabi Alonso and Co. slaved away at NaturGut Ophoven - with great success.
Show moreGolf for a good cause: The annual Bayer 04 golf tournament was held on Monday 21 August. Alongside partners and sponsors, Bayer 04 management and Werkself players were also swinging their clubs out on the golf course. Once again, a considerable amount of money was collected in donations that this year go to the German child protection society, the Deutscher Kinderschutzbund Leverkusen.
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