The Werkself players arrived in good mood late in the afternoon for the first training session of the new year. Before the players went on the pitch, there was a warm-up session inside the BayArena including several stretching exercises. Fans already present were able to watch the Werkself warm up from above.
Around seven o'clock, the Bayer 04 players entered the pitch at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium to the backdrop of thunderous applause and vocal support from the 1,700 fans. Also in the group were youth players Artem Stepanov, Othniel Raterik and Andrea Natali.
In the presence of the sporting managing director Simon Rolfes and director of professional teams Thomas Eichin the session started in icy temperatures of two degrees with passing and receiving drills in small and large groups. Head coach Xabi Alonso kept a close eye on proceedings and again and again made a contribution. The goalkeeping trio including captain Lukas Hradecky as usual worked separately with goalkeeping coach David Thiel. To follow up there were more intensive drills in tight spaces as well as a sprinting session.
After the intense session, the returning Werkself players took time out for autograph and photo requests from the fans present.
The training sessions on Saturday and Sunday will be behind closed doors. On Sunday, 5 January, the Werkself have a friendly at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium against Regional League side Rot-Weiß Oberhausen. The match kicks off at noon CET. All the tickets for game have been sold but there will be a free live stream on Werkself TV as well as on YouTube.
The first competitive match for Bayer 04 in the new year follows on Friday, 10 January (kick-off: 20.30 CET) away to Borussia Dortmund. Away tickets for the first match of the year for the German double winners have all been sold. The first game for the Werkself at the BayArena is on Tuesday, 14 January (kick-off: 20.30 CET) against Mainz 05. Remaining tickets are available HERE.
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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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