Following victory in the semi-final against Werder Bremen, the future champions of Germany, there was much confidence at Bayer 04 both amongst the fans as wellas the players and coaches. Espanyol were impressive en route to the final, knocking out Borussia Mönchengladbach and FC Brugge as well as the two Italian heavyweights AC and Inter Milan.
It was looking good in Barcelona for much of the game. The Black and Reds appeared to be in control of the game much to the joy of the 2,000 travelling fans but there was no penetration to the opposition goal. Considering that Thomas Hörster and Christian Schreier were injured and Erich Seckler was suspended and Bum-kun Cha went off injured after 18 minutes, it was all going well for Leverkusen...
The remaining course of the final first leg is available in the highlights video from Bayer 04 TV. Here, the former Werkself players Rüdiger Vollborn, Falko Götz, Wolfgang Rolff and head coach Erich Ribbeck recall the clash.
A detailed article on the 30th anniversary from 2018 is available HERE.
Match stats:
Espanyol: N'Kono – Gallart – Job, Miguel Angel – Orejuela (Golobart 66’), Inaki, Urkiaga, Soler – Valverde, Pichi Alonso (Lauridsen 69’), Losada
Bayer 04: Vollborn – Rolff – De Keyser, A. Reinhardt, Hinterberger – Cha (Götz 18’), Tita, Buncol, Falkenmayer (K. Reinhardt 75’) – Waas, Täuber
Goals: 1-0 Losada (44’), 2-0 Soler (49’), 3-0 Losada (57’)
Referee: Krchnak (Czechoslovakia)
Booked: Täuber
Attendance: 42,000 at the Estadi Sarrià (Barcelona)
Bayer 04 and Olympiacos had only met twice before the current UEFA Champions campaign. After the encounter on Matchday 7 of this season’s league phase, the Werkself travel to face the Greek side for the second time in just four weeks for the knockout play-off first leg. The Black and Reds were dominant for large spells in mid-January but lost 2-0 after missing a number of presentable chances. The Werkself aim to do better on Wednesday night to “seize the chance for revenge,” as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.
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A bitter end to the fifth showdown of the 2025/26 VBL Club Championship as the #B04eSports team failed to take any points in the three remaining matches of the preliminary online round of the fifth and final showdown, missing out on the offline round. They can no longer take points in the overall table. Bayer 04 slipped out on the top eight, so direct participation in the final event for the German Club Championship is no longer possible, with Bayer 04 having to contest the play-offs.
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A rematch in Athens: On Wednesday, 18 February (kick-off: 21:00 CET), the Werkself face Greek double winners Olympiacos for the second time this season at the Karaiskakis Stadium. After the encounter in the league phase, it's now time for the first leg of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League play-offs. Ahead of the game, head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about how his side will approach the clash, while captain Robert Andrich explained how the team will try to dampen the atmosphere in the stadium tomorrow.
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With the much-celebrated 2-1 derby win against 1. FC Köln, the Bayer 04 Women underlined their credentials as one of the top teams in the Bundesliga. Anyone wishing to support the Werkself in the stadium in the race for third place can now purchase tickets for the home match against FC Carl Zeiss Jena. Tickets are also still available for the upcoming clash against TSG Hoffenheim at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Sunday, 22 February. The latest information at a glance.
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Let's give it our all one more time! Today, Tuesday 17 February (live on the VBL Twitch channel from 18:00 CET), the #B04eSports team play the remaining three preliminary round matches of the fifth and final showdown of the VBL Club Championship 2025/26. The Leverkusen console pros go up against 1. FC Nürnberg, 1. FC Magdeburg and Bayern Munich, aiming to secure their place in the offline knockout round and pick up valuable points for the overall table and the battle to get into the final event for the German Club Championship. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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