Kossounou and the Elephants took on the defending champions Senegal in the last 16. It finished 1-1 after 90 and then 120 minutes, meaning the tie went to a shootout. The Ivorians converted all five of their spot-kicks to win 5-4 and progress. Kossounou started the game for his first appearance at this year’s tournament, being substituted off in the 116th minute. The hosts will now face Mali in the final eight.
It was Mali who knocked out Tapsoba and Burkina Faso by winning 2-1 in the round of 16. The Werkself defender again started the match in Korhogo but unfortunately put into his own net in the third minute of the defeat. The dream of being crowned Africa’s best is also over for Adli after his Morocco side were beaten 2-0 by South Africa in San Pedro. The Bayer 04 forward made his first start of the tournament and was replaced on the hour mark.
Odilon Kossounou (Ivory Coast):
Mali vs. Ivory Coast, 3 February (18:00 CET)
Video game producer Electronic Arts (EA) has announced the nominees for the Men's and Women's Team of the Year (TOTY) for EA Sports FC 26. With Patrik Schick and Alejandro Grimaldo for the men and Vanessa Fudalla for the women, there are three Bayer 04 players included. Fans of the Black-and-Reds can vote for each top XI of 2025 from now until 18:59 CET on Monday 12 January.
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The Werkself host Mainz at the BayArena on matchday 24 in the 2025/26 Bundesliga season. The match is on Saturday, 28 February, at 15:30 CET. Information on ticket sales.
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The long-standing successful collaboration between Bayer 04 and the transport service provider wupsi GmbH has been expanded: From January 2026, 100 wupsi bikes with Bayer 04 branding will be available for hire throughout the city of Leverkusen. They will complement the many existing offers and services that provide key support, especially for fans travelling to and from home matches at the BayArena.
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The Werkself are back! Following the two-week winter break, head coach Kasper Hjulmand's team began the new year with an open session on Sunday. After Robert Andrich and his teammates arrived in Leverkusen yesterday for the official check-in, they got back down to business a day later in front of around 1,200 fans at the Ulrich Haberland Stadion. The report from the Werkself's first session of 2026.
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