
The South American championship, with a total of twelve teams taking part (ten South American plus Japan and Qatar), sees the Werkself midfielder playing for the holders – Aránguiz was in the Chile teams that won in 2015 and in the special competition held in 2016 to celebrate the centenary of the South American Football Association (CONMEBOL). Ahead of the tournament, La Roja first have a warm-up game in a friendly against Haiti (6 June) before they start the group stage against Japan on 18 June followed by matches against Ecuador (22 June) and Uruguay (25 June).
Leon Bailey is about to make his international debut for Jamaica. Jamaica have called up the 21-year-old for the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup, the biennial international men's football championship of the North, Central American, and Caribbean region. The Reggae Boyz have a friendly against the USA (6 June) ahead of group matches against Honduras (18 June), El Salvador (22 June) and Curacao (26 June).
Julian Baumgartlinger and Aleksandar Dragovic have also been called up for international duty with the Austria squad. The Austrians have two European championship qualifiers against Slovenia (7 June) and North Macedonia (10 June) – as does Lukas Hradecky with Finland playing Bosnia-Herzegovina (8 June) and Liechtenstein (11 June). Paulinho is part of the Brazil U23 squad at the Maurice Revello tournament in Provence to be held from 1 to 15 June 2019 that involves top youth teams from across the world. Our number seven is set to play in the group stage against Guatemala (2 June), France (5 June) and Qatar (8 June). Isaac Kiese Thelin can now go on holiday. The forward was in the preliminary Sweden squad but has not made the cut. However, he will need to pack his football boots as the 26-year-old is on standby for the European Championship qualifiers against Malta (7 June) and Spain (10 June).
Jonathan Tah, Kai Havertz and Julian Brandt were called up to the Germany squad last week for the European Championship qualifiers in Belarus (8 June) and against Estonia in Mainz (11 June). The Germany senior squad come together in the Dutch city of Venlo on 2 June for a short training camp. After that, Jonathan Tah will take part in the U21 European Championships (16 to 30 June in Italy and San Marino). The Croatia Football Association have already announced that Tin Jedvaj will be in the World Cup runners-up squad for the European Championship qualifier against Wales (8 June) and a friendly against Tunisia (11 June).


Bayer 04 turned in a dominant performance in a 7-0 win against fifth-tier side Sportfreunde Baumberg in their first friendly ahead of the 2026/27 season. A brace from debutant Afonso Moreira (19', 27') either side of a Christian Kofane strike (23') put the Werkself 3-0 up in the first of the two 35-minute halves in Monheim am Rhein. After the break, Victor Boniface (49', 53'), Robert Andrich (56') and Nathan Tella (67') scored for the completely changed Leverkusen team. It was therefore a successful friendly debut for new head coach Carles Martínez and his team, although the hosts also had something to celebrate despite the defeat: the match marked the inauguration of Baumberg's new ground, the MEGA Stadion.
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Attention, Werkself fans: the new Away Matchday Collection is now available from the Bayer 04 online shop and the Fanwelt. It includes t-shirts, zip tops and jackets.
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Season tickets for the Werkself home matches in the new Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga season are now on general sale. The season ticket is valid for all 13 matches at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The first home match will be played between 28 and 31 August against the runners-up, VfL Wolfsburg, followed by the clash with the German champions, Bayern Munich, between 11 and 14 September.
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A new team, a new environment, a new challenge—and yet one thing remains the same for Afonso Moreira: his attitude. Total dedication, discipline, and the drive to improve every day have defined the Portuguese player since his early days at Sporting CP. “Even back then, I realized I had to work hard to achieve my goals,” said the 21-year-old. His parents also instilled those values in him from a young age. Values that have driven him ever since, accompanied him to France when he signed for Lyon, and now also form the foundation for his new chapter at Bayer 04. At a media session, the lightning-fast winger spoke about his values, as well as his new teammates, the new coach, and his targets at the club.
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