25 players from the first team plus four youth players boarded the team flight at Cologne/Bonn airport in the afternoon., After a 90-minute flight, the Bayer 04 squad landed in Salzburg and then travelled the remaining 55 kilometres to Saalfelden by coach.
Patrik Schick and Robert Andrich checked into their rooms at the Hotel Gut Brandlhof, the new training camp base for the Werkself after ten years in Zell am See/Kaprun. While Schick will continue his individual rehab programme following last month's groin operation, Andrich is set to start training with the team in the next few days.
After arriving in the team hotel, the final event of the day for the whole team was the evening meal on the hotel terrace with a view of the mountain range around the Steinernes Meer. That was followed by media activities for several players. Goalkeeper Lukas Hradecky was interviewed by bayer04.de and he talked about the "outstanding facilities on site." Further statements from the Finland international keeper will be available in Monday on the club media channels.
Head coach Xabi Alonso will lead a training session for his team on Monday morning on the neighbouring training ground, a short walk from the hotel. The session begins at 10.30 CEST and is open to Bayer 04 fans. That will be followed in the afternoon by a session in the gym.
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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