In addition to the Werkself, the following are in the category of Men's Club of the Year: Real Madrid, Manchester City, Borussia Dortmund and Girona. In the category of Men's Coach of the Year, Xabi Alonso is joined by Carlo Ancelotti (Real Madrid), Luis de la Fuente (Spain), Gian Piero Gasperini (Atalanta), Pep Guardiola (Manchester City) and Lionel Scaloni (Argentina).
30 players have been shortlisted for the Men's Ballon d'Or – including the Bayer 04 players Alejandro Grimaldo, Florian Wirtz and Granit Xhaka.
About the Ballon d’Or:
The Ballon d'Or has been awarded by the French magazine France Football since 1956 to the best players of the calendar year or since 2022 for the previous season. Initially designed for European players at European clubs, the award was opened up from 1995 to all players playing in Europe. The winners have also been described as European Player of the Year as a result.
For the first time, the Ballon d'Or is not only awarded by France Football but also by UEFA this year.
Werkself TV shows highlights of the 2-0 win at Olympiacos in the first leg of the play-offs of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 league...
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The Werkself beat Olympiacos 2-0 in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League play-off first leg to claim a crucial victory in the Greek capital. After a focused first-half display with a number of presentable chances, Patrik Schick crowned a textbook counter to hand the Werkself the lead on the hour (60’). The Czech rounded off his brace when he headed in from a corner just 144 seconds later. Bayer 04 maintained their lead with aplomb to achieve a good position for the return leg in Leverkusen.
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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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