"We are happy we’ve been able to agree to continue our partnership after very harmonious discussions," said Bayer 04 sporting managing director Rudi Völler. "Karim has been with us since 2011 and he's developed into an outstanding Bundesliga player in his position here in Leverkusen. When he plays his high-speed football then he can make the difference."
Sporting director Simon Rolfes, who played alongside Bellarabi at Bayer 04 for several years, knows the strengths of the attacker very well: "He's lightning fast, has great technique, is a team player and is capable of scoring. Karim has been one of the top scorers and providers in our team for many years," declared Rolfes. "It was really important to us to extend his contract. We're really happy it's all worked out."
Having arrived in Leverkusen as a young talent from Eintracht Braunschweig, Bellarabi and Völler identify the close relationship between him and Leverkusen. "The fact I've been able to develop as a player is also down to the confidence I've always had here from the club – especially at the beginning when I had to battle with injuries as an unestablished player," said Bellarabi who went on to play for Germany in 2014 and in recent Bundesliga campaigns has regularly provided goals and assists. "In the future, I want to contribute to us all achieving our sporting targets. Bayer 04 are a great club, for many years at the top of the Bundesliga and also regularly in Europe."
In their third friendly of this pre-season, Bayer 04 played on home soil for the first time – and won there too! The Werkself claimed a comfortable 4-0 victory against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion. Jeanuel Belocian (9’) and Nathan Tella (42’) gave a dominant Leverkusen a 2-0 lead at the break, which Afonso Moreira (51’) and Christian Kofane (53’) doubled after the break. Among the many second-half substitutions was Patrik Schick, who made his first friendly appearance of the summer.
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The Werkself are finally back. On Saturday 8 August, Bayer 04 kick off the 2026/27 campaign with their opening match. But there’s far more than just a double-header in store for Werkself supporters. True to the motto ‘One day. Two teams. One club’, the BayArena and the Ulrich Haberland Stadium will be transformed into a world of excitement.
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The Werkself continue their 2026/27 pre-season preparations with their third friendly against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion on Wednesday 29 July (kick-off 15:00 CEST). Werkself-TV is broadcasting the match live and in full in a stream from 14:50 CEST...
After the children from the Bayer 04 Football Academy grilled Janis Blaswich and Simeon Rapsch last week, another group of 20 young Werkself fans gathered at the BayArena press conference room on Tuesday afternoon, 28 July . This time, the kids directed their questions at Tim Oermann and Jonah Berghoff. Defender Oermann raved about his school days, whilst talented midfielder Berghoff revealed to the young footballers, amongst other things, who his favourite player is – and he is also at Bayer 04. To round things off, the pair naturally obliged with all requests for autographs and selfies.
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Bayer 04 are back on the pitch. Following the first training sessions, the Werkself play the first pre-season friendly on Saturday, July 18. The match against Oberliga club Sportfreunde Baumberg kicks off at 15:30 CEST in Monheim am Rhein. Fans unable to attend the match can watch head coach Carles Martínez’s first game in charge for free via a livestream at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app, as well as on Werkself.tv (exclusively for members). Just log on and watch the games live. All the other Werkself preseason friendlies leading up to the 2026/27 season will also be streamed live for free.
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