
In April 1979, Hoene – then director of crop protection at Bayer AG and responsible for Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand – was appointed as chairman of the football section at TSV Bayer 04 Leverkusen as the successor to Hermann Büchel. A few weeks later, he celebrated promotion to the Bundesliga with Bayer 04. From 1983, Volrath Hoene worked as deputy head of department in the youth and amateur sections at Bayer 04. He was re-elected as head of the football section in 1988 and he experienced the biggest ever success for the Werkself on the European stage when Bayer 04 won the UEFA Cup on 18 May 1998. He also celebrated his silver wedding anniversary on the same day. After leaving the board of the football section ,Volrath Hoene worked for Bayer AG in Hong Kong before later returning to Berlin.


The German Football Association (DFB) has officially recognised Bayer 04 as a centre for the development of female talent for the 2026/27 season. The club was awarded that role on 1 January 2026, and this status has now been renewed.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have sold young defender Andrea Natali to AZ Alkmaar on permanent terms. The 18-year-old Italian was on loan at the Dutch club last season, where he mainly played for the reserve team in the second division.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have loaned new signing Luca Erlein to newly promoted FC Energie Cottbus for the 2026/27 season. This will give him the opportunity to play in Bundesliga 2. The club signed the 19-year-old right-back on a permanent basis last week, on a contract to 30 June 2030.
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Werkself TV shows the highlights of the 3-1 victory in the friendly match at Kickers Offenbach...
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It’s always nice having your best friends round for a birthday! Bayer 04 made a guest appearance at Stadion am Bieberer Berg as part of Offenbacher Kickers’ 125th anniversary celebrations, and nearly 1,500 Werkself supporters accepted the invitation to this historic venue, joining the Offenbach crowd in celebrating the more than 45-year friendship between the clubs. On the pitch, the Werkself secured a 3–1 victory in the friendly against the fourth-tier Regionalliga side. The Leverkusen goals were scored by Christian Kofane (38’), Jonas Hofmann (48’) and Afonso Moreira (81’). Keanu Staude had put the hosts ahead in the first half (11’).
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