
With an illustrious sporting career spanning two decades, Sergio originally signed with Bayer 04 Leverkusen from Corinthians in 1993, spending four seasons with the club. During that time, he made over 120 appearances and scored 47 goals with Die Werkself and became a World Cup champion for Brazil before leaving for AS Roma in Serie A. He later captured a Champions League trophy in Munich.
"I am incredibly proud to represent Bayer 04 Leverkusen at an international level and in passionate football markets in South America," said Sergio. "The team has fantastic momentum both with its sporting performance on the field this season, but also as it continues to grow globally as one of the top brands in the Bundesliga and one of the world's most prominent clubs. With such a strong legacy of Brazilian and South American talents coming to Leverkusen in the past decades, there is a lot of excitement here around the club amongst fans and young footballers."

Sergio was among the first of a wave of stand-out Brazilians to play in Leverkusen, a list that includes national team players Emerson (1997-2000), Ze Roberto (1998-2002) and Lucio (2001-2004). Given his stature as a former Bundesliga star, Sergio also represents the DFL in an official capacity, providing Leverkusen unique opportunities and synergies for future events to promote the German Bundesliga on the whole.
"Our Bayer 04 sporting tradition includes many exciting players that came from Brazil and South America who are now part of the history and excellence of our club, so I am pleased for the opportunity to have Paulo Sergio working alongside us regularly on strategic initiatives in the Americas," said Bayer 04 Leverkusen CEO Fernando Carro. "Sergio is a tremendous football star, but more importantly he is an incredible ambassador for the game and Bayer 04 Leverkusen with his charm, humor and character."
Leverkusen's roster currently features four South Americans including Brazilian Arthur and the only World Cup winner in the Bundesliga, starting midfielder Exequiel Palacios.
Sergio was on-hand in Leverkusen last week to meet with media and is scheduled to make appearances at watch parties and partner events for Bayer 04 in the next few months across the Americas.

Sandwiched between their UEFA Champions League knockout play-off tie against Olympiacos, Bayer 04 return to Bundesliga action on Saturday with a trip to Union Berlin (kick-off: 15:30 CET). It’s a fixture of contrasting styles, with Leverkusen preferring to control the play while Union look to remain compact and counter. The Berliners are therefore suited to facing top teams, but they have only ever managed to win one of 16 meetings with the Werkself, who are looking for a fifth clean sheet of 2026 but will need to beware the home side’s threat from set pieces. Here’s all you need to know ahead of the game in our matchday news.
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After six wins in seven games, the Werkself will be looking to continue their winning run in the capital at FC Union Berlin. Coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke ahead of the match on Saturday, 21 February (kick-off: 15:30 CET) about defenders, the short preparation time and the condition of the pitch at the Stadion An der Alten Försterei.
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Union Berlin have performed particularly well against the top clubs in the Bundesliga this season with a draw at home to Bayern Munich and wins against VfB Stuttgart and RB Leipzig. This Saturday, 21 February (kick-off: 15:30 CET), the Irons now welcome the Werkself, currently sixth in the table, to the Stadion An der Alten Försterei. And the hosts are in desperate need of a win. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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It took exactly 60 minutes for the Werkself to take the lead through a perfectly finished counter-attack by Patrik Schick in the first leg of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League play-off at Olympiacos. Referring to the meeting in the league phase and the initially squandered opportunities, coach Kasper Hjulmand said afterwards: "I thought: 'Oh no, déjà-vu.'" But after the opening goal, it took just 144 seconds for the Czech to spark more wild celebrations among those in black and red in the Greek cauldron, when Schick nodded in Alejandro Grimaldo's corner. Much to the delight of the Bayer 04 fans, his teammates and his coach, who had warm words for the striker in the aftermath. The Werkself Review.
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