Journalists and camera teams plus fans in Bayer 04 shirts were waiting in numbers at the entrance for the team led by head coach Gerardo Seoane. Brian the Lion was again on hand. After getting changed, Jonathan Tah and Co. went out onto the pitch.
The mood during the relaxed routines of keepie-uppies and rondos before the start of training could not have been better and birthday boy Sadik Fofana (many happy returns on number 19) plus Ayman Aourir from the U19 squad were involved as well; 16 outfield players and 04 goalkeepers worked up a sweat against the backdrop of a 30-metre high rock face at the UNAM Pumas academy. The rondo was obviously followed by a traditional birthday guard of honour for Fofana.
The good mood on the pitch was definitely helped by a short and unexpected shower from the sprinkler system, as the training session before the friendly against Deportivo Toluca was held with the temperature at 25 degrees in blazing sunshine under a clear blue sky.
During the 60-minute session, fans took plenty of photos of the players on the pitch - and of Brian the Lion off it. The end of the training session saw the arrival of the UNAM Pumas mascot - a puma in the kit of the Mexican top-flight team and he warmly welcomed Brian to ‘his’ patch.
The work-out was followed by numerous interviews with Mexican and American journalists - primarily with the South American Werkself players. Argentina international Lucas Alario said: “It feels special to be back here in South America. We’re close to our home country here. We’re enjoying the time here very much.”
For Lukas Hradecky and Co., after taking plenty of time out for photos with the fans, it was back to the team hotel for lunch. While the team were given the rest of the day off, Gerardo Seoane had the pre-match press conference ahead of the friendly against Toluca in the afternoon.
From the 2027/28 season, the Women’s Bundesliga will be organised by an independent league association. Following the unanimous decision taken at the DFB Bundestag (national conference) on Friday afternoon, the league’s separation from the DFB is now official.
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The next home fixture is here: Following the winning start to the UEFA Europa League against NK Celje, the Werkself host RB Leipzig at the BayArena on matchday 4 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga campaign. The match on Sunday, 20 September, kicks off at 15:30 CEST. At the pre-match press conference, head coach Carles Martínez spoke about the qualities of the opposition and the work being done to improve his team’s performance. The Spaniard also provided updates on Ibrahim Maza and Montrell Culbreath.
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Following the Bundesliga clash against RB Leipzig (Sunday, 20 September, 15:30 CEST), some of the Werkself first team players will be heading off for the first international break of the season. Here is an overview of the Bayer 04 players called up for their national teams and all the details of their upcoming matches.
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A special visit to the BayArena: 222 members from volunteer fire brigades in Leverkusen, the Rheinisch-Bergisch district and the Oberbergisch district watched the Werkself’s 2–0 home win over Slovenian champions NK Celje live in the stadium. Bayer 04 had invited them to the 2026/27 Europa League opener as a thank-you for their tremendous dedication. They watched the match together in Block F4.
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