
Germany v Brazil, the defending champions again the record World Cup winners. Bernd Leno and Julian Brandt watched the kick-off from the subs' bench at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin. An intense and hard-fought encounter in front of 71,000 fans ended in a 1-0 win for the South American side. Gabriel Jesus netted the winner for the Selecao eight minutes before half-time – goalkeeper Kevin Trapp got to the ball but was unable to keep out the header from the Manchester City striker. Brandt replaced Leroy Sané on the hour mark to earn his fourteenth cap for Germany.
Club coach Heiko Herrlich was probably not disappointed that Charles Aránguiz and Panos Retsos were not in the starting line-ups for Chile in Denmark and Greece against Egypt after the pair had played for 90 minutes on Saturday. They ended up watching the games that ended in a 0-0 draw for Chile and a 1-0 win for Greece. Julian Baumgartlinger once again captained Austria for a friendly in Luxembourg. The result of the match was a 4-0 victory for Austria with 'Baumi' coming off on 65 minutes
The Germany U21 only managed to draw 0-0 in the Euro qualifier in Kosovo. The captain Jonathan Tah was not in the squad due to a problem with his back, Benjamin Henrichs produced another reliable performance at right back as he went the full distance. The goalless draw did not live up the expectations of the Germany team but Stefan Kuntz's men remain top of Group 5 with seven of ten games played.
For the Germany U19s led by skipper Kai Havertz the final match in the Euro qualifiers against the Netherlands was a decider: Germany needed to win and they could not afford a victory for Norway over Scotland in the other game. The night in front of 3,600 fans in Ahlen ended in disappointment for the hosts after a dramatic game. Germany produced an impressive performance to win 4-1 but Norway came back from 4-2 down to win 5-4 in the last minute to deny Germany a place in the European Championship finals in Finland in the summer. The Germany team left the pitch with heads bowed. "Nobody really knows how to deal with the situation. I really feel sorry for the team," said the downhearted Germany coach Meikel Schönweitz. Kai Havertz had a good game scoring the opener and converting a penalty to make it 4-1 – his seventh goal in eight games for the Germany U19s. Atakan Akkaynak and Sam Schreck watched the match from the bench.


Exciting experiences and exclusive insights into the Werkself and the BayArena awaited the young footballers from the BA04 Football Academy Guangzhou in China during their visit to the Rhineland this week. As well as taking part in a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy, the youngsters marvelled at the Bundesliga club’s stadium during a guided tour. The highlight of the visit was a private press conference with former Bayer 04 striker Stefan Kießling, during which he shared tips from his own career with the young players. On Saturday afternoon, 10 October, the group will round off their visit by supporting the Werkself in the away match in Mainz.
Show more
Fun, games and promising talent: At the fourth Bayer 04 Junior Girls’ Talent Day at the Kurtekotten training centre, 90 football-mad girls had the chance to put themselves forward for the Werkself youth teams. During a 90-minute training session, children born between 2011 and 2019 had the chance to demonstrate their skills.
Show more
Austria or Kosovo? Claudia Wenger or Lumbardha Misini? Only one of these two Bayer 04 women will see her dream of competing at the World Cup in Brazil (24 June to 25 July 2027) live on beyond the next two weeks. From a Leverkusen perspective, the two direct clashes between the Werkself players as they battle for a place in the second play-off round stand out during the upcoming international break. For several other players, the chance of a World Cup place is also at stake. Bayer04.de provides an overview of the women’s international call-ups.
Show more
Despite the international break, numerous Werkself fans turned up at the BayArena on Saturday 3 October. The occasion: Bayer 04, together with Bayer Vital and main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer, organised a Health Day. In the stadium’s Premium Lounge, guests listened to fascinating talks on the subject of cancer, featuring, amongst others, Bayer 04 record appearance holder Rüdiger Vollborn and former Werkself player Hans Sarpei. Afterwards, young and old alike enjoyed interactive stations such as a grip strength test and eye pupil test.
Show more