Ahead of the kick-off in Dortmund, the DFB president Reinhard Grindel gave Podolski an official farewell. Podolski thanked the fans in person for their support over the past 13 years. A fan choreography of a giant carnival cap celebrated the striker's international career.
England made the brighter start in the friendly and they had the better chances in the first half. Adam Lallana hit the woodwork on 31 minutes and Marc André ter Stegen kept out Dele Alli ten minutes later. Joachim Löw's team were lucky to go into the half-time break on equal terms.
Wonder goal from Podolski
The hosts upped their game after the restart. And Julian Brandt was involved in the first really good move: His long-range effort just went wide of Joe Hart's goal on 48 minutes. Brandt, winning his fifth cap, was substituted on the hour mark and he saw the decisive moment of the match from the bench. 69 minutes into his final international appearance, Lukas Podolski unleashed a hammer of a shot from 25 yards out that flew into the top left corner. A wonder goal! Shortly after that, Leroy Sané had the chance to double the lead for the now significantly stronger German side. With six minutes to play, Podolski left the field to a standing ovation. Germany won the friendly 1-0 and now go on to play Azerbaijan in Baku in a World Cup qualifier on Sunday (18.00 CET).
World Cup qualifiers on Friday
The next Werkself pros are in action for their national sides on Friday. Ömer Toprak and Joel Pohjanpalo could face each other in the World Cup qualifier between Turkey and Finland (18.00 CET). In other World Cup qualification games Tin Jedvaj is set to play for Croatia against Ukraine (20.45 CET), Aleksandar Dragovic and Julian Baumgartlinger are with Austria against Moldova (20.45 CET) and Charles Aránguiz is with Chile against Argentina (00.30 CET). Benjamin Henrichs and the Germany U21 side face England in a friendly on Friday (20.00 CET).
Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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From special edition jerseys to fan banners, the home game against Mainz 05 was all about the many Bayer 04 fan clubs. Accordingly, a fitting tribute to the long-standing Werkself supporters was not to be missed during half-time in the Bundesliga match. Fernando Carro, CEO, honoured the up to 50-year anniversaries of six fan clubs in front of the coaches' benches at the BayArena.
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It is an expression of solidarity and a tribute to the unique fan culture Under the Cross: Bayer 04 Leverkusen make a special statement with the "50 Years of Fan Clubs" jersey. To mark the founding of the "First Fan Club 1976 Leverkusen", which was followed by many more over the years right up to the present day, the Bundesliga club is commemorating 50 years of passion with this new jersey. Highs and lows, successes celebrated together as well as defeats suffered are manifested in this piece of white fabric, a symbol of unwavering identification with the Werkself.
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There’s lots going on at the BayArena today. The home game against FSV Mainz 05 is all about the numerous Bayer 04 fan clubs, whose birth - the founding of the "1. Fanclub 1976 Leverkusen" - dates back 50 years. A number of fan club representatives will be involved in awards, a banner display and a half-time matchday chat, and the Werkself are set to play in a special white fan club jersey. During half-time, Leverkusen mayor Stefan Hebbel and javelin world champion Steffi Nerius will also talk about the Olympic bid involving Leverkusen. Black and Red fans are advised to get to the stadium in good time today. Matchday news.
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The Werkself host Premier League club Arsenal in the Round of 16 first leg in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League campaign. The match at the BayArena is on 10/11 March. Read on for information on ticket sales for this fixture.
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