Leno and Brandt contributed to Germany winning the Confed Cup in Russia last summer. And with impressive performances in the Bundesliga and DFB Cup they could again be considered by Joachim Löw. The same applies to U21 international captain Tah, who – exactly like Leno – received a vote of confidence from the Germany coach at the European Championships in France two years ago. "I'm very happy the three are in the provisional World Cup squad. Bernd, Jonathan and Julian have earned that after a great season at Bayer 04 where they were top performers and now they will do all they can to make it to Russia," said Bayer 04 sporting director Rudi Völler.
Bernd Leno was first included in the Germany squad in October 2015 and has since earned six caps. Last season, the 26-year-old Werkself number one only missed one competitive match (in the league against Borussia Dortmund due to a knee injury) – in the remaining 38 games he was in goal for the Herrlich team. Julian Brandt is also undoubtedly one of the key players at Bayer 04 and he played in every competitive match for the Black and Reds this season. The 22-year-old midfielder scored 12 goals (including nine in the league) and also provided seven assists. He made his full international debut at the end of May 2016 and has since played 13 games for Germany scoring one goal. U21 captain Jonathan Tah (three internationals) made his debut for Joachim Löw two years ago with the 22-year-old central defender primarily featuring for the Germany junior team. This season he has played 33 games for the Werkself (28 in the league, five in the DFB Cup) and he is one of the best ball winners in the league (with over 70 per cent of challenges won).
In addition to Leno, Brandt and Tah, Werkself pro Tin Jedvaj can dream of playing in the World Cup in Russia: The 22-year-old defender has been called up to the provisional Croatia squad by national coach Zlatko Dalić.
The Germany squad with 27 players set off for a training camp in South Tyrol next week. After a friendly against Austria (2 June, 18.00 CET), Joachim Löw will have two days to inform FIFA of his 23-man squad for the World Cup finals. The final squad will have one last friendly ahead of the tournament on 8 June when Germany meet Saudi Arabia at the BayArena (19.30 CET).
The first World Cup game for Germany (Group F) on 17 June (17.00 CET) is against Mexico with the road to the Round of 16 bringing the other group matches against Sweden (23 June, 20.00 CET) and South Korea (27 June, 16.00 CET).
The long-standing successful collaboration between Bayer 04 and the transport service provider wupsi GmbH has been expanded: From January 2026, 100 wupsi bikes with Bayer 04 branding will be available for hire throughout the city of Leverkusen. They will complement the many existing offers and services that provide key support, especially for fans travelling to and from home matches at the BayArena.
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The Werkself are back! Following the two-week winter break, head coach Kasper Hjulmand's team began the new year with an open session on Sunday. After Robert Andrich and his teammates arrived in Leverkusen yesterday for the official check-in, they got back down to business a day later in front of around 1,200 fans at the Ulrich Haberland Stadion. The report from the Werkself's first session of 2026.
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After a two-week winter break, the Werkself resume training on Sunday, 4 January. The first session in 2026 at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium starts at 11:00 and is open to fans. Bayer 04 look forward to welcoming supporters at the start of 2026. The Werkself schedule for the new year.
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After being nominated for the Bundesliga Goal of the Year 2025, Martin Terrier's wonderful strike for the opener against FC Köln is now also up for selection for the ARD Sportschau Goal of the Month award for December 2025. Bayer 04 fans have until 19:00 CET on 10 January to vote for the French forward.
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