Four more reports on the new Werkself shirt follow this week.
THE BADGE
A lion was the first trademark of the Bayer AG company over 150 years ago. The design was taken from the coat of arms of Eberfeld, home to the Friedrich Bayer & Co factories. The historic logo provided a source of inspiration for the JAKO designer David Blanch.
The lion image from the 1800s forms part of the Bayer 04 Leverkusen club badge. If you stroke your fingers across it it you can feel fine lines that reflect the look of that historic image.
THE LEVERKUSEN SKYLINE
One special detail on the new Bayer 04 shirt is on the inside of the collar. JAKO designer David Blanch has selected iconic buildings in Leverkusen to produce a skyline design.
On the left are Leverkusen terraced houses. Next to that is the facade of the BayArena with its familiar roof structure. The Lindner Hotel is in front of that.
The water tower is the largest element. The Bayer cross next to it is slightly smaller. Then comes the coach house and the town hall with Schloss Morsbroich on the extreme right.
ELEVEN STRIPES
WE ARE TEAM is the motto of the official kit supplier to Bayer 04 Leverkusen. JAKO have incorporated that concept in the new Werkself shirt. Eleven pin stripes are included on the chest to reflect the eleven players in the Leverkusen side. #TeamWerkself
The design of the kit is made more dynamic with different forms of stripes on the whole shirt. Lines are visible from the chest to the seam.
The team ethic is in the DNA of both partners. The JAKO company has built its success on a very close relationship with customers, retailers and partners alike. That is evident in the new Werkself shirt.
“Year after year, this is an incredibly valuable gathering, both in terms of the content covered and the opportunity for mutual discussion,” stressed Bayer 04 goalkeeping coach David Thiel in his welcoming address at this year’s goalkeeping coaches’ meeting. This was the third time in four seasons that the event had been held at the BayArena. Organised by the German Football Association (DFB), the meeting brought together goalkeeping coaches from the Bundesliga, Bundesliga 2 and the 3rd division from the west region. For the first time this year, goalkeeping coaches from the youth performance centres (NLZ) were also present. Bayer 04 fitness coach Markus Müller provided fascinating insights into the specific fitness training carried out with the Werkself’s goalkeepers.
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It was another incredibly close call in the end: The second showdown in the 2026/27 VBL Club Championship saw the #B04eSports team once again narrowly miss out on a place in the top 16 of the preliminary round – and with it, a spot in the in-person knockout stage. It was a bitter blow: Marc and Sean Landwehr again fell just short, despite being level on points with their rivals. As was the case last month, their weaker record across the twelve individual matches in the six preliminary round fixtures proved decisive.
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“They stuck with us over the past few weeks when things weren’t going so well,” said captain Edmond Tapsoba, thanking the fans for their support after the 2–1 win in Cologne and dedicating the derby victory to them. Throughout the 90 minutes, the Werkself had looked unfazed and in command, inflicting the first home defeat of the season on FC Köln. It was the sixth consecutive win against the Cologne team for Bayer 04 – head coach Carles Martínez, on the other hand, was facing the team from the neighbouring city for the first time and “now really knows what this derby win means”. The Werkself derby review.
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Following the 2–1 derby victory away at FC Köln on Bundesliga matchday 9, Edmond Tapsoba, Malik Tillman and Aleix Garcia spoke to Werkself TV...
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Werkself TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 2-1 derby win at 1. FC Köln Matchday 9 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season...
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