And, after the transfer to Bayer 04 took so long, 'Drago' is keen to finally get started.
"I'm glad it's all finally worked out after what feels like three years," said Dragovic in the afternoon at a first press conference at his new home of the BayArena. He explained in his thoughtful manner the reasons for the move: "I like the style of Bayer 04 and it's similar to that of the national team. I think I can develop well here."
The sporting reasons for his moving to Leverkusen was not the only factor with the political situation in Ukraine also playing a role. "The country is at war and you can't ignore that," said Dragovic who does not regret the move from FC Basel to Dynamo Kiev. "I’ve matured a lot there over the last couple of years," he declared.
And that is why he gave everything for his former club right up to the last minute. Loyalty and commitment-Dragovic likes those virtues. He certainly does not lack character and he is commanding at the tender age of 25. He earned his 50th cap for Austria in Georgia and is one of his country's key players. He is looking to reproduce that at Leverkusen and he took the first steps on Tuesday. "When I joined Rambo and Julian in the dressing room I was the happiest person on earth," said Dragovic. It would be harder to get off to a better start.
There was a successful end to the women's internationals with Werkself players Carlotta Wamser and Cornelia Kramer qualifying for the 2027 World Cup finals in Brazil. A third Leverkusen player is still in with a chance of joining them. The Germany U23 players also experienced success in their last two international friendlies of the season.
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Traveling to North America for the World Cup this summer to see your favorite Bayer 04 players? Here’s a quick cheat sheet with thumbnail portraits and insider tips for each city from a local expert, so you can make the most of your visit and activities beyond the game!
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A fresh look for the BayArena: The Bayer 04 stadium will have new seating in the form of folding seats for the 2026/27 campaign that will ensure significantly improved seating comfort and simplified movement within the rows of seats. As part of routine replacement after 17 years, fans of the Werkself were able to purchase the existing seats, used to witness the first German league title in the club's history. In addition, a large proportion of the seats will be donated to charitable projects, primarily in the local region. Bayer 04 fans can look forward to new, functional folding seats for the season opener at the beginning of August - still in the club colours of black and red, of course. A glimpse at the BayArena during the refurbishment.
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On Monday evening, 8 June, around 250 people came to the Bürgerhaus Baumberg at the invitation of Bayer 04 to find out details of the new plans for the campus on Alfred-Nobel-Straße at an information event. More compact, greener and with many advantages for Monheim am Rhein - those are the aims. There were lively discussions for around three hours and some misunderstandings were cleared up.
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