"The team have been deeply involved with this catastrophe over the past few days. There have been a lot of discussions here in the training camp in Austria and all of them are affected given the suffering that the floods have brought to so many people," said head coach Gerardo Seoane. "The lads want to play their part in helping out and therefore we have decided together that we will play a benefit match at the earliest opportunity in aid of the victims. Where and when still has to be planned in detail. But we, as Bayer 04 Leverkusen, want to show our solidarity like so many other people."
The Bayer 04 Veterans will also play a benefit match in support of the flood victims. On Tuesday, 27 July (kick-off: 18.00 CEST) the former Werkself players will be in action at Wiedbachtaler Sportfreunden Neitersen. The match will be played in Neitersen at the Auf der Emma sports ground. The Bayer 04 team will include former players Jens Nowotny, Ramazan Özcan and Hanno Balitsch.
In addition to the match against the Sportfreunde, the Veterans will also play in Leichlingen. The sports ground was also damaged by the floods. Further information on the date of the match and the opposition is to follow.
The FIFA World Cup 2026 in the USA, Canada and Mexico is underway. A total of eight Leverkusen players are taking part in the 23rd World Cup, with 48 teams in the tournament for the first time. Bayer04.de brings you all the latest from Werkself players at the World Cup.
Show more
Following the summer break of around two months, the Bayer 04 first team squad took to the training pitches at the BayArena for the first time on Tuesday – and the players were in high spirits. Alongside the newly formed coaching team led by head coach Carles Martínez, new signing Afonso Moreira also completed his first session with the squad. In front of several hundred Bayer 04 fans at the open session, numerous Werkself players worked up a good sweat. The Leverkusen players who took part in the World Cup will join pre-season training at a later date.
Show more
In mid-August, the Werkself will set off on a four-day trip to England to play their final two friendly matches of the 2026/27 pre-season against Premier League clubs Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United. The match in Nottingham against the Tricky Trees is on Wednesday 12 August at 20:45 CEST (19:45 BST) at the City Ground. The game against the Magpies in Newcastle is on Saturday 15 August at 16:00 CEST (15:00 BST) at the atmospheric St James’ Park. Details on ticket sales for both matches.
Show more
Black and Red talent development at the highest level – even off the pitch: Apprentices Jule Suermann, Leandra Bellia and Julia Niederheide have successfully completed their two- or three-year apprenticeships at the club. Bayer 04 honoured the trio at the BayArena on Tuesday.
Show more
