Carro used the time for meetings with senior representatives of North and South American sports business, visited the stands of La Liga and Serie A and also mixed among the 2,000 participants as a passionate networker at the congress centre of the rainy city.
The senior conversational partners of the Spaniard included Carlos Sanchez, managing director of Fox Deportes, Italy's Serie A boss Luigi di Servio plus Julie Uhrmann, who as the CEO of Angel City FC Is currently responsible for probably the most exciting women's football project in the USA founded by stars such as Natalie Portman and Serena Williams. At the Congress there was also a meeting with Italy's World Cup winner and Serie A ambassador Alessandro Del Piero that included a presentation of a shirt.
"These trips are demanding," said Carro about the short journey to the south-east coast of the USA. "But it's important to think outside the box. At these events, you get a good insight into the global football market and a better feeling for the demands on a contemporary and successful league or club management."
Carro, a keen advocate for a strong global presence for German clubs, also gained important thoughts about the future of the Bundesliga: "The Bundesliga continues to be one of the top leagues in the world. It offers quality, spectacle and stadium atmosphere that is unequalled. The Bundesliga does not have to hide from anyone as the number two in terms of worldwide spectator statistics. But this status quo is not set in stone. Our competitors are not asleep."
Carro, a member of the supervisory committee of the DFL subsidiary Bundesliga International, sees a key role for the future competitiveness of Germany's top flight with the crucial input from a strategic partner at the DFL general meeting on 11 December: "If the Bundesliga experience is to remain of such high quality as it was before then we have to face up to global competition, be on the ball and innovative, invest smartly in our product and, above all, be brave at the right points and open to new ideas. But that requires the means, resources and more expertise. A strategic partner would be enormously important for the future viability of the Bundesliga."
Carro was joined on the trip to the USA by communications director Holger Tromp as well as Leonardo Giammarioli, the new head of internationalisation at Bayer 04. The small Leverkusen delegation was supported by the Mexican PR agency Extreme PR. The Bayer 04 boss fulfilled interview requests from the broadcasters TUDN (rights holder for the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League in the USA) and CBS Sports plus the US business portal Sportico.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended the contract with U19 midfielder Jonah Berghoff ahead of schedule. The Germany U18 international has signed professional terms with the club to 30 June 2030.
Show more
With sixth place at the end of the 2025/26 Bundesliga campaign, Bayer 04 ended a season in the top third of the table for the ninth time in a row. While the Werkself were narrowly eliminated in the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 by eventual finalists Arsenal, the Black and Reds reached the semi-finals of the DFB Pokal for the third season in succession. As in previous years, you once again have the opportunity to vote for your Player of the Season. Voting is exclusively for Bayer 04 Club members and only via the Bayer 04 app up to and including 11 June.
Show more
With 46 points in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga, the Bayer 04 Women’s team once again broke the previous season's club record and ended up in fifth place - 15 wins is also a record. As in previous years, you now have the opportunity to vote for your Player of the Season. Voting is open exclusively to Bayer 04 Club members and only via the Bayer 04 app by 11 June.
Show more
The guests at the Scala Club in Leverkusen were amazed when host Reiner Calmund suddenly brought the Managing Director of Sport at Bayer 04, Simon Rolfes, and record Werkself appearance maker Rüdiger Vollborn onto the stage. As part of the show "An Evening with Football & Friends", organised by long-serving Bayer 04 managing director and general manager Calmund, the two surprise guests drew plenty of applause - and provided great entertainment in exciting conversations about the past and future.
Show more
