1.01.2025Bayer 04

From the archives: 75 years ago – Club badge above the main entrance

29 January 1950 sees a league match in the second Oberliga West between Bayer 04 and Preußen Krefeld. After a 3-2 reverse away to Rapid Köln a week before, the Werkself want to show that they have learned from the defeat. 6,000 spectators stream to the Bayer pitch, as the old Stadtpark is known locally, on a cold January Sunday. The main attraction of the day is not the match but rather the new main entrance with Sportvereinigung Bayer 04 Leverkusen and the club badge pride of place.

Vereinswappen über dem Haupteingang am Stadtpark

The match proves difficult for the Werkself from the start. The visitors take the lead with their first attack and then Emil Becks is injured and he can only carry on playing with a limp. Hope comes when Paul Wiorek hits the bar in a Bayer 04 attack. But that disappears after 20 minutes with Krefeld scoring a second goal. Fortunate for the Werkself that the two-time goalscorer for the visitors is sent off after 30 minutes for "persistent dissent" - we can translate that as insulting the referee. At least the number of players is equal again. Bayer 04 pull a goal back through Manfred Höher at 2-1 and that is the half-time score.

The second half sees one attack after the next on the Preußen goal but the 6,000 Werkself fans have to wait until minute 78 before the equaliser is scored by Helmut Laaser. Another Krefeld player is sent off five minutes before the end and in the final minutes 20 players pile into the Krefeld penalty area. Helmut Laaser literally scores the winner in the last second with the Bayer 04 fans celebrating.

Alongside the victory and the two points, the new main entrance is the subject of discussion on the day. The next few years people enter the old Stadtpark under the club badge. As a memorial to this wonderful gate, NK12 put up a reproduction on the corner of Walter-Nernst-Straße/Am Stadtpark a few years ago.

Related News

Christoph Daum – Der Mann, der uns das Wollen beibrachte | Legende des Monats Februar

Bayer 04 - 01.02.2026

Legend: Christoph Daum - The man who taught us to want

Christoph Daum was born on 24 October 1953 in Zwickau. As a child, he moved to West Germany with his mother and grew up in Duisburg. He developed a great enthusiasm for football at an early age, even though it soon became clear that his future lay less on the pitch than on the sidelines. Even at a young age, his passion for analysing, explaining and improving things became apparent.

Bayer 04 - 01.02.2026

From the archives: 65 years ago - Another victory at last

When the Bayer 04 players celebrated Christmas in 1960, they spent the winter in second place in the Oberliga West 2 on 20 points - but already five points behind leaders Schwarz-Weiß Essen. However, coach Erich Garske's team are struggling to get back on track in the new year. A goalless draw against Bonner FV at home at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium was followed by a 2-1 away defeat in Erkenschwick. The following home game also yielded just one point. As a result, the team's promotion ambitions dwindled to a minimum, as the gap to the coveted spot has now grown to a challenging ten points.

Von Waas bis Tapsoba | Tore des Monats Februar

Bayer 04 - 01.02.2026

Goals of the month: From Waas to Tapsoba

In this video you can see impressive and important goals in Bayer 04 history from the month of February. It's not always about the beauty of the goals, but also a reminder of special games and players.

Vor 20 Jahren – Das Spiel der offenen Tore | Spiel des Monats Februar

Bayer 04 - 01.02.2026

Match of the month: 20 years ago - A game of goals galore

It is 11 February 2006 and Schalke 04 and the Werkself kick off at 3.30 p.m. in a match that ends up being historic - at least from a Bayer 04 perspective.

Bayer 04 - 01.02.2026

History: 75 years ago - The 1950/51 season (February)

As league leaders, the Werkself welcomed the relegation-threatened team from Rhenania Würselen. On 4 February 1951, 5,000 spectators line the touchlines despite the Sunday carnival parades. And they see a home team that is superior on the pitch. Without Theo Kirchberg, who was ill, and Emil Becks, who was suspended, the hosts attacked the opposing goal from the start. Battling against a strong wind in the first half, Bayer 04 created chance after chance, but were repeatedly thwarted by the Würselen goalkeeper. With the score at 0-0 at half-time, Karl Heinz Spikofski tried his luck on 55 minutes and hammered the ball into the opposition net from 20 metres out. Rhenania can no longer counterattack. The siege of the Würselen penalty area continued right to the end, but the game ended in a narrow 1-0 win.