Born in Bochum, Hannes Wolf only played in the Oberliga during his playing career but he has already made a name for himself as a coach at a young age. While studying sport at the Ruhr University in Bochum, he worked as a coach at SG Eintracht Ergste. After moving on to ASC Dortmund he was then signed up by Borussia Dortmund.
At BVB, Wolf – at the age of just 28 – first became the assistant coach with the second team where he worked with players including Sven Bender and a year later he was head coach of the Dortmund U19 side. After that, Wolf also played a leading role with the second team as well as the U17s, winning the German U17 Championship in 2014 and 2015. A year later, he secured the national title with the U19s as well.
Second division VfB Stuttgart heard about Hannes Wolf and signed him up. After arriving in September 2016, the new coach led the Swabian side to the second division title and an immediate return to the top division. Wolf was at VfB for one and a half years. After a couple of months out, he was snapped up by Hamburg SV. The man from Bochum worked in the Hanseatic city for a year as he did with his following employers, the Belgian top-flight club KRC Genk where he took part in the Champions League.
Since October 2020, Wolf has been working for the German Football Association (DFB) as the Germany U18 coach. Bayer 04 appointed the 39-year-old coach as successor to the Dutchman Peter Bosz on 23 March 2021.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have appointed Carles Martínez Novell as the new head coach. The 42-year-old Spaniard worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. Martínez finished last term in ninth place with the club from the south of France. He will take over the Werkself on 1 July 2026 and has signed a contract to 30 June 2028. Martínez, whose contract with Toulouse expires at the end of the month, succeeds Kasper Hjulmand at Leverkusen, who is leaving the club after one season.
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Welcome to Leverkusen, Carles Martínez Novell. Bayer 04 have appointed the 42-year-old Spaniard as the new head coach on a contract to 2028. Martínez most recently worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. He previously spent four years at Barcelona's legendary academy La Masia in his home city. Bayer04.de introduces Martínez in more detail.
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Bayer 04 plans for the 2026/27 pre-season continue to take shape. The Werkself will kick off the new season in mid-July with the return to the training ground. The highlight will be the official season opener on 8 August at the BayArena, including a friendly against La Liga club Sevilla. Friendlies in Germany will take the team to neighbouring Monheim, Offenbach and Jena.
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Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.
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Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.
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