
The Spain U17s, including Iker Bravo, beat Estonia 4-0 in a qualifier for the U17 European Championship. The U19 international, who has already played for the Werkself, came off the subs bench on 66 minutes and he scored the final goal at 4-0 five minutes later. Bravo and Co. had already come out on top against Belgium (1-0) and Bosnia-Herzegovina (4-1). That puts the Spaniards top of Group D unbeaten after three games.
And Bayer 04 new signing Sardar Azmoun also found the back of the net: Having already qualified for the World Cup finals, Iran secured a convincing 2-0 win against Lebanon in their final qualifier. Azmoun played the full 90 minutes and he opened the scoring for his side on 35 minutes. In addition to Iran, hosts Qatar, South Korea, Japan and Saudi Arabia are the qualifiers from Asia to date. The United Arab Emirates and Australia are still in the running. The winners of that game face the fifth-placed team in South America in a play-off.
Ahead of the final qualifiers in South America, Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Ecuador were already through to the finals. Peru have finished in fifth place and are now in the play-off against a team from Asia for a slot at the finals. Werkself player Charles Aránguiz and Chile did not qualify. Chile suffered a 2-0 defeat to Uruguay. Aránguiz was in the starting eleven and he went the full distance.
Two Black and Red players faced each other in another game: the qualified team from Ecuador with Piero Hincapie drew 1-1 with fellow finalists Argentina including Exequiel Palacios. Both Leverkusen players were on the pitch: Hincapie played the full 90 minutes in central defence. Pala came on for Mac Allister on 59 minutes.
The Netherlands U21s beat top of the table Switzerland (19 points) 2-0 in a European Championship qualifier and they remain on the heels of the Swiss team in second place with 17 points having played a game less. Particularly good news: Mitchel Bakker was in the starting line-up and he played the full game.
Finland and Lukas Hradecky lost 2-0 to Slovakia in a friendly. The Black and Reds captain was between the sticks for the full duration of the game. Burkina Faso lost 3-0 in their friendly against Belgium. Edmond Tapsoba also played from the start and he was shown a yellow card.

And that’s not all: France clocked up an impressive 5-0 victory over South Africa in a friendly. Moussa Diaby came on as a sub on 64 minutes. The Ivory Coast lost 3-0 to England in a friendly. Bayer 04 defender Odilon Kossounou did not play.
Yesterday’s friendly between the Netherlands and Germany finished all square at 1-1. After Jonathan Tah played the full 90 minutes in the 2-0 win against Israel, he did not feature in this match.

A special visit to the BayArena: 222 members from volunteer fire brigades in Leverkusen, the Rheinisch-Bergisch district and the Oberbergisch district watched the Werkself’s 2–0 home win over Slovenian champions NK Celje live in the stadium. Bayer 04 had invited them to the 2026/27 Europa League opener as a thank-you for their tremendous dedication. They watched the match together in Block F4.
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The Bayer 04 U19s have extended their winning run with a fifth consecutive victory on Matchday 5 of the DFB Youth League’s preliminary round. Coach Patrick Greveraars’ side secured a 3–2 (2–1) win in their match against second-placed FC Viktoria Köln, with Burak Kir and Nebe Domnic scoring for the hosts in the first half before captain Ben Hawighorst found the net after the break.
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Bayer 04 will have to manage without defender Guéla Doué for the time being. The Ivory Coast international sustained a muscle injury to his right calf during the final Werkself training session yesterday ahead of the Europa League clash with Slovenian champions NK Celje.
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For the first time since reaching the final against AS Roma (2–2, first leg 2–0) in May 2024, Bayer 04 are playing another home match in the UEFA Europa League – and they will be wearing their new European kit. On Wednesday 16 September (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), the BayArena will welcome Slovenian champions NK Celje, who appointed a new coach this week following a mixed start to the season. Under the slogan “40 Years Across Europe. Still Creating History.”, the Black and Reds now aim to add the next chapter to their European history, which has seen so much success in recent years. Bayer 04 fans can follow the match on free-to-air TV on RTL, as well as on Sky and Werkself Radio. The matchday news.
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European football returns to the BayArena: Bayer 04 host Slovenian champions NK Celje on matchday 1 in the group stage of the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. Ahead of the match on Wednesday 16 September (kick-off: 21:00 CEST), head coach Carles Martínez and midfielder Aleix Garcia spoke at the pre-match press conference. The focus was primarily on the great anticipation surrounding the competition and the clear objectives for it – and, given the circumstances, on a last-minute change to the opposition line-up.
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