Bayer 04 captain Lukas Hradecky is in the Finland squad. The Werkself keeper is set to face Bosnia-Herzegovina, Montenegro, Romania and Bosnia-Herzegovina again in Group 3 of League B in the UEFA Nations League.
International duty started on Monday 23 May for Jonathan Tah. The 26-year-old is currently with the Germany squad at a five-day training camp in Marbella. The team under coach Hansi Flick are preparing for Nations League games in June. The opponents in Group 3 of League A are European champions Italy, England, Hungary and Italy again.
Moussa Diaby is also lined up for international fixtures. France national coach Didier Deschamps has called up the pacy striker to his 24-man squad. The Équipe Tricolore first play Denmark before two matches in Group 1 of League A against Croatia and Austria.
A new competition is about to take place: Argentina, winners of the 2021 Copa America, play the reigning European champions Italy at Wembley Stadium. Werkself midfielder Exequiel Palacios is in the South American squad. The 23-year-old has made 18 full international appearances so far.
Piero Hincapie is on the road with Ecuador. The versatile defender is on a USA tour of friendlies with games against Nigeria, Mexico and Cape Verde. The 20-year-old has 16 caps for Ecuador to date and has scored one goal for his country.
Edmond Tapsoba has two qualifiers for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations in June. The Werkself number 12 is with Burkina Faso for a game against Cape Verde and a meeting with Eswatini. Togo are the fourth team in Group B of the AFCON qualifiers.
Defender Odilon Kossounou is in the squad for two games for the Ivory Coast. The 13-time International faces Zambia and Lesotho in Group H of the AFCON qualifiers. The match against the third group opponents Comoros is set to be played in September 2022.
Left-back Mitchel Bakker is in the final 23-man squad. As part of the European championship qualifiers, the team under Marcel Groninger play Moldova, Gibraltar and Wales. Bakker and Co. are currently second in Group 5 just two points behind leaders Switzerland having played one game less.
INTERNATIONAL FIXTURES:
Lukas Hradecky – Finland
4 June, 18.00 CEST: Finland vs Bosnia & Herzegovina (UEFA Nations League)
7 June, 18.00 CEST: Finland vs Montenegro (UEFA Nations League)
11 June, 20.45 CEST: Romania vs Finland (UEFA Nations League)
14 June, 20.45 CEST: Bosnia & Herzegovina vs Finland (UEFA Nations League)
Jonathan Tah – Germany
4 June, 20:45 CEST: Italy vs Germany (UEFA Nations League)
7 June, 20:45 CEST: Germany vs England (UEFA Nations League)
11 June, 20.45 CEST: Hungary vs Germany (UEFA Nations League)
14 June, 20.45 CEST: Germany vs Italy (UEFA Nations League)
Moussa Diaby – France
3 June, 20.45 CEST: France vs Denmark (UEFA Nations League)
6 June, 20.45 CEST: Croatia vs France (UEFA Nations League)
10 June, 20.45 CEST: Austria vs France (UEFA Nations League)
13 June, 20.45 CEST: France vs Croatia (UEFA Nations League)
Exequiel Palacios – Argentina
1 June, 20.45 CEST: Italy vs Argentina (Finalissima)
Piero Hincapie – Ecuador
3 June, 02.30 CEST: Ecuador vs Nigeria (Friendly)
6 June, 01.30 CEST: Mexico vs Ecuador (Friendly)
12 June, 23.30 CEST: Ecuador vs Cape Verde (Friendly)
Edmond Tapsoba – Burkina Faso
3. June, 21.00 CEST: Burkina Faso vs Cape Verde Islands (AFCON qualifier)
7. June, 15.00 CEST: Eswatini vs Burkina Faso (AFCON qualifier)
Odilon Kossounou – Ivory Coast
3 June, 21.00 CEST: Ivory Coast vs Zambia (AFCON qualifier)
9 June, 21.00 CEST: Lesotho vs Ivory Coast (AFCON qualifier)
Mitchel Bakker – Netherlands U21
3 June, 18.45 CEST: Moldova U21 vs Netherlands U21 (Euro qualifier)
7 June, 20.00 CEST: Netherlands U21 vs Gibraltar U21 (Euro qualifier)
11 June, 18.00 CEST: Wales U21 vs Netherlands U 21 (Euro qualifier)
After being nominated for the Bundesliga Goal of the Year 2025, Martin Terrier's wonderful strike for the opener against FC Köln is now also up for selection for the ARD Sportschau Goal of the Month award for December 2025. Bayer 04 fans have until 19:00 CET on 10 January to vote for the French forward.
Show more
Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
Show more
"In every ending lies a new beginning" is a well-known saying. This phrase has probably never been more apt at Bayer 04. After winning the Bundesliga in 2023/24 and finishing as runners-up in 2024/25, the summer was the most eventful ever in terms of transfers. Over ten players and the coach, including the coaching staff, left the club. A lot of the heroes of the double-winning side began a new chapter. It was the end of an era. And at the same time the beginning of a new, very exciting and promising chapter for Leverkusen. The Werkself welcomed more than a dozen new arrivals, including experienced title-winners and young talents, to build a new "foundation for a successful team capable of winning titles" under the Bayer Cross, as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. A new spirit, a new hunger, a new story was to be created. Bayer04.de looks back at the first few months of this story and the final act of the preseason.
Show more
43 points at the end of the last Bundesliga season were not only more than ever before for the Bayer 04 Women, but also led to a record fourth-place finish. That was followed by a Hinrunde with many more victories, but also some setbacks. In an interview with bayer04.de, sporting director Achim Feifel takes stock at the end of the year.
Show more
With their wonderful goals, Martin Terrier and Florian Wirtz are up for the Bundesliga Goal of the Year 2025. Voting for fans will run exclusively via the official Bundesliga app until Sunday, 4 January.
Show more
