Latin American Media Visit the BayArena

The day began with an official club welcome from Holger Tromp, Bayer 04’s Communications Director, who introduced the visitors to the stadium, the club’s philosophy and international ambitions. He also highlighted the team’s long-tradition of developing players and young talent from Latin America, including more than 20 Brazilian players and others from Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador and Chile over the past decades.

Currently the team features five players from Latin America on its roster including four Argentines (Claudio Echeverri, Equi Fernández, Exequiel Palacios, Alejo Sarco) and Arthur from Brazil. Some of the past stars from the region who have played with the Black and Red include Brazil’s Jorginho, Lucio, Paulo Sergio and Ze Roberto, Chile’s Arturo Vidal (Chile) and Charles Aranguiz and Ecuador’s national team defender Piero Hincapie. Mexican superstar Chicharito also spent two years in the BayArena as the team’s leading scorer in both seasons (2016-2018).

Representatives from Bundesliga International then provided insights into the league’s global outlook and growing popularity across Latin America.

In the late morning, the media group took in the first-team training session followed by a guided tour of the BayArena. Afterwards, they explored the club’s new “Fanwelt” – a modern fan experience and team store that highlights Bayer 04’s history and recent trophies.

After lunch, attention turned to the pitch once again as the journalists had the opportunity to speak with Exequiel Palacios, the Argentine international and current World Cup champion – the only one playing in the Bundesliga.

The visit concluded with a media round table featuring Simon Rolfes, Managing Director of Sport, who discussed the club’s sporting philosophy, player development and how the team has found success in integrating international players into its system.

Guests came from six different countries and featured some of the biggest sports media platforms in the world including Sky Mexico, Claro Sports, Marca, Diario AS, UOL and Infobae.

“This visit highlights Bayer 04’s strong ties to the Spanish-speaking football community and the club’s ongoing efforts to build closer connections with fans and media across Latin America,” said Tromp. “It was a great follow-up to our historic Bayer 04 Brazil tour this summer in Rio de Janeiro which which engaged media from all over LatAm, as well as fans and followers over nine memorable days.”

Photo source: Vera Loitzsch DFL/Getty Images