Bayer 04 have won 18 of the 27 Bundesliga home games to date against Bochum (four draws, five defeats) – the Werkself only have a higher points return in home games against FC Augsburg (2.3) than against Bochum (2.1) of all the current Bundesliga clubs. Equally positive: The Black and Reds have scored at least one goal against Bochum in the last 18 Bundesliga home meetings – with an average of 1.9 goals per game). The Werkself do not have a longer run of goals in home games against any other team in the Bundesliga than the one from Castroper Straße.
Get your tickets for the home game Bochum
There is a very special highlight ahead of kick-off at the BayArena: Werkself player Exequiel Palacios, who won the World Cup with Argentina in December, will receive a tribute in front of the fans for winning the biggest title in international football. The Bayer 04 managing directors Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes will join the fans in paying tribute to the world champion.
For the match against Bochum, Bayer 04 have joined with Bayer Vital in raising awareness of a very special issue and are campaigning under the slogan #stellrebsvomplatz (#sendcanceroff) to promote screening for the early detection of prostate cancer. Before kick-off: Both the Werkself and the Bochum line-ups will come together for a team photo with the campaign banner. A video will also be played showing Lukas Hradecky, Robert Andrich and Kerem Demirbay plus Bayer 04 medical director Carl Heinrich Dittmar promoting screening.
Prostate cancer is the most common cancer amongst men with over 60,000 cases per year. Prostate cancer can very often be treated if identified early enough. Only a quarter of men over over 45 take up the offer of screening. “At Bayer 04, we have made urological screening an integral part of medicals,” said Dr. Dittmar.
Three TSV Bayer 04 athletes plus Elisa Senß, captain of the Bayer 04 Women’s team, will be interviewed by stadium announcers Pitti Dahl and Tobias at half-time. The game against Bochum marks the start of the second Bayer Sports Family Week. A ticket for the Bundesliga match can be used for four more home games in Leverkusen. Any fan with a Bochum ticket can watch the Werkself, the Women’s volleyball players, the TSV Bayer 04 Giants, the handball team plus the Bayer 04 Women’s team at their home games in the coming days.
Anyone wanting to read key information on the game against Bochum should get hold of a copy of the latest Werkself LIVE. The matchday magazine, providing facts and stats on the clash, is available at the BayArena. Alternatively, it is available free of charge online. In addition, the current programme contains a big poster of our Argentinean World Cup winner Exequiel Palacios. HERE is the e-paper.
Even though the long winter break has intervened, Bochum can boast a short run of success: The 3-1 victory over Hertha Berlin last weekend was the third Bundesliga win in succession for the team under coach Thomas Letsch. The final two matches of last year saw VfL beat Borussia Mönchengladbach (2-1) and FC Augsburg (1-0). The deserved win against Hertha saw Bochum move up above the relegation zone for the first time since matchday two. The lowdown on our next opponents.
The German Football Association (DFB) have appointed referee Timo Gerach as the match official for the game against Bochum. This is the first Bundesliga match in charge for the 36-year-old. Gerach's assistant referees on the touchline are Dominik Schaal and Robert Wessel with Günter Perl in action as the VAR.
As ever, anyone unable to be at the game against VfL, can follow the match on Werkself Radio. The audio broadcast begins 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Cedric Pick and Niko Hartmann. In addition, updates are provided by live text to ensure you do not miss anything in the game. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de as well as on the Bayer 04 app – join us.
The Black and Reds kick off the new Bundesliga campaign today, Saturday 29 August (kick-off 15:30 CEST), away to newly promoted SV 07 Elversberg – and the Werkself will come up against a familiar face who is currently causing a stir at ‘Elv’. For an affordable and easy journey to the Saarland, the 1,600 travelling fans can still use the WERKSELFgo car-share platform. Today’s matchday news..
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The European jersey has been launched, the UEL opponents have been drawn – and anticipation for the European campaign is running high. To mark the occasion, an autograph session was held on Friday afternoon, 28 August, at the Fanwelt with current Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and official club legend Paulo Sergio.
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The Bundesliga is back. On Saturday 29 August (kick-off: 15:30 CEST), the Werkself are away to SV 07 Elversberg on matchday 1 of the new season. Ahead of the clash at the URSAPHARM Arena on Kaiserlinde, head coach Carles Martínez spoke, amongst other things, about the importance of a successful start and the motivation of the league newcomers from the Saarland.
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On Friday afternoon, it will be decided which eight of the 36 participating teams Bayer 04 will face in the group stage of the UEFA Europa League in 2026/27. At the draw in Monaco (live on UEFA.com), the Werkself will be drawn against two teams from each of the four pots, allocated according to the UEFA club coefficient. A match against an opponent from the same country is ruled out, as is facing more than two clubs from the same national association. Here’s a look at the pots and potential opponents.
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After six and a half years, Exequiel Palacios is leaving the Bundesliga and moving from Bayer 04 to the Premier League. The Argentine, who as a Werkself player won the World Cup with his national team four years ago and finished as runners-up at this summer’s tournament, will play for newly promoted English side Ipswich Town with immediate effect. The 27-year-old, whose contract in Leverkusen was due to run until 30 June 2030, joined Bayer 04 in January 2020 as a promising young talent. He steadily developed into one of the best defensive midfielders in the German top flight.
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