It’s just reward for a brilliant start. Mitchel Bakker has only played three games in the Bundesliga and one cup tie but he is now an established member of head coach Gerardo Seoane’s team. The many good performances by our number 5 on the left wing have also come to the attention of the German Football League (DFL). Mitchel Bakker has now been nominated as ‘Rookie of the Month’ for August. The vote is presented by AWS, the technology provider for the Bundesliga.
Bakker is joined by two Leipzig players: the defender Mohamed Simakan and the midfielder Dominik Szoboszlai. You can vote for the Werkself defender here. The vote is open until Thursday, 9 September, 23.59 CEST.
It’s an important cause for him: Nadiem Amiri is working together with the DFB and their Egidius Braun Foundation to help Afghan refugees. The 24-year-old visited accommodation for refugee families, mostly from Afghanistan, in Stuttgart at the end of last week and invited them to Germany’s game against Armenia.
“As a German with Afghan roots I have closely followed recent events in Afghanistan,” said Amiri, whose parents fled to Germany before he was born. “There were no doubts for me about supporting these people as much as possible. I’m aware of the privileged life I lead in Germany.” He is happy, “we were able to organise an event for the families along with our partners so that all the people from the accommodation could get some distraction in these difficult times.” It’s particularly important to, “that the whole thing becomes a long-term partnership between all sides.”
He has a very complicated season behind him. Paulinho suffered a torn cruciate in the build-up to the 2020 cup final. He ended up battling for months to make his comeback and he was back on the pitch for the Werkself in the final Bundesliga game in the 2020/21 season. The 21-year-old went on to win a gold medal for his country at the Olympic Games in Tokyo and he played in all three Bundesliga games to date this term. A fellow countryman and Bayer 04 legend is convinced Paulinho will get off to a flying start this season.
Paulo Sergio, who scored 62 goals in 149 Bundesliga games for the Werkself between 1993 and 1997, said to the BILD newspaper: “He needs to be patient because of the many injuries but hopefully he will soon be on the way up again. The gold medal was important and it will give him a boost.” In Brazil they are expecting “him to have a great career.”
Hats off, Erik Meijer. The former Bayer 04 striker – who scored 21 goals for the Black and Reds in 106 games between 1996 and 1999 – completed his first triathlon over long-distance on Sunday. The 52-year-old completed the Challenge Roth after swimming for 3.8 kilometres, cycling for 170 kilometres and running for 42 kilometres in a total time of 11 hours three minutes and 32 seconds. “Football is a team sport but you are on your own with triathlon and you need lots of discipline. That brought me over the finishing line. I’m very proud of that,” said Meijer, who has worked as a pundit on Sky for years.
Meijer actually wanted to take the challenge for his 50th birthday but coronavirus intervened. Now it has worked out in Roth. In his usual relaxed manner, Meijer ended by saying: “The race was awful. It was long, I hate the canal and it was a great day.”
Although he was born and brought up in Wuppertal and played for Bayer Wuppertal in the youth teams, Holger Fach and Bayer 04 came together really late. After being in the Bundesliga at Fortuna Düsseldorf, Bayer 05 Uerdingen and Borussia Mönchengladbach, the former international joined Leverkusen as 32-year-old. He was the sweeper in 39 games and he reached the semi-final stage of the DFB Cup in 1996 and he played in the legendary ‘relegation final’ against FC Kaiserslautern. After just one season, he went out on loan to Fortuna Düsseldorf and he then signed for 1860 Munich. At the end of his playing career he worked as a coach and sporting director and in 2012 he overcame lung cancer. Holger Fach is 59 years old today (Monday), and Bayer 04 sends warm congratulations.
Following the international break, the Bayer 04 women’s team face their next head-to-head clash in the race for a top spot in the Bundesliga. In Saturday’s home match (14:00 CEST), the fourth-placed side host third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Head coach Roberto Pätzold is well aware of the great opportunity this presents for his team.
Show more
Bayer 04 make their first trip to Poland for over 30 years as they face Lech Poznan on Matchday 2 of the league phase in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. The game kicks off at 18:45 CEST on Thursday, but the team will be preparing for the action on Wednesday with training, travel and pre-match press conferences. We’ll bring you all the latest news here…
Show more
Bayer 04 remain unbeaten in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. After winning the opener against NK Celje, the Werkself followed that up on Thursday night with a 4–0 win away at the Polish champions Lech Poznan. Patrik Schick, who came on as a substitute early in the game, scored twice from the penalty spot, and Malik Tillman also found the back of the net before half-time. The second half was a more subdued affair, with Ibrahim Maza scoring late on to seal the final 4-0 scoreline.
Show more
Since 2023, Bayer 04 has been organising regular free goalkeeping coach training sessions at the BayArena. As in previous years, the event attracted enormous interest in mid-October 2026. Around 140 participants – mostly goalkeeping coaches from the region, but also team and academy coaches as well as association staff – came to the Werkself stadium to gain expert knowledge on the subject of zonal marking. Through a theoretical keynote presentation and a practical session on the pitch, the participants gained insights into goalkeeping and goalkeeper training at Bayer 04.
Show more
