The #Morethanfootball Action Weeks start today, Monday 21 March. The action weeks run up to 14 April and highlight how football clubs can live up to their social responsibility through a wide range of activities. The global project initiated by the European Football for Development Network offers participating clubs and organisations the opportunity to inform their supporters and fans about their own activities in the area of community affairs and social responsibility on and off the pitch and thereby increase awareness of the role of football within society.
The Werkself are taking part in the campaign again as was the case last year. Bayer 04 will again present a wide range of activities over the coming days. That includes in the areas of accessibility, social inclusion, sustainability and climate protection, mental health and much more. The Werkself and the Bayer 04 Women’s team will raise the profile of the action weeks at forthcoming home games.
Kicker usually only marks players in Bundesliga matches who have been on the pitch longer than 30 minutes. But the football journal made an exception in yesterday's 2-0 win for the Werkself at VfL Wolfsburg: Paulinho, who only came on as a substitute on 81 minutes, was awarded top marks for his brace. In addition, the Brazilian was named Man of the Match.
But that's not all: The Werkself forward was named Man of the Matchday. The reasoning from the management at kicker: "Just as many observers […] in Wolfsburg were coming to terms with a goalless draw given the missed chances at either end, his chance came. Paulinho demonstrated how to score goals in just eleven minutes. […] Paulinho’s double whammy – a late lesson in clinical finishing who the kicker awards, against their usual procedures and in spite of the short time on the pitch, the top mark: a 1."
Paulinho was also included in the kicker team of the matchday – as was his Leverkusen teammate Odilon Kossounou. The Ivory Coast international, who played at right back against Wolfsburg, was awarded a mark of 2.5. Both are in the kicker team of the matchday for the first time.
The Rheinische Post and the Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger also both awarded the top mark of 1 to Paulinho.
Bayer 04 today remember Hans-Josef Kretschmann (1902-2002). ‘Sepp’ played for SC Charlottenburg and Preußen Duisburg. Kretschmann was the coach of a number of clubs – he was at the helm of the Black and Reds for three years from 1953 to 1956. He took the Werkself to seventh spot in 1953/54 and third in the table the following season. Kretschmann moved on to VfL Wolfsburg after relegation from the Oberliga West a year later.
The team departs for Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Monday for the Bayer 04 Brazil Tour 2025 from July 14-24. The preseason journey marks a change from recent training camps in the Austrian Alps and Black Forest and we caught up with CEO Fernando Carro to ask him about this summer's visit to Brazil.
Show moreMalik Tillman and the USA could not quite achieve the hoped-for big win in their own country. Last Monday’s final in the CONCACAF Gold Cup in Houston ended up in a 2-1 defeat for the hosts against Mexico. But the Bayer 04 new signing can be very happy with the course of the tournament and his own performances. Tillman was in the starting line-up for all six games. That concluded an impressive season for him after winning the Eredivisie title in the Netherlands with PSV Eindhoven. Bayer04.de profiles the 23-year-old new signing.
Show moreBayer 04 Leverkusen have signed the USA international Malik Tillman. The 23-year-old attacking midfielder joins the Werkself from Dutch champions PSV Eindhoven. Tillman, with German roots and born in Nuremberg, has a contract at Leverkusen to 30 June 2030. He scored 16 goals and provided five assists in 34 games for PSV last season. Three of those goals and two assists were in six matches in the UEFA Champions League.
Show moreThe second friendly and the first goal for the Bayer 04 Women: The Werkself just missed out on their first win in the preseason away to top-flight Dutch side PEC Zwolle. The team led by coach Roberto Pätzold drew 1-1 on Friday afternoon in Wezep. As with the friendly against TSG Hoffenheim (0-2) a number of first-team players were absent. The coach once again shared out time on the pitch for the 20-player squad. The goal of the match was scored by summer signing Vanessa Fudalla (67').
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