The current Werkself captain Lars Bender has been loyal to the Black and Reds for nearly eleven years and his brother Sven signed from Borussia Dortmund in 2017. Born in Rosenheim and raised in Brannenburg, they have played 420 games for Bayer 04 to date and are absolutely key players in the Bayer 04 defence. How are the Bender brothers spending their birthday? On the pitch, of course.
Training in small groups was on the agenda today for the Werkself and the two birthday boys. Against the background of the coronavirus pandemic, the teammates shared their congratulations with the necessary distancing. Bayer 04 wish the duo happy birthday, health and fitness and a quick return to playing for the club.
Knut Reinhardt is 52
In addition to the Benders, Knut Reinhardt also celebrated his birthday. After nine years with the local Leverkusen club TuS 05 Quettingen, he joined the Bayer 04 youth section in 1977. Born in the Hilden, he progressed through all be Black and Red youth teams to the Reserves. Reinhardt made 141 appearances for the Werkself, scoring seven goals. In 1991, the midfielder moved on from Bayer 04 to Borussia Dortmund and in 2001 he ended his playing career. Reinhardt became a primary school teacher and in 2017 he published his autobiography 'Wenn Fußball Schule macht: Mein Weg vom Fußballprofi zum Lehrer' (When football teaches a lesson: My path from football player to teacher). Today the former Werkself player celebrates his 52nd birthday. Bayer 04 wishes happy birthday and stay safe, Knut.
Chicharito mourns the loss of his grandfather
Javier ‘Chicharito’ Hernández, at Bayer 04 from 2015 to 2017, mourns the loss of his grandfather. The former player, Tomás Balcázar, has passed away at the age of 88. His club Chivas Guadalajara made the announcement on Sunday. The former striker, who visited the Werkself along with Chicharito's father at the training camp in Orlando in January 2017 (see photo), played for Mexico in the 1954 World Cup in Switzerland and he scored a goal in the game against France (2-3). Balcázar played for Chivas from 1949 to 1958 and later became assistant coach.
Info on ticket refunds
In the battle against coronavirus, the federal and state heads of government have forbidden all large-scale events until at least 31 August 2020. The order also applies to football matches played in front of spectators. Bayer 04 Leverkusen have therefore decided not to resume ticket sales for this season. Instead, anyone who has purchased a ticket can now apply to have the cost of the tickets refunded. Or Bayer 04 will donate the value of the match tickets to two charitable organisations.
Your club – Golden Moments
The pay-TV broadcaster Sky is portraying club life of the Bundesliga clubs in a 'Your club' series during the coronavirus pandemic, Sky has announced. This will also include Golden Moments at Bayer 04. There will be a trip down memory lane for the Black and Red player with the most Bundesliga appearances Rüdiger Vollborn as well as Ulf Kirsten and Stefan Kießling. The one hour programme is available for all Sky customers in Germany.
Former Werkself star Michael Ballack, who won the German Footballer of the Year award in 2002 while playing in Leverkusen, celebrates his 50th birthday on Saturday. Bayer 04 sends him its best wishes!
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Attention Werkself fans: In addition to tickets for the floodlit home match against Werder Bremen, tickets are now also available for the Bayer 04 women’s team’s two subsequent fixtures against Eintracht Frankfurt and Hamburger SV at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Both matches in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga will take place at family-friendly kick-off times on Saturday afternoons. Here is the latest information on matchday ticket sales.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen welcomes a new official member to the Sponsors’ Club at the start of the 2026/27 campaign. KKV Kabelverlegung GmbH & Co. KG is expanding its existing partnership and will, with immediate effect, act as a supporter of the Bundesliga club at the second-highest partner level, just below the premium tier. As an official partner in the Sponsors’ Club, KKV will now enjoy significantly enhanced visibility during Werkself matches at the BayArena. The new contract is initially valid until 30 June 2028.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen has extended the existing partnership agreement with EDO Personalservice GmbH and, at the same time, expanded its collaboration with the Cologne-based company. The official partner in the Business Club has been upgraded within Bayer 04’s partner network. The revised and enhanced support for the club has initially been agreed for two years, running until 30 June 2028.
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Video games developer Electronic Arts (EA), in collaboration with the Bundesliga, has announced the six nominees for the Bundesliga ‘Player of the Month’ award for September – Bayer 04’s Miguel Gutiérrez has made it into this select group after just four Bundesliga matches. Fans of the Black and Reds can vote from now until Sunday 27 September (23:59 CEST).
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