It got loud at the BayArena 20 minutes into the Bundesliga home opener for the Werkself against RB Leipzig. Midfielder Kerem Demirbay plucked up courage, unleashed a shot from 25 yards out and put the ball in the back of the RB net with the help of the underside of the bar. A goal from that distance and that angle, with four players in the way the shot? According to the xGoals statistic, which calculates the probability of a goal based on eight criteria, almost impossible! With a probability of only 2.23%, Demirbay's goal was the most difficult to score on matchday two. Hats off...
For the interview of the month with the German Football League (DFL), number one keeper Lukas Hradecky swapped the football for billiard balls. In the VIP entrance to the West Stand, the Finn played Patrick Owomoyela at the pool table. Who put the number eight in the right hole will be revealed in October at bundesliga.de.
Two Brazilians, two Argentinians, one Chilean and most recently one Colombian – the current Werkself squad as a number of South Americans. Since Tita arrived in Leverkusen in 1987, Bayer 04 attracted keen audience from the other side of the equator. For the Werkself fans in the football mad continent, there is now good news: Charles Aránguiz and Co. will soon be live on TV. The Berlin media company OneFootball have acquired the live rights to the Bundesliga for nine Spanish-speaking countries in South America, including Argentina, Uruguay and Chile. The contract is for the 2020/21 season. A similar partnership was agreed with Brazil two weeks ago.
The Day of German Unity on 3 October is a special public holiday in 2020: On the 30th anniversary of reunification there will be a wide range of events across Germany. And Bayer 04 is dedicating a theme week to this turning point in German-German history. A multi-media series on bayer04.de makes it clear: The fall of the Berlin Wall was a lucky break for the Werkself.
Part 1: Opening contribution ‘30 years of reunification: A lucky break for Bayer 04’
Part 2: A final time for the GDR – ‘Scholles’ game for the history books
Part 3: Interview with Reiner Calmund: ‘I had tears in my eyes'
The signing of the former GDR internationals Andreas Thom and Ulf Kirsten definitely count as big success stories. Bayer 04 with general manager Reiner Calmund brought the two attacking players to Leverkusen shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall. It should have been a trio with Matthias Sammer. "Everything was clear to me that the contract was already signed," explain the now 53-year-old in a recent interview with Bild. "There were then headlines like 'Bayer are buying up the East'. I have to admit it had an effect on me." So he asked Calmund to withdraw the contract. The Leverkusen main man agreed – and Sammer ended up at VfB Stuttgart instead of the Werkself.
Just in time for the start of the school year, everyone was hard at work again at NaturGut Ophoven. For the 21st time, Bayer 04 have supported the annual ‘BioBrotbox’ campaign, which puts together a healthy breakfast for first-year primary school pupils in Leverkusen – and not only contributed 1,904 muesli bars but also plenty of enthusiasm too: Together with the U19 players Burak Kir and Clinton Wilson, Emily Wallrabenstein and Paulina Platner from the Women’s Bundesliga team helped with the packing. The latter was clearly delighted “that Bayer 04 are helping out with regional projects like this and showing their commitment to the local community”.
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A group of about 50 members of the Bayer 04 Football Academy São Paulo visited Leverkusen over the past few days, accompanied by Bayer 04 club legend Paulo Sergio and Luiz Felipe (managing director of academy in São Paulo) for a week full of football, encounters and very special insights. In addition to the Bundesliga away game in Elversberg and the home game against Union Berlin, the visit also featured a joint training session with the Bayer 04 Football Academy in Leverkusen and a tour of the Bayer AG facilities. The guests also gained special insights into the club and the world of Bayer 04.
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The men's clothing retailer LERROS will remain the official fashion and premium partner of Bayer 04 for the current season. As in the past, LERROS will provide the club's men's team, coaching staff and management with high-quality clothing for international trips.
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“Diaby! Diaby! Diaby!” was the cry around the BayArena as the Werkself danced in front of the north stand following their 4-0 win over Union Berlin. Captain Edmond Tapsoba gave his new (and old) teammate a friendly shove forward to take in the acclaim from the fans. The returning Frenchman was typically reserved in thanking the supporters but was clearly emotional about what was happening.
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