The news is out: New Bayer 04 keeper Lennart Grill, signed from third division FC Kaiserslautern, will wear the number 21 shirt. The 21-year-old ‘numerically’ follows midfielder Dominik Kohr who moved on from Bayer 04 to Eintracht Frankfurt in the summer. Before Kohr, central defender Ömer Toprak was the Werkself number 21 for six years. Grill will join his new teammates for the first time on the pitch at the BayArena tonight, 23 July, with the number 21 on his training kit.
Sports journal kicker made a very positive assessment of the former FCK keeper in the second half of the third division campaign and included the new Leverkusen player in the ‘Outstanding’ category in their ranking of German football. After the first half of last season, he was in the second highest category as a ‘prospect’. The kicker assessment: “Possibly the best goalkeeper in the league on the line and the U21 international often kept Kaiserslautern in the game. If he can improve his presence in the box then he could have the potential to play in the Bundesliga.”
The first opponents, derby weekends and much more: The German Football League (DFL) will publish the fixtures for the 2020/21 Bundesliga season on 7 August. The top flight and the second division will kick off on 18 September and the Werkself plus the other 17 teams will end the season on 22 May. The late start to the season is due the suspension of the league last term due to the coronavirus pandemic.
As announced by the German Football Association (DFB) on Thursday, DFB president Fritz Keller and the assistant general secretary Heike Ullrich will make the draw for the first round of the DFB Cup. This will be held on Sunday, 26 July, and broadcast live on the ARD programme ‘Sportschau’ from 18.30 CET.
It is possible the ball marked ‘Bayer 04 Leverkusen’ will not face a named opponent at the end of the draw this year – usually there is a lower league team opponent. Due to the suspension of play caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the list of teams for the first round is not yet complete. The majority of the finals in the state cups will be played on 22 August. The DFB Cup ties will be played between 11 and 14 September, a week before the Bundesliga starts.
There were celebrations among those in black and red at the RheinEnergieSTADION. On Matchday 9 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season, the Werkself beat 1. FC Köln 2-0 and registered their sixth successive win in the derby. Aleix Garcia put Bayer 04 in front after just seven minutes with a direct free kick. Leverkusen played with discipline and energy after that and didn't allow some fierce challenges to unsettle them. Patrik Schick made it 2-0 in the 86th minute, and Said El Mala's goal in stoppage time for Köln proved nothing more than consolation. Jonas Hofmann crowned the derby win with his 100th appearance for the club.
Show more
Bayer 04 have won each of their last five competitive encounters with 1. FC Köln, and it's around seven years since their last defeat in the cathedral city. That said, the hosts are in strong form at home and will make it anything but easy for the Werkself at the RheinEnergieSTADION on Sunday afternoon (kick-off 15:30 CET). The Matchday News.
Show more
Werkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04 Women's 2-0 win against Hamburger SV on Matchday 9 of the 2026/27 Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga.
Show more
1. FC Köln host Bayer 04 on Sunday 8 November (kick-off 15:30 CET) in the 75th Bundesliga derby between the Rhineland neighbours. The lowdown on our next opponents.
Show more
