Sven Jablonski is in charge of today’s game against SC Freiburg on Saturday 14 May (kick-off: 15.30 CEST/Stadium opens: 13.30 CEST). The 32-year-old referee has officiated nine games involving the Werkself to date. From a Black and Red perspective there have been six wins, one draw and two defeats. The first Bayer 04 game under Jablonski was a 4-0 win against Freiburg in September 2017.
His assistants today are Norbert Grudzinski and Sascha Thielert with Tobias Welz the VAR ref. Have a good game.
The Nordkurve12 fan club has stocked up and will be selling another 600 #FinallyRed shirts on matchday from 13.00 CEST. The shirts cost five euros each and are available in sizes M to 3 XL from the StadionEck.
Black and Red fans can read the latest information on the matchday in Werkself LIVE ahead of the kick-off against the team under head coach Christian Streich. The programme is available at the BayArena – or alternatively as a free online version.
Bayer 04’s revamped matchday magazine provides interesting facts and stats on the match. On the back of the print version for the game #B04SCF there is a poster marking the departure of sporting managing director Rudi Völler. Here is the e-paper.
Among the many guests at the sold-out BayArena will be Germany coach Hansi Flick and his assistant Danny Röhl. The German Football Association (DFB) announced on Friday that the 57-year-old coach will announce his squad for the forthcoming for Nations League matches on Thursday (19 May). Flick has recently included Werkself defender Jonathan Tah in his team.
Anybody unable to be at the BayArena today can tune in to Werkself Radio from 30 minutes before kick-off. There will also be live text updates on the match. Both the radio broadcast and the text commentary are available at bayer04.de as well as on the new Bayer 04-App – tune in if you can.
Last week the Werkself sealed a Champions League spot ahead of the final game of the season against Freiburg. Eleven years ago to the day things looked completely different: On matchday 34 in the 2010/11 season the team under the then coach Jupp Heynckes were away to SCF – and they sealed qualification for the Champions League with a 1-0 win thanks to a goal from Hanno Balitsch in second place behind Bayern Munich. For Bayer 04 it was the first Champions League campaign since the 2004/05 season. Heynckes returned to FC Bayern at the end of the season and he took his assistant coach Peter Hermann with him.
Bayer 04 congratulate Michael Rensing on his 38th birthday today. The former goalkeeper joined the Werkself from FC Köln in 2012 and he went on to make two appearances in goal for the Black and Reds in the Bundesliga. At the end of that season, the 6 foot 3 shot-stopper moved on to Fortuna Düsseldorf where he ended his playing career two years ago.
Bayer 04 host Bayern Munich in the semi-finals of the 2025/26 DFB Pokal. The tie will be played on Wednesday, 22 April 2026, at the BayArena with the kick-off at 20:45 CEST. Information on ticket sales.
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Bayer 04 have the chance to reach the quarter-finals of the UEFA Champions League for the third time ever and the first in 14 years at Arsenal on Tuesday night (kick-off 21:00 CEST/20:00 local time). To do that, the Werkself not only require a strong performance like in the first leg, but also full concentration until the very last minute, as the Premier League leaders like to score late - as they did at the BayArena last week. Here's the Matchday News.
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A special award for special social commitment. At this year's ceremony for the Sepp Herberger Awards in Wolfsburg on Monday night, the DFB Sepp Herberger Foundation recognised Bayer 04 in the social rehabilitation category. The Bundesliga club received the prize, together with €12,000, for its great service to inmates, particularly in the Wuppertal-Ronsdorf prison.
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Can Bayer 04 pull off a coup in London? Just over a week after the 1-1 draw in the first leg of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League round of 16 tie, the Werkself are now looking to put in a convincing performance away at Arsenal – and get a result to secure a place in the quarter-finals. Ahead of the match on Tuesday, (kick-off: 21:00 CET), head coach Kasper Hjulmand shared his thoughts on the team’s hunger for success. Exequiel Palacios, meanwhile, spoke about the importance of the fixture and the team’s development over the past few months.
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In their last two matches, they’ve done exactly what 'Laterkusen' did in the 2023/24 double-winning season: late on, but not too late, the Gunners scored crucial goals – first in the first leg of the UEFA Champions League round of 16 at Bayer 04, then last weekend in the Premier League against Everton. This Tuesday, 17 March (kick-off: 21:00 CET), Arsenal host the Werkself in London. The latest on our opponents.
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