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.
A fresh look for the BayArena: The Bayer 04 stadium will have new seating in the form of folding seats for the 2026/27 campaign that will ensure significantly improved seating comfort and simplified movement within the rows of seats. As part of routine replacement after 17 years, fans of the Werkself were able to purchase the existing seats, used to witness the first German league title in the club's history. In addition, a large proportion of the seats will be donated to charitable projects, primarily in the local region. Bayer 04 fans can look forward to new, functional folding seats for the season opener at the beginning of August - still in the club colours of black and red, of course. A glimpse at the BayArena during the refurbishment.
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On Monday evening, 8 June, around 250 people came to the Bürgerhaus Baumberg at the invitation of Bayer 04 to find out details of the new plans for the campus on Alfred-Nobel-Straße at an information event. More compact, greener and with many advantages for Monheim am Rhein - those are the aims. There were lively discussions for around three hours and some misunderstandings were cleared up.
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Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and Bayer 04 loanee Francis Onyeka are part of Germany's final squad for the U19 European Championships this summer. The tournament is in Wales from 24 June to 12 July.
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When Malik Tillman arrived at Bayer 04 Leverkusen from PSV Eindhoven last summer, he did more than just add attacking midfield strength to the team — he reconnected the club with a unique and understated American lineage that stretches back more than three decades.
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Bayer 04 are away to third-division club SV Wehen Wiesbaden in the first round of the 2026/27 DFB Pokal. That was the outcome of the draw on Saturday night, 6 June, at the German Football Museum in Dortmund. The Werkself first round tie will be played between 21 and 24 August. The exact date has yet to be finalised.
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