Bayer 04 against VfL Wolfsburg in front of 30,210 fans – that would be great! But the coronavirus pandemic continues to restrict public life in Germany and Bundesliga matches will be played behind closed doors at least until the end of the season. So, do what Jens Nowotny does: Follow the hygiene and safety regulations and take your 'regular berth' for the end of the season run-in. Do it like 'Jenne' and make yourself comfortable in front of the television to get behind the Werkself from home. Tonight’s match will be broadcast live on Sky. And, of course, Werkself Radio will again be there at the kick-off: Niko and Cedric are your commentators for the match – live and free of charge (in German) at bayer04.de or on the app. Highlights of the game will be shown on ARD Sportschau tonight at 22.45 CET.
Kick-off at the BayArena is at 20.30 CET – but it is worth getting into football mode half an hour earlier. From 20.00 CET, Bayer 04 again broadcast 'Spieltag -Die Show' live on YouTube to get the fans in the mood for the game. The guest this time is club legend Rüdiger Vollborn. We will also go over to our stadium announcers Pitti and Tobi at the BayArena for the team line-ups. Of course, Dirk Maverick will again sing the club anthem – joining in is welcome and desired! Then Werkself Radio will take over for the kick-off. Tune in!
Since last autumn, the Bayer 04 ground staff have had a machine that has come to the fore during the coronavirus pandemic. The UFC180 is like a grass cutter that transmits UV rays. "Due to the fact that certain pesticides are no longer approved, we've had to look round for new possibilities in looking after the pitch," explained Georg Schmitz, head groundsman at Bayer 04. And that's where the UFC180 comes in: The UV rays kill fungal infections before they can attack the grass. Scientists have also discovered that UV rays can destroy corona viruses. That means the BayArena pitch is now regularly ‘disinfected’. Schmitz and his team need one and a half hours to cover the whole pitch.
Referee Daniel Schlager is in charge of tonight's match between the Werkself and VfL Wolfsburg. For the match official from Hügelsheim in South Baden, it will be the 18th Bundesliga match in his career and the second game involving the Werkself. In January he refereed the home game against Fortuna Düsseldorf that ended in a 3-0 win for the Bosz team. Since the suspension of the league, instead of the previous two days notice, the DFB now announces the match officials on the day of the game after referees have been tested for coronavirus.
The former Bayer 04 player Peter Szech would have celebrated his 67th birthday today. Szech joined the then second division Bayer 04 in 1978/79. He played a big part in promotion to the top-flight with his 15 goals in his first season at Leverkusen. In a total of 153 appearances for the Werkself, the Essen-born player scored 39 goals. Szech died at the age of 60 as a result of a motorcycle accident on 3 March 2014.
This special event showed once again how strong Bayer 04 are as a team: As part of ‘BarmeniaGothaer gives joy’, the Werkself players Edmond Tapsoba, Ibrahim Maza and Christian Kofane supported the sale of individually designed T-shirts for a good cause at the Fanwelt on Thursday. Several hundred fans came to take part in the charity campaign. Leverkusen's main sponsor BarmeniaGothaer donated the proceeds to the Fondation Edmond Tapsoba, which helps people in Tapsoba's home country of Burkina Faso in their challenging everyday lives.
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With three games to play before the end of the season, the Bayer 04 Women can break one record and equal another at SGS Essen. After three wins on the bounce, coach Roberto Pätzold's team are aiming to maintain the chance of third place in Sunday’s away game (14:00 CEST, Stadion an der Hafenstraße).
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Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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From Ouagadougou to Leverkusen – and back: in March, Bayer 04 travelled with Edmond Tapsoba for a special project in his homeland Burkina Faso. The country where his roots and heart lie. The country where he’s more than a world-class defender: a symbol of hope and a role model for an entire generation. The result is a 45-minute documentary about Tapsoba’s long journey from Africa via Portugal to Leverkusen, which offers extraordinary, one-off and emotional insights.
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Edmond Tapsoba has signed an early extension to his contract with Bayer 04 Leverkusen. With two years left on his current deal, the 27-year-old Burkina Faso international has extended his contract until 30 June 2031. The centre-back joined as a young talent from Portuguese top-flight club Vitoria Guimaraes at the start of 2020.
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