Two are better than one: Werkself youngster Florian Wirtz and his sister Juliane Wirtz are in the latest edition (number 243) of the football magazine 11Freunde. The siblings are not just on the cover of the magazine but they also share their views in a double interview over several pages.
The article reveals their joint first experiences with the ball at their feet. And they explain how their competition with each other has shaped them: "We used to play together in a small area in the living room and that gave us a certain grit."
Andrey Lunev sends greetings from hospital after undergoing his operation: The Bayer 04 goalkeeper underwent a successful procedure led by Dr. André Morawe in his Atos Orthoparc Klinik. HERE is the Tweet.
The Russian goalkeeper suffered a torn ankle ligament in training on Sunday and he is likely to be out of action for three months. The 30-year-old will complete his rehab at the Werkstatt in the BayArena. Here's to a swift and full recovery, Andrey.
His Leverkusen teammate Edmond Tapsoba has led the way with Burkina Faso and now it's down to Odilon Kossounou and Co. to follow suit: The Werkself central defender is looking to go through to the knockout stages with the Ivory Coast. A draw against bottom-placed Algeria in the third and final game in Group E on Thursday 20 January (kick-off: 17.00 CET) will be good enough to go through.
The Ivorians are the top of the table with four points from two games. The following two teams Equatorial Guinea (three points) and Sierra Leone (two) face each other and a point for the Ivory Coast would mean only one of the two other teams could overtake Kossounou and Co.
To mark International Holocaust Remembrance Day on 27 January, the Werkself will again take part in the ' memorial day in German football'. That day is the 77th anniversary of the liberation of survivors from the Auschwitz concentration camp.
Bayer 04 is highlighting the event as part of the forthcoming home game against FC Augsburg on Saturday, 22 January. Together with the ‘!NieWieder’ group and the global remembrance campaign #WeRemember of the World Jewish Congress (WJC), not only will victims of the Nazis be remembered but it will also serve as a warning against current dangerous developments in society.
In addition to the DFL and clubs from the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2, the Federal Chancellery, the EU Parliament, the German Bundestag and numerous artists will take part in the memorial event with a wide range of activities.
Jürgen ‘Gelle’ Gelsdorf was first involved with the Werkself in the summer of 1976. He joined Bayer 04 as a player from Arminia Bielefeld. Gelle probably couldn't have imagined at the time that the move would be the start of ten years for the central defender in a Black and Red shirt. He went on to gain promotion to the Bundesliga with the Werkself and he made an impressive 313 appearances (26 goals) with the Bayer Cross on his shirt.
Gelsdorf joined the coaching staff at Leverkusen after ending his playing career in 1986 – first in the youth section and then with the first team. The Duisburg-born coach then moved on before returning to Bayer 04 and 2005. He has worked almost 15 years at Leverkusen and today he celebrates his 69th birthday. Many happy returns, Gelle.
Jonas Boldt also celebrates his birthday on 19 January – all the best for number 40. Born in Nuremberg, he started at Bayer 04 as a scout in 2007 and in 2014 he became the sporting manager. Boldt was sporting director in 2018/19 before joining Hamburg SV in the summer of 2019 as the sporting director. On Tuesday night, he celebrated going through to the DFB Cup quarter-finals with the second division club – HSV beat FC Köln on penalties. Happy birthday, Jonas.
After just two points from their last four games, the situation has become trickier for Borussia Mönchengladbach in the bottom third of the table. Only three points separate the Foals from the relegation play-off spot. Coach Eugen Polanski's team is under pressure ahead of the home game against the Werkself on Saturday, 7 February (kick-off: 18:30 CET). The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Calling all eSports fans: On Saturday, 21 February (from 16:00 CET), the Werkself Wildcard Cup will take place at XPERION Köln (Hansaring 97, 50670 Cologne). Interested EA FC 26 amateur players will have the opportunity to win attractive prizes and a place in the VBL Open Play-offs by WOW. The play-offs are the final preliminary stage of the VBL Grand Final by WOW, the tournament for the German individual championship and, alongside the club championship (VBL CC), the most important sub-competition in the German eSports scene. Read on for information on registration.
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At its first general meeting on 5 February 2026 in Frankfurt am Main, the Frauen Bundesliga FBL e.V. made key decisions regarding the future direction of the Women’s Bundesliga. The meeting was based on the results of the negotiations with the German Football Association (DFB) over the past few weeks.
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Another efficient performance from the Werkself in the 3-0 home win against FC St. Pauli saw them reach the semi-finals of the DFB Pokal for the third time in a row, and it was not the only record set on what was a successful evening. It meant head coach Kasper Hjulmand was delighted to "still be in with the chance of winning something". Like the coach, however, the ambitious Edmond Tapsoba also stated that he wanted to keep "improving" bit by bit: "We'll continue to give our all, no matter who we come up against." The Werkself review of the clash.
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