
The game against the Premier League team from the south-east of England kicks off at the Alois Latini Stadium in Zell am See-Kaprun at 15.00 CET; followed by the game against Sociedad Deportiva Eibar at the same venue at 18.30 CET. Head coach Peter Bosz wants to use different players in these games to give all his squad at the training camp the maximum possible time on the pitch.
Tickets for the two games will only be available on the day on site. There is an option of watching both games: €18 for adults and €10 for children (7 to 17 years of age) or just the second match against SD Eibar (€10 for adults and €5 for children).
Brief lowdown on opponents:
Watford:
This August, the Hornets start their fifth season in the Premier League. In the last two league campaigns, the team promoted in 2015 finished eleventh in the table – the best finish in the recent history of the club who, for a long time, had the music legend Elton John as their chairman. Currently (as at 9 June 2019) the 36-man squad under Spanish coach Javi Garcia has 12 international players. It is also likely that there will be movement in terms of personnel over the next few weeks – as for example with Dodi Lukebakio, who made a name for himself last season on loan at Fortuna Düsseldorf (10 Bundesliga goals), and is now likely to be sold on at a profit according to media reports.
SD Eibar:
José Luis Mendilibar has coached the Spanish top-flight club for four years with promotion to La Liga happening five years ago for the first time in the 75-year history of the club. The provincial club from the Basque country have also established a first. Never before has a club from such a small town (population of 27,000) played in Spain's top flight. After a good ninth place in the previous season, SD Eibar finished eleventh last term. Former FC Bayern player and shareholder Xabi Alonso played for the club in 2000 – 2001. Goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic (Serbia), Pape Diaob (Senegal), Paulo Oliveira (Portugal) and Fabián Orellana (Chile) are current and former international players in the ranks of the Blue and Reds who also have a couple of promising Spanish youngsters. For the past year, the former Mainz player Pablo de Blasis, a familiar face from the Bundesliga (103 appearances), has played up front for the Basque side.


In mid-August, the Werkself will set off on a four-day trip to England to play their final two friendly matches of the 2026/27 pre-season against Premier League clubs Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United. The match in Nottingham against the Tricky Trees is on Wednesday 12 August at 20:45 CEST (19:45 BST) at the City Ground. The game against the Magpies in Newcastle is on Saturday 15 August at 16:00 CEST (15:00 BST) at the atmospheric St James’ Park. Details on ticket sales for both matches.
Show more
Black and Red talent development at the highest level – even off the pitch: Apprentices Jule Suermann, Leandra Bellia and Julia Niederheide have successfully completed their two- or three-year apprenticeships at the club. Bayer 04 honoured the trio at the BayArena on Tuesday.
Show more
Rieden reloaded: Just like last year, the Bayer 04 Women’s team are spending their summer training camp in this idyllic corner of Bavaria. From this Sunday, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team will be based in Rieden in the Upper Palatinate for a week.
Show more
Following the summer break, most of the players are back in Leverkusen. While two Bayer 04 first-team players are still in action at the World Cup, the players present officially kicked off the new season with fitness assessments. At the Werkstatt, the Bayer 04 rehabilitation and training centre, Robert Andrich, Edmond Tapsoba and the rest of the squad worked up quite a sweat in the sweltering summer heat. New signings Afonso Moreira and Kennet Eichhorn also successfully completed the day’s sessions alongside their new team-mates.
Show more
The Werkself return tomorrow, Tuesday 14 July (from 11:00 CEST at the BayArena; live stream on bayer04.de, the Bayer 04 app and YouTube), with new head coach Carles Martínez leading his first training session as part of the Bayer 04 set-up. His coaching team comprises a mix of new and long-standing colleagues.
Show more