The Green and Whites have contested five pre-season friendlies so far, beating Austria Salzburg 5-1 and Saudi-Arabian club Al-Ittihad with ex-Werkself pro Moussa Diaby 4-1. They lost against Premier League clubs Liverpool (1-0) and Manchester United (3-2) in the context of a tour to the USA and were held to a goalless draw by Spanish second-tier side Cadiz last Wednesday.
Real Betis finished in seventh place in the last La Liga campaign to qualify for the UEFA Conference League. They lost the decisive match for sixth place at home to Real Sociedad San Sebastian 2-0 on the second-to-last matchday. The storied club have established themselves among Spain’s top seven teams since coach Luis Pellegrini took over in August 2020.
Betis enjoyed their most successful season under the Chilean in 2021/22, when they finished fifth. They beat Valencia in the Spanish Cup final that season to win the Copa del Rey for the third time in their history and encountered Bayer 04 for the first time. The Europa League group match in Sevilla ended in a 1-1 draw before the Werkself won 4-0 thanks to goals by Diaby (2), Florian Wirtz and Nadiem Amiri in Leverkusen. Real Betis, whose most prominent honorary members are Spanish King Felipe and his father Juan Carlos, finished in second place behind Bayer 04 and were eliminated by Eintracht Frankfurt, who went on to win the competition, in the last sixteen (2-1, 1-1 AET).
Sevilla is the 13th position in Pellegrini’s career as a coach. The 70-year-old coached Spanish sides Villarreal, Real Madrid and Malaga from 2004 to 2013. He was in charge of Manchester City from 2013 to 2016, winning the Premier League in 2014 and the League Cup in 2014 and 2016. Pellegrini coached West Ham United before joining Real Betis.
Needless to say, there have been a number of changes in Sevilla’s personnel since their first encounter with the Werkself. Goalkeeping legend Claudio Bravo, who has made 150 appearances for Chile, left the club this summer. The 41-year-old had played in seven league matches in Betis colours last season. Portuguese netminder Rui Silva is Sevilla’s number one now.
Betis signed 31-year-old defender Ricardo Rodriguez just a few days ago. Rodriguez, who is Granit Xhaka’s Switzerland teammate, joined from FC Turin and is known in the Bundesliga from his time at VfL Wolfsburg (2012-2017). Two further experienced new signings are expected to strengthen Betis’ defence: 30-year-old centre-back Diego Llorente joined from Leeds United after a two-year loan spell at AS Roma. 26-year-old left-back Romain Perraud joined from Southampton. In addition, Real Betis have signed Marc Roca, who played for them on loan last season. The 27-year-old had played for FC Bayern from 2020 to 2022 before joining Leeds United.
Forward Borja Iglesias, who played for Bayer 04 on loan in the first half of 2024, has left Sevilla to join fellow La Liga side Celta Vigo on loan. Willian José, who was Betis’ most prolific striker on ten goals last season, joined Spartak Moscow this summer. Besides, two seasoned defenders have left Sevilla. 33-year-old Argentinian Germán Pezzella returned to his home country to join River Plate. Former Dortmund pro Sokratis (36) hung up his boots this summer. Club legend Joaquin had finished his active career at the age of 41 in the summer of 2023. The former forward boasts 622 La Liga appearances, a joint record along with goalkeeper Andoni Zubizarreta.
Captain Nabil Fekir and former Real Madrid player Isco are among Betis’ leaders. The latter will miss the match at the BayArena with a fibula fracture.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have signed 16-year-old midfield prospect Gabriel Minutillo on a long-term contract. The Germany youth international will play for the U19s this season.
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Bayer 04 preparations for the 2026/27 season are in full swing, with the first friendly now under their belts. Although there are still around seven weeks to go until the first Bundesliga home game in early September, there is already huge anticipation for the start of competitive action for head coach Carles Martínez’s team at the BayArena. For the Bundesliga home matches of the new season, here is the latest information regarding the first phase of single-match ticket sales. The tried-and-tested early-bird phase remains in place. From 23 to 31 July, tickets for matches will go on sale on weekdays; the early-bird phase ends on 5 August at the latest – provided tickets are still available by then.
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Like last year, Bayer 04 Women held their summer training camp in Rieden. Coach Roberto Pätzold gives his assessment of the time in the Upper Palatinate, discusses the integration of the 11 new players and the unusual team building measures, gives his thoughts on the friendly and looks ahead to the start of the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga season in August.
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Just in time for the start of the summer holidays in North Rhine-Westphalia, the Werkself will hold another open training session on Tuesday 21 July. The session at the BayArena is scheduled to start at 11:00 CEST and will again be available to watch in a live stream. The fans who are there can look forward to a very special surprise.
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Bayer 04 Women rounded off their one-week training camp in the Upper Palatinate with their second friendly win of pre-season. Coach Roberto Pätzold's side beat Czech top-flight outfit Slovan Liberec 6-0 in a match consisting of 4 x 30 minutes. Maja Sternad (8'), Caroline Kehrer (55'), Natasha Kowalski (67', 84') with two direct free kicks, Valentina Mädl (97') and Justine Brandau (107') scored the goals for Leverkusen at 1.FC Rieden's Fenstertechnik-Weinfurtner-Arena.
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