The pilots are planned for this season’s games in the Champions League, Europa League and the Conference League in Germany, England and France. Spanish and Italian clubs could have taken part in the test phase but the qualified teams do not have grounds with the appropriate areas. The finals are not included in this pilot scheme.
That means Bayer 04 Leverkusen will be able to plan on having full terraces in this season’s Champions League campaign. “We will immediately start all the required approval steps so we can receive final approval,” explained Fernando Carro as chairman of the board. “This decision by UEFA is a landmark for European football,” added Carro. “We will do everything we can at Leverkusen to make the pilot project a success so that the culture of standing can return to all the stadiums in Europe.”
In the 1990s, UEFA introduced the ban on standing for all games under the aegis of the association including in reaction to the Hillsborough disaster in 1989 where 97 fans lost their lives.
New signing Miguel Gutiérrez arrives in Leverkusen having won the Champions League, the Spanish league title and an Olympic gold medal. However, the 25-year-old Spaniard, signed from Napoli, is looking to the future – he wants to write the next chapter of success with the Werkself. Bayer04.de takes a closer look at the skilful, attack-minded left-back, who will wear the number 3 jersey.
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The Werkself's training camp in Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog you'll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day three (Tuesday 4 August) begins with a thorough open session on the pitch. After lunch, some players have media engagements at the team hotel, and then the team come together for a barbecue in the evening.
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Nine matches against teams from nine countries, two penalty shoot-outs won, and encounters that went far beyond football: As with last year, the Inklusionswerkself enjoyed an extraordinary week at the Genuine Cup 2026 in Houston, USA, and made memories that will last a lifetime. This year, the Leverkusen side took part as Germany’s official representatives and, accordingly, took to the pitch in Germany kit. Together with 53 teams from 53 nations, the Black and Reds once again sent a powerful message of inclusion and participation – and also impressed on the pitch by winning their group.
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The Werkself training camp in the Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog, you’ll find all the insights and updates from the day. The programme for day two (Monday, 3 August) centres on two training sessions – one in the morning (open to the public) and one in the early evening (behind closed doors) – at the nearby training grounds. In the afternoon, fans can look forward to a big fan meet-up with club legend Paulo Sergio at Schloss Blankenhain.
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