Florian Wirtz has already established himself as a key member of the Werkself at the age of just 18. His personal record for the season is impressive: The versatile midfielder scored eight goals and provided the same number of assists in 38 games across all competitions. After his move to Bayer 04, he first had to "earn respect and show what I could do over several months," said Wirtz in the latest edition of the Werkself Magazin. (The full interview is available HERE).
It is now clear: he has more than succeeded in that aim. The player born in Pulheim has not only made an impression on his teammates but also on the Bayer 04 fans. The newly crowned U21 European Champion received 23.8% of all votes cast but he did not believe he would be named Player of the Season 2020/21. "For me, Lars Bender is the Player of the Season. He's done so much of the club and was always there for the fans," said Wirtz. "But, of course, I'm happy about this award. Particularly because the fans voted. They appeared to like my performances and my way of playing football. That makes me happy and motivates me to make an even greater effort."
16.8% of all votes from the Werkself fans went to the new honorary captain Lars Bender in second place. The defensive stalwart hung up his boots at the end of the season after 12 years under the Bayer Cross. Third place went to Leon Bailey who picked up 12.9% of the votes cast. Our number nine had an impressive season and had the highest number of goals and assists in the team. His record: 15 goals plus 11 assists in 40 games.
The Bayer 04 Club again awarded first class prizes among those Bayer 04 members taking part in the vote. The main winner Marco Gottschlich received two VIP tickets for a Werkself home game. Given the long absence of fans at the BayArena, this prize is a particularly special highlight. Like the majority of the fans, he gave his vote to Wirtz: "Even though in the second half of the season, as with many others, not everything went to plan, he never lacked commitment and passion. His body language is motivation for a lot of older players. He makes his mark – both on and off the pitch. At that age it's pretty remarkable."
In addition to the main prize, a lot of other great prizes went to Bayer 04 Members including a Bayer 04 adventure day, consisting of a Bayer arena tour plus a 30-minute Schwadbus tour, the new home shirt and vouchers for the fan shop. Bayer 04 thank all fans and members for taking part.
Tickets are on sale for the last two Bayer 04 Women's team home games in 2025. Fans can now purchase tickets for the matches at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium against RB Leipzig and the final fixture of the year in the Rückrunde opener against German champions Bayern Munich. The latest information at a glance.
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Eliminated ahead of the offline round: On Tuesday, 18 November, the Leverkusen console pros played the two remaining matches in the online preliminary round of showdown two. After picking up six points from the first four games last week, the #B04eSports team bagged another three in the two final duels - but it wasn't enough. The Leverkusen team missed out on a place in the offline knockout round, which will take place in this second showdown on 23 November in Frankfurt am Main.
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The VBL Club Championship by WOW 2025/26 continues today, Tuesday 18 November, with the last two of the six online preliminary round matches in the second showdown. Starting at 18:00 CET, Bayer 04 face Karlsruher SC, followed by Borussia Mönchengladbach at 19:00 CET. The games will be streamed live on the Bayer 04 app and on the club Twitch channel. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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Bayer 04 has presented the groups on the Monheim council with extensively revised proposals for the planned Campus. As part of constructive discussions, the club presented a plan to the CDU, SPD, Greens, FDP, PETO and the Left Party that envisages a one-third reduction in the area of the site on Alfred-Nobel-Strasse. The distance to neighbours will be increased by almost 60 percent. The green corridor will therefore be significantly larger than previously planned. Here are the main changes.
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A disappointing Sunday afternoon in the Hanseatic city: The Bayer 04 Women missed out on a place in the DFB Pokal quarter-finals after a penalty shoot-out at Hamburger SV. After more than 120 minutes of play, coach Roberto Pätzold's team lost 4-2 on penalties to the Bundesliga newcomers in front of 3,993 spectators at the Volksparkstadion. Julia Mickenhagen's brilliant strike to level at 1-1 on 73 minutes was not enough for the Werkself in this tie. The Bayer Leverkusen Women’s team reached quarter-finals in both of the previous two seasons.
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