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.
Video game producer Electronic Arts (EA) has announced the nominees for the Men's and Women's Team of the Year (TOTY) for EA Sports FC 26. With Patrik Schick and Alejandro Grimaldo for the men and Vanessa Fudalla for the women, there are three Bayer 04 players included. Fans of the Black-and-Reds can vote for each top XI of 2025 from now until 18:59 CET on Monday 12 January.
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The Werkself host Mainz at the BayArena on matchday 24 in the 2025/26 Bundesliga season. The match is on Saturday, 28 February, at 15:30 CET. Information on ticket sales.
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The long-standing successful collaboration between Bayer 04 and the transport service provider wupsi GmbH has been expanded: From January 2026, 100 wupsi bikes with Bayer 04 branding will be available for hire throughout the city of Leverkusen. They will complement the many existing offers and services that provide key support, especially for fans travelling to and from home matches at the BayArena.
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The Werkself are back! Following the two-week winter break, head coach Kasper Hjulmand's team began the new year with an open session on Sunday. After Robert Andrich and his teammates arrived in Leverkusen yesterday for the official check-in, they got back down to business a day later in front of around 1,200 fans at the Ulrich Haberland Stadion. The report from the Werkself's first session of 2026.
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