
That’s a great opportunity for all Bayer 04 fans: The attractive friendly against the four-time European cup winners from Porto, with 31 domestic league titles and 16 cup triumphs to their credit, will be broadcast live at bayer04.de and is also live on Facebook – as was recently the case when the Werkself clocked up a 4-0 win against Koblenz.
Head coach Roger Schmidt and his team will face a tougher challenge this time round. “We know Porto are a top team playing at the highest level. It will be interesting to see who’s further on in the pre-season,” said Kevin Kampl. And his midfield team-mate and Copa America winner Charles Aránguiz, who returned to training this week, added: “Friendlies against top teams like Porto are always helpful.” Bayer 04 fans will be able to see for themselves from 18.00 CET by watching the live stream at bayer04.de and on Facebook.
Bender and Brandt off to Frankfurt on Thursday
For the captain Lars Bender and Julian Brandt it will the last appearance in a Werkself shirt for the next few weeks: Thursday marks the start of the Olympic adventure in Rio for the two players. The Germany squad under coach Horst Hrubesch come together for three days in Frankfurt and fly out from there on Saturday to Brazil.

The Werkself will host VfB Stuttgart at the BayArena on matchday 16 of the 2025/26 Bundesliga season. The game is on Saturday, 10 January, at 18:30 CET. Information on ticket sales.
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The Werkself will host Werder Bremen at the BayArena on matchday 19 of the 2025/26 Bundesliga season. The game is on Saturday, 24 January, at 15:30 CET. Information on ticket sales.
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In the sixth and final match of the league phase of the UEFA Youth League 2025/26, the Bayer 04 U19s have a great opportunity to advance to the knockout phase of Europe’s most prestigious youth competition for the first time. To achieve that under their own steam, they will need a win against Newcastle United at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium on Wednesday, 10 December (kick-off: 14:00 CET/ free admission). In an interview with bayer04.de, managing director sport Simon Rolfes analyses the team's performances so far and their special situation. And the 43-year-old reveals what he would be happy to do without on the day of the match.
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The next opponents in the 2025/26 DFB Pokal have been announced: Bayer 04 will host Bundesliga rivals FC St. Pauli in the quarter-finals. That was the outcome of the draw held this Sunday evening, 7 December, at the German Football Museum in Dortmund, where long-time Bundesliga player and coach Friedhelm Funkel made the draw. The Werkself will play their quarter-final tie on 3-4 or 10-11 February 2026. The exact dates have yet to be finalised.
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After falling behind early on, Bayer 04 took control of the game against a combative and disciplined FC Augsburg on Saturday afternoon. However, they lacked the necessary precision in finishing and hit the post and crossbar three times. After the game, coach Kasper Hjulmand said he wanted to get back to the "right philosophy" of previous matches with three games left in 2025. The Werkself review.
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