The New York Times’ Rory Smith pointed out that “Leverkusen has illuminated the European season like no other team in winning its first German championship, after 120 years of trying. And it has also overtaken Benfica as the owner of the longest unbeaten run in European soccer since World War I."
Top U.S. sports outlet The Athletic wrote "for 54 games, Bayer 04 held the world’s attention... aside from the flowing football, the growth of Xabi Alonso, the flagging careers coming back to life (Granit Xhaka, Jonas Hofmann, Alex Grimaldo) and new stars being born (Florian Wirtz, Jeremie Frimpong, Victor Boniface), it all just looked so much fun!"
World's leading business paper from the UK, Financial Times, wrote that Bayer Leverkusen's impressive performance this season will be "hailed as a chance to boost Bundesliga’s global appeal" while its U.S. counterpart the Wall Street Journal labeled Leverkusen "the team that forgot how to lose" with a headline last week as it pointed to Bayer 04's historic 51-match unbeaten streak.
The Guardian wrote that there is likely more to come: "The double is just the start of the journey for evolving Bayer Leverkusen." Continued writer Andy Brassell: "Alonso’s side have been a juggernaut, trampling all in their way and, on the occasions they have found themselves behind, eventually reeling in their opponents with increasing inevitability. They have transformed Germany’s and the continent’s expectations of them, and their expectations of themselves."
So continued many other top sports dailies across Europe. "Xabi Alonso's Leverkusen completes the double in a spectacular season," wrote Spain's leading sports journal Marca, while France's L'Equipe wrote that "Bayer Leverkusen put an exclamation point on its historic season by capturing the double."
"Thanks to a fireball from Xhaka in the 17th minute, Xabi Alonso's men made up for the defeat in the Europa League final and ended the season with the double," said Corriere dello Sport in Italy.
CBS Sports (USA) wrote "the first German double winners to go through an entire domestic campaign without defeat. That there was no Europa League title to go with it should barely dull the triumph for a club that has so often borne witness to the glory of others."
Said ESPN soccer insider Alejandro Moreno after the season concluded: "now Bayer 04 Leverkusen have become the talk of the town, the talk of the league, the talk of Europe! They are attracting the attention from everywhere."
Whether it's sport or his private live: Captain Edmond Tapsoba tells us his top three personal favourites in twelve categories in edition #56 of the Werkself Magazine. The defender had to answer as quickly as he reacts on the pitch. 'On the Podium' with Edmond Tapsoba!
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“Year after year, this is an incredibly valuable gathering, both in terms of the content covered and the opportunity for mutual discussion,” stressed Bayer 04 goalkeeping coach David Thiel in his welcoming address at this year’s goalkeeping coaches’ meeting. This was the third time in four seasons that the event had been held at the BayArena. Organised by the German Football Association (DFB), the meeting brought together goalkeeping coaches from the Bundesliga, Bundesliga 2 and the 3rd division from the west region. For the first time this year, goalkeeping coaches from the youth performance centres (NLZ) were also present. Bayer 04 fitness coach Markus Müller provided fascinating insights into the specific fitness training carried out with the Werkself’s goalkeepers.
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A floodlit derby, two further night games and a top-of-the-table clash on a Saturday afternoon: The German Football Association (DFB) has confirmed the exact dates for four further matchdays in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga. This means all fixtures for the Bayer 04 women’s team up to the end of the year, as well as the first two in 2027, are now confirmed.
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It was another incredibly close call in the end: The second showdown in the 2026/27 VBL Club Championship saw the #B04eSports team once again narrowly miss out on a place in the top 16 of the preliminary round – and with it, a spot in the in-person knockout stage. It was a bitter blow: Marc and Sean Landwehr again fell just short, despite being level on points with their rivals. As was the case last month, their weaker record across the twelve individual matches in the six preliminary round fixtures proved decisive.
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Several Werkself players are set to represent their national teams during the final international break of 2026. Here’s an overview of who has been called up and the matches they will face in November. This article will be updated regularly.
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