A few days after the announcement by the German Football League (DFL) that the Werkself have the best pitch in the Bundesliga, the Germany national team have the chance to see that for themselves tonight. Because of the international fixture, the BayArena has had a makeover inside and out over recent days: The stands, dugouts and interior are now black-and-white instead of the familiar Bayer 04 red. "The DFB have transformed everything," explained Stephan Rehm, events director at the Werkself. As is usual with international matches, the capacity at the BayArena will be 29,412 (all seated).
Germany have won six and drawn once in the seven internationals to date at Leverkusen. The German national team have beaten Saudi Arabia twice – the last win was in 2002 when the team then managed by the current Bayer 04 sporting director Rudi Völler secured an 8-0 victory in a warm-up game for the World Cup finals of that year.
The Leverkusen transport company Wupsi are laying on numerous shuttle buses and additional services for the journey to the BayArena.
In mid-August, the Werkself will set off on a four-day trip to England to play their final two friendly matches of the 2026/27 pre-season against Premier League clubs Nottingham Forest and Newcastle United. The match in Nottingham against the Tricky Trees is on Wednesday 12 August at 20:45 CEST (19:45 BST) at the City Ground. The game against the Magpies in Newcastle is on Saturday 15 August at 16:00 CEST (15:00 BST) at the atmospheric St James’ Park. Details on ticket sales for both matches.
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Black and Red talent development at the highest level – even off the pitch: Apprentices Jule Suermann, Leandra Bellia and Julia Niederheide have successfully completed their two- or three-year apprenticeships at the club. Bayer 04 honoured the trio at the BayArena on Tuesday.
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The Werkself return tomorrow, Tuesday 14 July (from 11:00 CEST at the BayArena; live stream on bayer04.de, the Bayer 04 app and YouTube), with new head coach Carles Martínez leading his first training session as part of the Bayer 04 set-up. His coaching team comprises a mix of new and long-standing colleagues.
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The Germany U19 team were beaten 2-0 by record champions Spain in the final of the U19 European Championship in Wales. Bayer 04 players Montrell Culbreath and Francis Onyeka (on loan at SV 07 Elversberg) were in the starting line-up and played the full 90 minutes.
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