After I finished playing, a lot of people wanted to know which coach impressed me most during my professional career. And even if it doesn’t make much sense comparing different characters, coaches with different ways of working and completely different approaches to the game – Jupp Heynckes was the best.
I believe that and I’m sure no other coach I’ve played for would hold it against me for saying so. As Jupp Heynckes, who will be 75 years old on Saturday, has been above it all for a long time. He’s appreciated like hardly anybody else.
As a former world class striker, he had a goals return that would be unbelievable today. And later as a coach, he followed a path with highs and lows to finally become what he is today: A cornerstone of football! A popular figure far beyond Germany’s borders. A sage of our sport, whose opinions carry special weight.
Particularly in the current social crisis, people like Heynckes are more important than ever for football. In the final years of his career, he still had the ability to learn from mistakes. He didn’t take himself too seriously, always remained keen to learn, was modest and warm-hearted. He was able to ‘guide’ teams like nobody else, fill players with enthusiasm for the common good and create a team spirit that led to lots of wins and titles, to fantastic success.
For me, as I said, he was the best! Happy birthday, Jupp Heynckes!
Kicking off the new season with a fresh look: Bayer 04, in collaboration with sportswear manufacturer New Balance, has unveiled the official kit for Leverkusen’s e-Sports players for the coming season. The jersey is now available from the Bayer 04 online shop and the Fanwelt.
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Paulo Sergio and Bayer 04 have enjoyed close ties since the Werkself training camp in his native Brazil last summer. The club legend is in charge of the Bayer 04 Soccer Academy, which opened in the summer of 2025, and he has also been at this year’s training camp in the Weimarer Land. As well as interacting with the many fans who travelled to the camp, the 1994 World Cup winner used the time to plan the next steps for the Academy together with club officials. In an interview with bayer04.de, Sergio spoke about the project’s future development, the upcoming visit by young Academy players to Leverkusen, and plans for the coming months in Germany and Brazil.
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A round-up of the Werkself training camp in the Weimarer Land, all in one place: in our daily blog you’ll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day five (Thursday 6 August) is as follows: The squad have the final open session of the training camp in the morning. After lunch, there will be a team event.
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A round-up of the Werkself training camp in the Weimarer Land, all in one place: in our daily blog you’ll find all the insights and updates from the day. Day four (Wednesday 5 August) is all about training. The day begins with a gruelling open training session – new signing Miguel Gutiérrez also takes part. A second session follows in the afternoon, this time behind closed doors.
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At the training camp in the Weimarer Land region, Bayer 04 head coach Carles Martínez and his long-standing assistant Pol García talk about their first few weeks with the Werkself, their expectations of their own work, the coaching staff and the squad, as well as the style of football they want the team to play. They emphasise the importance of a winning mentality within the team, comment on cultural and personal differences in the world of football, and outline their goals for the coming season...
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