27.10.2022Bayer 04

The German School Madrid and Bayer 04: A special connection

The connection to Bayer 04 cannot be missed in the entrance to the German School Madrid: A framed Werkself shirt hangs on the wall visible to all students and visitors. The letters DSM are on the shirt – that stands for Deutsche Schule Madrid. "A gift from the first visit in 2015," remembers Miguel who heads the football section at the school. A small delegation from Leverkusen visited the school on the morning of the Champions League away game for Bayer 04 at Atlético Madrid (2-2). The agenda included a football tournament on the school's artificial pitch.

Fernando Carro and Co. brought 40 Werkself shirts for the football section at the DSM. The Bayer 04 CEO, along with fans and community director Meinolf Sprink, watched the football tournament in the morning. The Bayer 04 members of staff Benjamin Seifert and Carsten Baumann, who used to play professional football, split the kids up into four teams. "The atmosphere is simply brilliant. A really great setting," said Baumann looking at the over 200 school students surrounding the pitch who got behind the lads of the football section from classes six and seven.

headteacher from Leverkusen – signed shirt as a gift

The connection between the German School Madrid and the Werkself opened another chapter in the summer of 2022: Dirk Karl Pilgram was appointed headteacher at the DSM on 1 August - he was born in Leverkusen. He was in the youth section at Bayer 04 for four years as a teenager and he later worked for Bayer AG. Pilgram thanked Carro, Sprink and Co. for their visit: "It's always a special honour for us to be able to welcome you here. And, of course, I'm really happy to welcome my favourite club to Madrid."

The Leverkusen delegation presented Pilgram with another gift following the short tournament: a Werkself shirt signed by all the players and coach Xabi Alonso. "A really cool present," said 11-year-old Noah with a beaming smile. And you can be sure that this shirt will also find a very special place at the German School Madrid…

Related News

Bayer 04 - 03.06.2026

Konstantinos Kotsifakis set for assistant coach role with Bayer 04 U19s

Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.

Bayer 04 - 03.06.2026

Runner-up for Pitch of the Year: Bayer 04 again recognised for outstanding pitch quality

Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.

Bundesliga - 02.06.2026

2026/27 Bundesliga fixture list out on 2 July

Opening opponents, derby weekends, the opponents in the season finale: This information and more will be available to Bayer 04 fans on Thursday, 2 July, when the 2026/27 Bundesliga fixture list is published.

Bayer 04 - 01.06.2026

Rudi recounts…: Vollborn’s June highlights

Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personal Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…