The farewell for one of the biggest personalities in German football evoked great emotion at the BayArena in Leverkusen: The fans celebrated the Bayer 04 legend with a huge piece of choreography, standing ovations and chants of ‘There’s only one Rudi Völler.’ In addition, 25,000 T-shirts were distributed before the start of the game. All these actions had one message: “Thank you, Rudi!”
Werner Wenning, chairman of the shareholders committee at Bayer 04, plus CEO Fernando Carro presented Völler with a collage of images from over 28 years at the Werkself on the pitch and also praised the work of the 1990 World Cup winner for the Black and Reds. Völler then took to the microphone himself: “Today is the day where I say thank you to everybody who has supported our wonderful club from the bottom of their hearts over the years. As the club anthem says, we have to stand together in coming years with a cross on our chest in good and bad times – for a great atmosphere like today! That’s how I want to see you!”
With the exception of long break when he was the Germany coach (2000 to 2004), Rudi Völler has been part of Bayer 04 since 1994 and over the years developed into the face of the Werkself. Before his move to Leverkusen as a player, the Germany international with 90 caps had already seen a lot and achieved much more: In addition to the World Cup, the now 62-year-old played for AS Roma for five years and he won the UEFA Champions League with Olympique Marseille in 1993.
Towards the end of his career as a player, the Hanau-born striker played for Bayer 04 for two years from 1994 to 1996. The former world-class central striker explained his decision to join the Werkself back then in an interview in the Süddeutsche Zeitung: “It was a gut decision in the end to join Bayer 04 because I saw: At Leverkusen there was Bernd Schuster and Andi Thom plus a few others of the like who could set me up.” That’s what they did. He scored 31 goals in his 75 appearances for the Black and Reds.
Völler remained under the Bayer Cross when he hung up his boots in 1996 and he was introduced to the secrets of the management business by the then boss Reiner Calmund. Before his job with the DFB, he was the sporting director at Bayer 04 for four years and he worked in the same role for 13 years after his time with Germany before taking over the running of the Werkself as sporting managing director alongside Fernando Carro (CEO) in 2018.
Rudi Völler does not need to have any second thoughts about his successor with the Black and Reds: The 62-year-old has passed on the baton to sporting director Simon Rolfes who officially takes over as the sporting managing director on 1 July – and he will certainly have passed on one or two important lessons and anecdotes from his 28 years with Bayer 04 Leverkusen…
Midfielder Ruby Grant is leaving Bayer 04 Leverkusen and joining Portuguese runners-up Sporting CP a year before her contract expires. The 24-year-old has been at the Werkself since January 2025.
Show more
Bayer 04 have loaned Brazilian full-back Arthur to Bundesliga side Werder Bremen for one year. Arthur Augusto de Matos Soares – the full name of the right-back – has a contract with Leverkusen until 30 June 2031. At Werder, the 23-year-old is expected to make an impact and help the long-established club further consolidate their position in the Bundesliga.
Show more
Bayer 04 have loaned defender Jeanuel Belocian to Spanish top-flight side Racing Santander. The 21-year-old defender joins the team currently ninth in La Liga until the end of the current 2026/27 season. Belocian’s contract remains valid until 30 June 2029. Last season, the 1.86-metre-tall U21 international was loaned to VfL Wolfsburg for six months.
Show more
He knows the dressing room, the pitch and the club. But, above all, he knows the feeling of playing for the Werkself at the BayArena: Moussa Diaby is back in Leverkusen after three years. The lightning-fast winger has signed a contract with Bayer 04 until 2031 and he will once again wear the number 19 jersey. The left-footed player previously played for the club from 2019 to 2023, having arrived in the Rhineland from his native France as a promising young talent and eventually leaving the club – having established himself as one of the Bundesliga’s best attackers – to join Aston Villa in the Premier League. Now he has returned to Bayer 04 from Al-Ittihad FC in Saudi Arabia.
Show more
