
The Italian sports journal Tuttosport has presented the Golden Boy prize for the best young player annually since 2003. This year the vote is for players born in 2003 or later. Werkself player Florian Wirtz is listed seventh in the nominations. Last year, Bayer 04 player Piero Hincapie was on the list.
You can vote now for Wirtz for the Golden Boy Web, open exclusively to fans. Click HERE to vote.
Nine other Bundesliga players are on the list alongside Wirtz: Jamal Musiala, Mathys Tel (both Bayern Munich), Benjamin Sesko (RB Leipzig), Jamie Bynoe-Gittens, Yossoufa Moukoko (both Borussia Dortmund), Tim Oermann (VfL Bochum 1848), Arne Engels (FC Augsburg), Luca Netz (Borussia Mönchengladbach) and Kevin Paredes (VfL Wolfsburg).
The Golden Boy award:
The top 100 young players is determined via an algorithm of Football Benchmark and Golden Boy. From the long list of 100 nominees, the top 20 plus five wild card players are named in October. 50 international journalists then vote for the Golden Boy from the shortlist.

Ten years after retiring as a player, Kristina Sundov is returning to the Bayer 04 Women’s team as assistant coach. The 39-year-old former Croatia international takes over from Remzi Kahraman, who has taken up a new challenge abroad. She has been given a contract to 30 June 2028.
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The training pitches at the BayArena are already buzzing with activity again, even before training officially begins next week. On Monday morning, a small group from the Werkself first-team squad completed a session lasting around an hour. Both new and familiar faces were present.
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One ticket, two matches – and a varied programme of events, including appearances by players from the professional teams: Bayer 04 has come up with something very special for the 2026 season launch on Saturday, 8 August. From morning right through to the evening, Werkself fans can use just one ticket to not only enjoy top-class football from the Bayer 04 teams live, but also to experience unforgettable moments with the whole family through a variety of hands-on activities around the BayArena and the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. The day will also end on a real high note: after both matches, Bayer 04 supporters will have the opportunity to interact directly with the players during joint activities and get to know them from a different angle.
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Issa Traoré is moving from Bayer 04 Leverkusen to Slovakian top-flight side AS Trencin. The club has loaned the centre-back out for one year to this year’s ninth-placed team in the Slovakian league.
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