"It feels good to get going again. And, of course, it's even more fun with this weather and on these pitches," said Peter Bosz after the almost exactly 60-minute long foray into the new season. With pleasant summer weather conditions and under the eyes of sporting director Simon Rolfes, Bayer 04 CEO Fernando Carro and numerous fans, the three new signings Kerem Demirbay, Moussa Diaby and Daley Sinkgraven showed what they could do. "You can't say too much about the lads after just one hour on the training ground. But I think you could see they are good players," said the 55-year-old Dutchman who put the Werkself squad through their paces with sprints and stamina work plus passing and shooting drills before rounding it off with a practice match.
The Werkself international players Lukas Hradecky, Julian Baumgartlinger, Aleksandar Dragovic, Kai Havertz, Tin Jedvaj plus Charles Aránguiz, Leon Bailey and Jonathan Tah, who captained the Germany U 21s in the European Championship final on Sunday, were unavailable for the first training session. While the first mentioned are due to return next Monday, Tah, Bailey and Aránguiz will be away a little longer – and are only expected to return to Leverkusen after the training camp in Zell am See-Kaprun (15 to 21 July). "They need rest. We are trying to give all players – including Jonathan Tah, Charles Aránguiz and Leon Bailey – three weeks holiday. If we don't do that then they could get injured or go into the new season tired," explained Bosz before adding: "That gives other players the opportunity to show what they can do."
For example in the first friendly on Saturday (6 July, 17.00 CET) away to Regional League side Wuppertaler SV. The head coach said all players available to him will play for at least 45 minutes. Until then there are two other open training sessions this week (Tuesday and Friday each at 10.30 CET) plus the obligatory medical performance tests on Thursday.
Whether it's sport or his private live: Captain Edmond Tapsoba tells us his top three personal favourites in twelve categories in edition #56 of the Werkself Magazine. The defender had to answer as quickly as he reacts on the pitch. 'On the Podium' with Edmond Tapsoba!
Show more
“Year after year, this is an incredibly valuable gathering, both in terms of the content covered and the opportunity for mutual discussion,” stressed Bayer 04 goalkeeping coach David Thiel in his welcoming address at this year’s goalkeeping coaches’ meeting. This was the third time in four seasons that the event had been held at the BayArena. Organised by the German Football Association (DFB), the meeting brought together goalkeeping coaches from the Bundesliga, Bundesliga 2 and the 3rd division from the west region. For the first time this year, goalkeeping coaches from the youth performance centres (NLZ) were also present. Bayer 04 fitness coach Markus Müller provided fascinating insights into the specific fitness training carried out with the Werkself’s goalkeepers.
Show more
A floodlit derby, two further night games and a top-of-the-table clash on a Saturday afternoon: The German Football Association (DFB) has confirmed the exact dates for four further matchdays in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga. This means all fixtures for the Bayer 04 women’s team up to the end of the year, as well as the first two in 2027, are now confirmed.
Show more
It was another incredibly close call in the end: The second showdown in the 2026/27 VBL Club Championship saw the #B04eSports team once again narrowly miss out on a place in the top 16 of the preliminary round – and with it, a spot in the in-person knockout stage. It was a bitter blow: Marc and Sean Landwehr again fell just short, despite being level on points with their rivals. As was the case last month, their weaker record across the twelve individual matches in the six preliminary round fixtures proved decisive.
Show more
Several Werkself players are set to represent their national teams during the final international break of 2026. Here’s an overview of who has been called up and the matches they will face in November. This article will be updated regularly.
Show more
