Odilon Kossounou and Ivory Coast take on Guinea-Bissau in the opening game on Saturday night. The hosts then face Nigeria on 18 January, when Kossounou was set to come up against Werkself teammate Victor Boniface until the striker suffered an injury during preparations for the tournament, forcing him to return to Germany early. The Ivorians' third and final fixture in Group A is against Equatorial Guinea on 22 January.
Meanwhile, Edmond Tapsoba and Burkina Faso play their first match against Mauritiana in Group D on 16 January. That's followed by the clash with Algeria on 20 January, before Angola await on 23 January.
Then on 17 January, the third Bayer 04 player will get started in the tournament as Amine Adli and Morocco face Tanzania in Group F. In their second group game, the World Cup semi-finalists meet DR Congo on 21 January, before concluding the group stage against Zambia three days later. For Adli, who switched allegiance to Morocco in autumn of last year having represented France at youth level, the Africa Cup of Nations is the first major international tournament of his career. For Kossounou and Tapsoba it's their second appearance at AFCON.
The round of 16 kicks off three days after the group stage, from 27 to 30 January. The quarter-finals will be played on 2 and 3 February, with the two semis taking place on 7 February. Following the third-place playoff on 10 February, the final will be held the next day at 21:00 CET.
THE GROUP MATCHES AT A GLANCE (all times CET)
Odilon Kossounou (Ivory Coast/Group A):
13.01, 21:00: Ivory Coast v Guinea-Bissau
18.01, 18:00: Ivory Coast v Nigeria
22.01, 18:00: Ivory Coast v Equatorial Guinea
Edmond Tapsoba (Burkina Faso/Group D):
16.01, 15:00: Burkina Faso v Mauritiana
20.01, 15:00: Algeria v Burkina Faso
23.01, 21:00: Angola v Burkina Faso
Amine Adli (Morocco/Group F):
17.01, 18:00: Morocco v Tanzania
21.01, 15:00: Morocco v DR Congo
24.01, 21:00: Zambia v Morocco
Sofie Zdebel is up for the Goal of the Month award for February on ARD-Sportschau. Fans have until 21 March (19:00 CET) to vote for the Germany U23 international's volley to make it 2-0 in the Bayer 04 Women's derby against FC Köln (2-1).
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen are further expanding their partner network: The feed manufacturer PerNaturam is an official sponsor of the Bayer 04 Womens team. The partnership opens up a wide range of opportunities for the company to position its brand in the Bundesliga environment.
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Do you dream of wearing the Bayer cross on your chest? To play in black and red like your role models Loreen Bender, Cornelia Kramer, Kristin Kögel and co. from the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga? Then take your chance now! Our female youth teams are once again on the lookout for new talent. That's why Bayer 04 are organising a talent day on 12 April 2026 for the first time this year with trials for female juniors.
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Bayer 04 were on the brink of victory against Arsenal in the first leg of the Round of 16 tie in the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League, but conceded a late goal to make the final score 1-1. After an even first half, Robert Andrich gave Leverkusen the lead with a header on 46 minutes. The Werkself then defended with discipline and gave little away until just before the end when the Gunners equalised with Kai Havertz converting a penalty (89').
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Arsenal, one of the favourites in the UCL, visit the BayArena for the first leg in the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 Round of 16. Kai Havertz and Piero Hincapie, two long-serving Bayer 04 players, are set to return to the BayArena for the first time since leaving the club. As part of the match against the Gunners, fans can look forward to exciting Sound of Dreams festival activities at the stadium. Club members can also secure another SoD Unplugged ticket for a chance to win a special prize. Today’s matchday news.
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