The visitors made the better start in front of 26,101 fans at the Volkswagen Arena in Wolfsburg. Serbia took the lead with less than 15 minutes on the clock with a goal from Eintracht Frankfurt's Luka Jovic (12'). The striker was completely unmarked from a corner and was able to direct his header past the 32-year-old goalkeeper Manuel Neuer into the net. Germany then took control of the game and created two good chances from Timo Werner on 22 minutes, with good work in the build-up from Kai Havertz, and on 37 minutes. Both times, the RB Leipzig striker was unable to beat the Serbian goalkeeper Marko Dmitrovic.
Kai Havertz was substituted at half-time with Marco Reus coming on for the second half. The Germany team. coached by Joachim Löw, upped the pressure after the restart but missed a number of promising chances to level at 1-1 through Reus (59'), Leroy Sané (64') and Ilkay Gündogan (65'). However, there was not long to wait after that: Substitute Leon Goretzka netted the deserved equaliser with a shot from 15 yards out on 69 minutes. Julian Brandt was not on the pitch at this point. The lively Werkself pro was substituted on the hour mark.
After that, Sané (73') and Reus (75') had the best chances to put Germany 2-1 up. The friendly did end with an unsavoury scene: In added time (90+3'), Milan Pavkov cut down Sané with a reckless challenge that earned the Serbian a red card. The Manchester City winger was able to hobble off the pitch. Then came the end ofthe game that saw Jonathan Tah go the full distance.
Germany are back in action on Sunday 24 March with the first competitive international of the year. The Netherlands are the opponents in the European qualifier In Amsterdam. The match kicks off at 20.45 CET.
After eight years in the youth set-up at Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Benjamin Adam is leaving the club. The 35-year-old, who most recently coached the Leverkusen U17s, will take charge of the Hansa Rostock U19 team next season.
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There was a successful end to the women's internationals with Werkself players Carlotta Wamser and Cornelia Kramer qualifying for the 2027 World Cup finals in Brazil. A third Leverkusen player is still in with a chance of joining them. The Germany U23 players also experienced success in their last two international friendlies of the season.
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Traveling to North America for the World Cup this summer to see your favorite Bayer 04 players? Here’s a quick cheat sheet with thumbnail portraits and insider tips for each city from a local expert, so you can make the most of your visit and activities beyond the game!
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A fresh look for the BayArena: The Bayer 04 stadium will have new seating in the form of folding seats for the 2026/27 campaign that will ensure significantly improved seating comfort and simplified movement within the rows of seats. As part of routine replacement after 17 years, fans of the Werkself were able to purchase the existing seats, used to witness the first German league title in the club's history. In addition, a large proportion of the seats will be donated to charitable projects, primarily in the local region. Bayer 04 fans can look forward to new, functional folding seats for the season opener at the beginning of August - still in the club colours of black and red, of course. A glimpse at the BayArena during the refurbishment.
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