In addition to the Leverkusen Germany international, five other Bundesliga players are in the running: Jamal Musiala, Ryan Gravenberch (both Bayern Munich) Karim Adeyemi and Jude Bellingham (both Borussia Dortmund) plus Josko Gvardiol (RB Leipzig). The other candidates are Nuno Mendes (Paris Saint-Germain), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid) and Gavi (Barcelona).
The trophy will be presented at the 66th award of the Ballon d‘Or, which is to be held at the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris on 17 October. The winner of the Kopa Trophy will be selected by the former Ballon d'Or winners like Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.
The award for the best U21 player of the year has been presented since 2018 with Kylian Mbappe the first winner. FC Bayern new signing Matthijs De Ligt was the winner in 2019. The trophy was not awarded two years ago due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The trophy was last won by the Spaniard Pedri (Barcelona).
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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