TSG Hoffenheim have not lost more home games in the Bundesliga against any other club than they have against Bayer 04 (nine). In addition, the team from the Kraichgau have not conceded as many goals at home in the Bundesliga against any other side as they have against the Werkself (29).
TSG have only been in the lead for 38 minutes at home in this Bundesliga campaign and it is at least 65 minutes for all the other teams. Bayer 04 have only been behind for a total of 21 minutes so far this season – the best record in the league this term.
TSG made their best start to the season in their Bundesliga history with 15 points from seven games. Since then however, they have experienced ups and downs: First there was a defeat against Eintracht Frankfurt (1-3), then a 3-2 victory over VfB Stuttgart, and finally a 1-0 defeat against Borussia Dortmund in the last round of the DFB Pokal with the cup exit representing another setback. Hoffenheim are now sixth in the Bundesliga table. TSG, who only avoided relegation late on last season, are currently in touch with the European spots. Further information on today's opponents can be found in our lowdown on our next opponents.
The German Football Association (DFB) has appointed Frank Willenborg as the man in the middle against TSG. The 44-year-old referee has previously been in charge of nine games involving the Werkself that ended in five wins, two draws and two defeats. Willenborg will be assisted on the touchlines by Guido Kleve and Arne Aarnink with Tobias Stieler on VAR duty.
As usual, Werkself Radio is available for anybody unable to be at today's game. The audio broadcast begins 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Niko Hartmann and Cedric Pick. In addition, the live text update service will keep you up-to-date to ensure you don't miss any of the key match action. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.
Four Bayer 04 players are in action at the 35th edition of the Africa Cup of Nations being played in Morocco from 21 December to 18 January 2026: Eliesse Ben Seghir for the hosts, Edmond Tapsoba with Burkina Faso, Ibrahim Maza for Algeria and Christian Kofane with Cameroon. Updates on the AFCON matches involving Werkself players...
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Rüdiger Vollborn has been at the club for 40 years, he holds the record number of Bundesliga appearances for the club (401) and is the only Bayer 04 player to have won both the UEFA Cup (1988) and the DFB Pokal (1993). And the Berliner stayed with the Werkself after ending his impressive playing career as he worked as a goalkeeping coach for the following nine years. Vollborn now works under the Bayer Cross as a fan liaison officer and club archivist. Since February 2021, the personalised Black and Red lexicon takes Werkself fans under the heading of 'Rudi recounts...' on a brief trip through the history of Bayer 04 every month…
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With their wonderful goals, Martin Terrier and Florian Wirtz are up for the Bundesliga Goal of the Year 2025. Voting for fans will run exclusively via the official Bundesliga app until Sunday, 4 January.
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The ‘year after’ the most successful year in the club's history brought many changes at Bayer 04. In an exclusive double interview with bayer04.de shortly before the Christmas break, Fernando Carro and Simon Rolfes spoke about building a new team capable of winning trophies, the work of coach Kasper Hjulmand, the young new signings who have quickly developed into key players, and their personal plans for the Christmas holidays. Their outlook for the coming year also shows that the potential is far from exhausted and ambitions remain high.
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Last-minute ecstasy, huge disappointment and a historic performance on the European stage - 2025 was a real emotional roller coaster, especially for the U19s. A rousing run in the knockout phase secured the team a place in the final of the German championships, where they lost by the narrowest of margins. Despite the departure of several key players, the young Werkself team quickly regained their usual strength and qualified for the knockout rounds in the UEFA Youth League for the first time at the end of the year. In 2025, youngsters Jeremiah Mensah and Montrell Culbreath made their debuts in the Bundesliga, the DFB Pokal and the UEFA Champions League. The other youth teams also contributed great performances and a number of trophies to the collective Black and Red success, while the successful Bayer 04 Future Kids project broke new ground. Read on for the 2025 review of the youth teams.
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