This is only the third competitive meeting between Heidenheim and Leverkusen at professional level. It is the first time the Werkself will visit the top flight’s newest club in the Bundesliga. It’s also an encounter featuring the three players who’ve covered the most ground in the division this season with Heidenheim’s Lennard Maloney (250.8 km/ 155.8 miles) up against Leverkusen duo Granit Xhaka (249.9 km/ 155.3 miles) and Alejandro Grimaldo (244.5 km/ 151.9 miles).
Heidenheim are currently 10th in the table with 27 points in their first-ever season at this level. They have moved comfortably clear of the relegation zone in recent weeks thanks to an eight-game unbeaten run, which is currently the best streak in the Bundesliga behind the Werkself. Frank Schmidt’s team are top when it comes to putting in the hard yards with a cumulative total of 2,557 kilometres (1,588 miles) covered by the team over 21 matches. Find out more about Heidenheim in our opposition profile.
Heidenheim have been led by coach Schmidt since the 2007/08 season when they were still in the fourth-tier Oberliga Baden-Württemberg. It makes the 50-year-old the longest-serving coach in the Bundesliga and in fact in German professional football history.
Heidenheim’s Voith-Arena is also the highest stadium in Germany’s top three divisions at 555 metres (1,820 feet) above sea level. It has a capacity of 15,000, making it the smallest ground in this year’s Bundesliga.
Bayer 04 midfielder Robert Andrich is making his first competitive return to Heidenheim, where he spent a Bundesliga 2 campaign under Schmidt in 2018/19. He quickly became a key part of the team there and caught the attention of newly promoted Union Berlin as they prepared for the Bundesliga in 2019. After two years in Berlin, Andrich moved to the BayArena.
Around 2,000 fans are making the trip to Heidenheim to support the Werkself. The Bayer 04 fan liaison team has put together all the key information on this away game as usual. You can find all that HERE.
The German FA (DFB) have appointed Harm Osmers as today’s referee. The 39-year-old has previously overseen 13 Werkself fixtures, with six wins, four draws and three defeats. His assistants are Robert Kemper and Dominik Schaal. Katrin Rafalski is the VAR.
As usual, Werkself Radio is available for anybody unable to be at today's game. The audio broadcast begins 30 minutes before kick-off. 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.
Following the international break, the Bayer 04 women’s team face their next head-to-head clash in the race for a top spot in the Bundesliga. In Saturday’s home match (14:00 CEST), the fourth-placed side host third-placed Eintracht Frankfurt at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Head coach Roberto Pätzold is well aware of the great opportunity this presents for his team.
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Bayer 04 make their first trip to Poland for over 30 years as they face Lech Poznan on Matchday 2 of the league phase in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. The game kicks off at 18:45 CEST on Thursday, but the team will be preparing for the action on Wednesday with training, travel and pre-match press conferences. We’ll bring you all the latest news here…
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Bayer 04 remain unbeaten in the 2026/27 UEFA Europa League. After winning the opener against NK Celje, the Werkself followed that up on Thursday night with a 4–0 win away at the Polish champions Lech Poznan. Patrik Schick, who came on as a substitute early in the game, scored twice from the penalty spot, and Malik Tillman also found the back of the net before half-time. The second half was a more subdued affair, with Ibrahim Maza scoring late on to seal the final 4-0 scoreline.
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Since 2023, Bayer 04 has been organising regular free goalkeeping coach training sessions at the BayArena. As in previous years, the event attracted enormous interest in mid-October 2026. Around 140 participants – mostly goalkeeping coaches from the region, but also team and academy coaches as well as association staff – came to the Werkself stadium to gain expert knowledge on the subject of zonal marking. Through a theoretical keynote presentation and a practical session on the pitch, the participants gained insights into goalkeeping and goalkeeper training at Bayer 04.
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