Experts from ESPN in the USA said Bayer 04 had “done something really remarkable by one of the best Bundesliga teams achieving one of the best Bundesliga seasons ever.”
Sky Sports ran with the headline: “Bayer Leverkusen win title: Xabi Alonso’s achievement among the greatest seasons in European football history.”
“Bayer Leverkusen have the holy grail,” said French publication L’Equipe, asking the question: “Will Leverkusen win more trophies in one season than in their previous 119-year history? They could achieve a treble.”
Argentina’s El Clarin went with “Bayer Leverkusen win Bundesliga for the first time” and highlighted national team player Exequiel Palacios with his assist in the second half.
The Guardian in England described it as a “historic title”, adding: “Bayer Leverkusen have secured one of the most remarkable titles in Bundesliga history with their 5-0 win against Werder Bremen. The newly crowned champions are now 43 games unbeaten and set a new league record of 29 matches without defeat to start a season. With a place in the cup final already secure and the team leading West Ham 2-0 in the Europa League quarter-final, a treble is still very much possible.”
The BBC wrote that Leverkusen “completed the job with style” and stressed that their “landmark success has ended Bayern’s era of dominance after winning the title for the last 11 years. Leverkusen, who are still unbeaten in all competitions this season, are on course for a remarkable treble in Alonso’s first full season as coach, with eyes still on the German Cup and the Europa League.” They concluded that Bayer 04 are “no longer Neverkusen”.
ESPN Deportes said: “Bayer Leverkusen, Bundesliga champions with a Wirtz hat-trick!”
Spain’s Marca had the easily understandable “El Leverkusen es campeón!”, while AS even went with “Xabi Alonso es campeón!”.
The Athletic explained “How Bayer Leverkusen won the Bundesliga” and summarised “Finally, after almost a quarter of a century, they are no longer Neverkusen”.
“Leverkusen’s day in history” was the headline from the Rheinische Post. “Xabi Alonso’s team have crowned their outstanding season with the club’s first league title.”
The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung said “The perennial runners-up are now first” and also spoke of a “football feast” and the “genius of Wirtz”.
The Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger talked of a win that was “never in danger” against Bremen and handed out top marks to Granit Xhaka, Robert Andrich, Florian Wirtz and Victor Boniface.
Bild went with the headline “Meisterkusen!”, saying that “Vizekusen was no more”.
Finally, kicker had just one word to describe it all: “Perfect”. They added: “They’ve done it. Bayer 04 are champions for the first time as emotions exploded at the BayArena. A long-planned success.”
As part of the joint commitment of Bayer 04 and the City of Leverkusen to volunteering, the annual Volunteer Day took place in the 19nullvier Lounge at the BayArena. Fernando Carro, Bayer 04 CEO, Stefan Hebbel, Mayor of the City of Leverkusen, and club representative Stefan Kießling praised the commitment of the 200 or so volunteers from the region in attendance and thanked them for their impressive efforts.
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After three defeats in a row, the Bayer 04 Women are aiming to get back on track against RB Leipzig. In the home game on Saturday (14:00 CET) at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium, coach Roberto Pätzold will probably be able to count on two key players recently sidelined due to injury.
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The clubs in the Google Pixel Women's Bundesliga will set up the Frauen-Bundesliga FBL e.V. On 10 December. The clubs have joined together to open a new chapter in the history of German women's football.
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In his 13 years as a professional player at Bayer 04, the honorary captain and record goalscorer made 446 appearances scoring 238 goals along the way. Many of them remain unforgotten, including his header to win the DFB Pokal in 1993. Ulf Kirsten celebrates his 60th birthday today Thursday - and Bayer 04 are happy to take this opportunity to look back on some of the former number nine’s special goals and games. But first of all: Happy Birthday, dear Ulf!
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