In addition to the two managing directors Fernando Carro and Rudi Völler, the sporting director Simon Rolfes, the coaching and support staff, there are 27 players staying at the conference hotel owned by Bayer Gastronomie GmbH. The players are Lucas Alario, Nadiem Amiri, Charles Aránguiz, Ayman Azhil, Leon Bailey, Julian Baumgartlinger, Karim Bellarabi, Lars Bender, Sven Bender, Kerem Demirbay, Moussa Diaby, Aleksandar Dragovic, Kai Havertz, Lukas Hradecky, Niklas Lomb, Wendell, Ramazan Özcan, Exequiel Palacios, Paulinho, Daley Sinkgraven, Adrian Stanilewicz, Jonathan Tah, Edmond Tapsoba, Mitchell Weiser, Fabian Rüth, Marcel Lotka and Florian Wirtz.
After arriving in Wermelskirchen, Fernando Carro, Bayer 04 CEO, explained the decision to use the hotel in Bergisches Land. “It was important to us for the players to have the chance to get away from the training ground – that’s why we decided against using the Lindner Hotel at the BayArena and for the Große Ledder. On top of that, our hygiene officer Dr. Karl-Heinrich Dittmar looked at the hotel beforehand. We can meet all the hygiene and organisational requirements here,” said the 55-year-old.
With regard to the forthcoming intensity of the coming weeks, it is very important to have regular communication with the players. Fernando Carro: “We rarely have so many and long meetings with the team as we’re having at the moment. We’ve explained a lot to them and answered their questions. We all see it as a privilege to be able to carry on with the Bundesliga. Therefore, we are grateful for the confidence shown in us and we’ll do all we can to make sure playing the games is as safe as possible and that we fulfil all requirements.”
The Black and Reds will only leave their accommodation this week for the – continuing closed – sessions at the training ground at the BayArena. On Sunday, 17 May, Carro, Völler and Co. will head north. Bayer 04 are away to Werder Bremen at the Wohninvest Weserstadion in the final game of matchday 26 on Monday, 18 May, at 20.30 CET. That is followed by another away game at Borussia Mönchengladbach (22-24 May). The first home fixture at the BayArena is on 26 or 27 May when VfL Wolfsburg are the visitors.
After being nominated for the Bundesliga Goal of the Year 2025, Martin Terrier's wonderful strike for the opener against FC Köln is now also up for selection for the ARD Sportschau Goal of the Month award for December 2025. Bayer 04 fans have until 19:00 CET on 10 January to vote for the French forward.
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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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"In every ending lies a new beginning" is a well-known saying. This phrase has probably never been more apt at Bayer 04. After winning the Bundesliga in 2023/24 and finishing as runners-up in 2024/25, the summer was the most eventful ever in terms of transfers. Over ten players and the coach, including the coaching staff, left the club. A lot of the heroes of the double-winning side began a new chapter. It was the end of an era. And at the same time the beginning of a new, very exciting and promising chapter for Leverkusen. The Werkself welcomed more than a dozen new arrivals, including experienced title-winners and young talents, to build a new "foundation for a successful team capable of winning titles" under the Bayer Cross, as managing director sport Simon Rolfes put it. A new spirit, a new hunger, a new story was to be created. Bayer04.de looks back at the first few months of this story and the final act of the preseason.
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43 points at the end of the last Bundesliga season were not only more than ever before for the Bayer 04 Women, but also led to a record fourth-place finish. That was followed by a Hinrunde with many more victories, but also some setbacks. In an interview with bayer04.de, sporting director Achim Feifel takes stock at the end of the year.
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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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