This is the first meeting between Bayer 04 and FC Bayern in a big European tournament. The Werkself have only lost one of their four games against German teams on the European stage (two wins, one draw) and there were three clean sheets along the way. The only defeat against a rival national team came in the last such fixture to date with a 3-2 defeat for the Black and Reds against Hamburg SV in the 2007/08 UEFA Cup.
FC Bayern have won their last three games against German teams in European competitions including the Champions League final in 2013 against Borussia Dortmund. Bayern Munich have also won nine of their last eleven Round of 16 home games (nine wins, one draw). The Werkself have only won one of their last ten matches in this round in the UCL (one draw, eight defeats).
FC Bayern have several things to celebrate at the moment. All is going well for the league leaders on the pitch with a difficult away game in Stuttgart won at the weekend. And the record champions have extended the contracts of some key players. So there was a good atmosphere recently at the celebrations of the 125th anniversary of FCB. Discover the latest information on today's opponents HERE.
Ahead of yesterday's press conference in Munich with Xabi Alonso and Granit Xhaka (HERE is the report), FCB coach Vincent Kompany and defender Alphonso Davies shared their views on today's game. Kompany said: "Both teams have a lot of individual quality and a lot of intensity. Leverkusen have earned the right to be seen as a top opponent. The last three games were completely different stories for us and it was very much about details. We don't have any problem with defending deep if the other team has created it. But we are at home and we want to produce our best."
Davies declared: "Matches against Leverkusen are always good. It's been a while since we've beaten them. It will be a top match. We go into the game with intensity, enthusiasm and motivation and we want to do our job." Further statements from the duo can be found HERE.
The Bayer 04 fan liaison team have put together information for this Champions League away game for the 4,000 travelling Werkself fans. Click HERE for the fan information.
All supporters who cannot be at the game can follow the UCL away trip to the Werkself on the live blog HERE.
UEFA has appointed Michael Oliver as the match referee. The 40-year-old Englishman has previously been in charge of four games involving the Werkself (three wins, one defeat). His assistants today are his fellow countrymen Stuart Burt and James Mainwaring and the Australian Jarred Gillett is in action as the VAR.
The match will be broadcast live on DAZN. As ever, supporters unable to be at the match can follow the game on Werkself Radio. The audio broadcast starts 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Cedric Pick and the honorary captain and club representative Stefan Kießling in the first half. In addition, the live text update service will keep fans up-to-date. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.
Werkself TV shows highlights of the 3-0 win against FC Villarreal on matchday 8 in the UEFA Champions League 2025/26 league phase...
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The Champions League journey continues! On the eighth and final matchday of the league phase of the UEFA Champions League 2025/26, Bayer 04 secured their place in the play-offs with a commanding 3-0 win over Villarreal. Malik Tillman put in a mature and combative performance for Leverkusen, scoring a brace (12', 35') to make it 2-0 at the break, while Alejandro Grimaldo (57') and plenty of control of the game did the rest in the second half. The draw for the Werkself's next UCL opponents will take place on Friday 30 January at 12:00 CET.
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The Leverkusen eSports team played the remaining three of the six matches in the online preliminary round of the fourth showdown in the VBL Club Championship 2025/26. RB Leipzig and SC Freiburg were among the teams with the highest goal threat, including two World Cup participants in their ranks. Although the #B04eSports players were defeated in the matches overall, nine points from the first three games last week were enough for Leverkusen to advance to the offline round in Berlin on 2 February.
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A decisive showdown awaits: The Werkself are aiming to progress to the play-off round of the 2025/26 UEFA Champions League with a home win against Villarreal CF on the eighth and final matchday of the league phase. Ahead of the match on Wednesday, 28 January (kick-off: 21:00 CET), coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke about the importance of the game, the possible return of Edmond Tapsoba and a statement from new signing Jonas Omlin in an exclusive interview with Werkself TV. Lucas Vázquez, for his part, spoke about his role on and off the pitch as well as tomorrow’s opponents, who he often faced in Spain with Real Madrid.
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