“We’re looking forward to the reunion with Paderborn in the second round. After the last sixteen encounter at the BayArena two years ago, we’ll take on this very ambitious second-tier side once again – this time away at Paderborn,” said Bayer 04 managing director sport Simon Rolfes. “Our goal is clear: we want to advance to the last sixteen at the end of October.”
Bayer 04 will announce the exact kick-off time and ticket information on its channels as soon as they are finalised.
The last-16 ties will be played on 2/3 December and the quarter-final matches will be staged on 3/4 and 10/11 February 2026, with the semi-finals to be played on 21/22 April 2026 before the final at Berlin’s Olympic Stadium on 23 May 2026.
The second-round ties at a glance:
FV Illertissen - 1. FC Magdeburg
FC Energie Cottbus - RB Leipzig
1. FC Union Berlin - DSC Arminia Bielefeld
1. FC Heidenheim 1846 - Hamburger SV
Borussia Mönchengladbach - Karlsruher SC
Hertha BSC - SV 07 Elversberg
SpVgg Greuther Fürth - 1. FC Kaiserslautern
Eintracht Frankfurt - Borussia Dortmund
SV Darmstadt 98 - FC Schalke 04
FC Augsburg - VfL Bochum 1848
Fortuna Düsseldorf - SC Freiburg
SC Paderborn 07 - Bayer 04 Leverkusen
1. FSV Mainz 05 - VfB Stuttgart
VfL Wolfsburg - Holstein Kiel
1. FC Köln - FC Bayern München
FC St. Pauli - TSG Hoffenheim
An important victory in an emotional, hard-fought away match: Bayer 04 claimed a 4-3 win at 1. FSV Mainz 05 on Bundesliga Matchday 7. Alejandro Grimaldo with a brace and Christian Kofane scored for the Werkself in an impressive first half, with Martin Terrier also getting on the scoresheet late in the second half on his comeback after nine months out injured.
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Kasper Hjulmand managed 1. FSV Mainz 05 during the 2014/15 season. Now he returns to the MEWA ARENA as head coach of Bayer 04 Leverkusen on Saturday 18 October (kick-off 15:30 CEST). The record against the 05ers as well as the hosts' underwhelming start to the season favour the Werkself, but other stats and comments reveal a battling Mainz side who are determined to get back on track. The Matchday News brings you the latest ahead of the Bundesliga Matchday 7 clash.
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Bayer 04 Women have less than 72 hours to recover from the rearranged derby against Köln. Coach Roberto Pätzold's side host VfL Wolfsburg, who are level on points, in a crunch match at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion on Sunday (kick-off 17:15 CEST).
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Bayer 04 return from the international break with a trip to Mainz in the Bundesliga on Saturday. Ahead of the Matchday 7 fixture, head coach Kasper Hjulmand spoke at his press conference on Friday about the 05ers, returning to his former club and provided a fitness update on the squad.
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