The tie at the Wildpark Stadium marks the start of a hopefully successful season for the team managed by the new head coach Heiko Herrlich. The new Bundesliga campaign starts on Friday 18 August with the Werkself away to the champions of Germany Bayern Munich in the very first match of the season. The first home game at the BayArena is against TSG Hoffenheim on the following weekend. "We have a difficult start but we are not worried about it," said Jonas Boldt, sporting manager at Bayer 04, "we'll know straightaway where we stand."
DFB Cup First Round draw in full:
Friday, 11 August, 20.45 CET:
Rot-Weiss Essen v Borussia Mönchengladbach
Holstein Kiel v Eintracht Braunschweig
Karlsruher SC v Bayer 04
Saturday, 12 August, 15.30 CET:
VfB Germania Halberstadt v SC Freiburg
Lüneburger SK Hansa v FSV Mainz 05
SpVgg Unterhaching v FC Heidenheim
SV Eichede v FC Kaiserslautern
TuS Koblenz v SG Dynamo Dresden
TuS Erndtebrück v Eintracht Frankfurt
FC Rielasingen-Arlen v Borussia Dortmund
Leher TS v FC Köln
Chemnitzer FC v FC Bayern Munich
Saturday, 12 August, 18.30 CET:
Rot-Weiß Erfurt v 1899 Hoffenheim
SSV Jahn Regensburg v SV Darmstadt 98
Arminia Bielefeld v Fortuna Düsseldorf
Saturday, 12 August, 20.45 CET:
Würzburger Kickers v SV Werder Bremen
Sunday, 13 August, 15.30 CET:
FC Saarbrücken v FC Union Berlin
SV Morlautern v SpVgg Greuther Fürth
FC Eintracht Norderstedt v VfL Wolfsburg
FC Schweinfurt 05 v SV Sandhausen
Bonner SC v Hannover 96
FC Nöttingen v VfL Bochum
1860 Munich v FC Ingolstadt
VfL Osnabrück v Hamburg SV
Sportfreunde Dorfmerkingen v RB Leipzig
Sunday, 13 August, 18.30 CET:
FC Magdeburg v FC Augsburg
Energie Cottbus v VfB Stuttgart
SV Wehen Wiesbaden v Erzgebirge Aue
Monday, 14 August, 18.30 CET:
SC Paderborn 07 v FC St. Pauli
MSV Duisburg v FC Nürnberg
BFC Dynamo v FC Schalke 04
Monday, 14 August, 20.45 CET:
FC Hansa Rostock v Hertha BSC
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have appointed Carles Martínez Novell as the new head coach. The 42-year-old Spaniard worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. Martínez finished last term in ninth place with the club from the south of France. He will take over the Werkself on 1 July 2026 and has signed a contract to 30 June 2028. Martínez, whose contract with Toulouse expires at the end of the month, succeeds Kasper Hjulmand at Leverkusen, who is leaving the club after one season.
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Welcome to Leverkusen, Carles Martínez Novell. Bayer 04 have appointed the 42-year-old Spaniard as the new head coach on a contract to 2028. Martínez most recently worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. He previously spent four years at Barcelona's legendary academy La Masia in his home city. Bayer04.de introduces Martínez in more detail.
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Bayer 04 plans for the 2026/27 pre-season continue to take shape. The Werkself will kick off the new season in mid-July with the return to the training ground. The highlight will be the official season opener on 8 August at the BayArena, including a friendly against La Liga club Sevilla. Friendlies in Germany will take the team to neighbouring Monheim, Offenbach and Jena.
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Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.
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Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.
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