"An interesting draw, we are playing a club with a great football past. Our clear aim is to reach the second round. Of course, we also hope to have a true cup encounter where fans are finally able to provide an atmosphere for the two teams. That's what makes the DFB Cup special. We are looking forward to Leipzig," said sporting director Simon Rolfes after the draw.
FC Lokomotive Leipzig, reconstituted as VfB Leipzig after Germany's reunification and promoted to the Bundesliga in 1993, now play in the Regional League North-East and they qualified for this year's DFB Cup competition as winners of the Saxony Cup. The team is coached by Almadin Civa and their home ground is the prestigious Bruno Plache Stadium.
Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and Bayer 04 loanee Francis Onyeka are part of Germany's final squad for the U19 European Championships this summer. The tournament is in Wales from 24 June to 12 July.
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Bayer 04 are away to third-division club SV Wehen Wiesbaden in the first round of the 2026/27 DFB Pokal. That was the outcome of the draw on Saturday night, 6 June, at the German Football Museum in Dortmund. The Werkself first round tie will be played between 21 and 24 August. The exact date has yet to be finalised.
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Carles Martìnez is raring to go. The 42-year-old speaks in his first interview in Leverkusen about the club's development to date and how he wants to build on it. He describes his previous work in France, Kuwait, Qatar and his native Barcelona, his experience in developing young players, and the key steps between now and the start of pre-season training.
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New Bayer 04 head coach Carles Martínez has arrived in Leverkusen! At midday on Friday, the 42-year-old spoke in a press conference at the BayArena about his philosophy and his aims. Managing director sport Simon Rolfes also discussed the reasons for appointing the former Toulouse boss.
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