The 32 first round ties will be drawn during the ARD Sportschau from 18.00 CET (live on TV and live Internet stream). The matches will be played on the second weekend in August (9 to 11 August). The Germany women's World Cup winner Nia Künzer will draw the teams. DFB vice-president Peter Frymuth is in charge of proceedings and Markus Othmer will be the presenter.
64 teams have qualified for the 77th domestic cup competition including Bayer 04 as well as the sixth tier side from the Rhineland Palatinate FSV Salmrohr (winners of the Rhineland Cup) who are the lowest ranking participants. All the teams are divided into two groups: The first, so-called 'Pros pot', has all the Bundesliga clubs plus the top 14 teams from the second division last season. The other four clubs from the second division, the four top teams in the third division plus the 24 representatives from the state associations are in the second, so-called 'Amateur pot'
FC Heidenheim (Bundesliga 2)
FC Köln (Promoted to the Bundesliga)
FC Nürnberg (Relegated to Bundesliga 2)
FSV Mainz 05 (Bundesliga)
Arminia Bielefeld (2. Bundesliga)
Bayer 04
Bayern Munich (Bundesliga, Holders)
Borussia Dortmund (Bundesliga)
Borussia Mönchengladbach (Bundesliga)
Dynamo Dresden (Bundesliga 2)
Eintracht Frankfurt (Bundesliga)
Erzgebirge Aue (Bundesliga 2)
FC Augsburg (Bundesliga)
FC Schalke 04 (Bundesliga)
FC St. Pauli ( Bundesliga 2)
Fortuna Düsseldorf (Bundesliga)
Hamburger SV (Bundesliga 2)
Hannover 96 (Relegated to Bundesliga 2)
Hertha Berlin (Bundesliga)
Holstein Kiel (Bundesliga 2)
Jahn Regensburg (Bundesliga 2)
RB Leipzig (Bundesliga)
SC Freiburg (Bundesliga)
SC Paderborn (Promoted to the Bundesliga)
SpVgg Greuther Fürth (Bundesliga 2)
SV Darmstadt (2. Bundesliga)
TSG Hoffenheim (Bundesliga)
Union Berlin (Promoted to the Bundesliga)
VfB Stuttgart (Relegated to Bundesliga 2)
VfL Bochum (Bundesliga 2)
VfL Wolfsburg (Bundesliga)
Werder Bremen (Bundesliga)
FC Kaiserslautern (League 3, South West Cup winners)
FC Magdeburg (Relegated to League 3)
FC Saarbrücken (Regional League, Saarland Cup winners)
Alemannia Aachen (Regional League, Middle Rhine Cup winners)
Chemnitzer FC (League 3, Saxony Cup winners)
Energie Cottbus (Regional League, Brandenburg Cup winners)
FC 08 Villingen (Oberliga, South Baden Cup winners)
FC Hansa Rostock (League 3, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Cup winners)
FC Ingolstadt (Relegated to League 3)
FC Oberneuland (Oberliga, Bremen Cup winners)
FC Viktoria 1889 Berlin (Regional League, Berlin Cup winners)
FSV Salmrohr (League 6, Rhineland Cup winners)
FSV Wacker Nordhausen (Regional League, Thüringen Cup winners)
Hallescher FC (League 3)
Karlsruher SC (Promoted to League 2)
KFC Uerdingen 05 (League 3, Lower Rhine Cup winners)
MSV Duisburg (Relegated to League 3)
KSV Baunatal (Oberliga, Hessen Cup winners)
SC Verl (Regional League, Westphalia Cup finalists)
SSV Ulm 1846 (Regional League, Württemberg Cup winners)
SV Atlas Delmenhorst (Oberliga, Lower Saxony Cup finalists)
SV Drochtersen/Assel (Regional League, Lower Saxony Cup winners)
SV Rödinghausen (Regional League, Westphalia Cup winners)
SV Sandhausen (League 2)
SV Wehen Wiesbaden (Promoted to League 2)
TuS Dassendorf (Oberliga, Hamburg Cup winners)
VfB Eichstätt (Regional League, Bavaria Cup finalists)
VfB Germania Halberstadt (Regional League, Sachsen-Anhalt Cup winners)
VfB Lübeck (Regional League, Schleswig-Holstein Cup winners)
VfL Osnabrück (Promoted to League 2)
Waldhof Mannheim (League 3, Baden Cup winners)
Würzburger Kickers (League 3, Bayern Cup winners)
Former Werkself star Michael Ballack, who won the German Footballer of the Year award in 2002 while playing in Leverkusen, celebrates his 50th birthday on Saturday. Bayer 04 sends him its best wishes!
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Attention Werkself fans: In addition to tickets for the floodlit home match against Werder Bremen, tickets are now also available for the Bayer 04 women’s team’s two subsequent fixtures against Eintracht Frankfurt and Hamburger SV at the Ulrich Haberland Stadium. Both matches in the Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga will take place at family-friendly kick-off times on Saturday afternoons. Here is the latest information on matchday ticket sales.
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Guéla Doué’s first 30 minutes in a Bayer 04 shirt during the draw away at Augsburg have definitely made the summer signing eager for more. The 23-year-old may have had to bide his time following his move from Strasbourg due to a muscular injury, but he’s been able to get a good taste of the BayArena atmosphere while watching from the stands in the home wins over Celje and RB Leipzig, as the Ivory Coast international explained in a chat with media representatives. “The fans’ enthusiasm and passion are incredible,” said Doué, looking forward to what lies ahead. The defender also spoke about his plans for a comeback, his teammates and his younger brother Désiré.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen welcomes a new official member to the Sponsors’ Club at the start of the 2026/27 campaign. KKV Kabelverlegung GmbH & Co. KG is expanding its existing partnership and will, with immediate effect, act as a supporter of the Bundesliga club at the second-highest partner level, just below the premium tier. As an official partner in the Sponsors’ Club, KKV will now enjoy significantly enhanced visibility during Werkself matches at the BayArena. The new contract is initially valid until 30 June 2028.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen has extended the existing partnership agreement with EDO Personalservice GmbH and, at the same time, expanded its collaboration with the Cologne-based company. The official partner in the Business Club has been upgraded within Bayer 04’s partner network. The revised and enhanced support for the club has initially been agreed for two years, running until 30 June 2028.
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