
The match against the Hamburg State Cup winners will be the first competitive match for the Werkself in the coming season. Following the draw, sporting managing director Simon Rolfes talked about an "interesting" draw and at the same time said: "Obviously we will be taking our opponents very seriously particularly looking at our early exit last season. We want to do better this season and go as far as we can."
For Bayer 04 this will be the first competitive match at the stadium in Hamburg, with its capacity of 29,546, since 13 November 2010. Back then the Werkself beat FC St. Pauli 1-0 in the Bundesliga with a late strike from Renato Augusto.

Ecuador international Piero Hincapie, who moved to Arsenal FC on loan from Bayer 04 Leverkusen for the 2025/26 season, will join the English champions permanently on 1 July 2026.
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In glorious sunshine and temperatures of around 30 degrees Celsius, the Bayer 04 Women have begun their preparations for the new season. With a relaxed first session at the Kurtekotten training centre, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team became the first Bundesliga side to resume training after a 37-day break.
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Black and Red stand out. Under the slogan ‘Diversity under the Cross’, Bayer 04 took part in Pride on the Rhine at the weekend alongside the queer fan club “Bayer 04 Junxx”. The club mascot, Brian the Lion, and several members of staff were also in attendance, championing diversity and solidarity.
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Centre-back Melissa Friedrich is set to remain at Bayer 04 for another year. The longest-serving player in the squad, who joined the club in 2016, has extended her contract to 2027.
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