Can Bayer 04 qualify for the second final in succession and the sixth overall? Or will Arminia cause a shock on their own turf and go through to the final in Berlin on their fourth semi-final appearance? The Werkself have won the previous three meetings in the DFB Pokal (1997/97, 2012/13, 2013/14). Number four can happily come tonight...
In the history of the DFB Pokal, Arminia Bielefeld are only the second club to have reached the semi-finals twice without being in the top two divisions alongside FC Saarbrücken (2019/20 and 2023/24). Bielefeld previously reached this stage in 2014/15. The potential semi-final win against Bayer 04 would make Arminia Bielefeld the fourth third tier team to reach the final (Hertha Berlin Reserves 1992/93, Energie Cottbus 1996/97 and Union Berlin 2000/01).
The Werkself overcame Regional League FC Carl Zeiss Jena 1-0 in the first round, then beat second tier SV 07 Elversberg 3-0 at home in the second round and the Round of 16 saw the 1-0 victory against the record Pokal winners Bayern Munich at the Allianz Arena. The Black and Reds beat FC Köln in a spectacular game at home in the quarter-finals with a 3-2 win after extra time.
Arminia Bielefeld have knocked three top-flight clubs out of the competition. They started in the first round with a 2-0 win against second division Hannover 96, in the second round the team led by coach Mitch Kniat achieved the same result against Union Berlin. SC Freiburg lost 3-1 at the SchücoArena at the start of September last year. In the quarter-finals held a month ago Arminia beat Werder Bremen 2-1.
The team from Bielefeld are currently fourth in the third division and have justified hopes of promotion as they are only one point behind third-placed FC Saarbrücken with eight games to play. They are also within reach of claiming a direct promotion slot for Bundesliga 2. Why? Arminia have been the most prolific team in the Rückrunde with 21 goals scored and have only conceded 32 goals in the previous 30 games, which is less than any other team. Further information on today's opponents can be found in our lowdown on the next opponents.
3,200 Bayer 04 fans will be at the SchücoArena to support the Werkself in this midwek Pokal tie.
The referee for tonight's match is Harm Osmers. The 40-year-old has previously been in charge of 18 games involving the Werkself (11 wins, four draws, three defeats). His assistants are Dominik Schaal and Stefan Lupp with Johann Pfeifer in action as the VAR..
The knockout tie will be broadcast live on free to air channel ARD and on Sky. As ever, supporters unable to be at the match can follow the game on Werkself Radio. The audio broadcast starts 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Niko Hartmann and Cedric Pick. In addition, the live text update service will keep fans up-to-date. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.
The Bundesliga has announced the nominees for the ‘Top Goal of the Month’ award for October. Fans of the Werkself can now vote for, amongst others, Robert Andrich’s stunning volley from the match against Mainz 05 or Moussa Diaby’s curling shot into the top corner from the same fixture. Voting, exclusively on the Bundesliga app, remains open until Sunday, 8 November (23:59 CET).
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Bayer 04 host Borussia Mönchengladbach at the BayArena on matchday 12 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season. The schedule for the game remains to be confirmed. The latest information on ticket sales.
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Bayer 04 host Eintracht Frankfurt at the BayArena on matchday 14 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season. The schedule for the game remains to be confirmed. The latest information on ticket sales.
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Werkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04 Women's 0-1 loss at Bayern Munich in the round of 16 of the women's DFB-Pokal 2026/27
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“As far as mentality and determination are concerned, we have nothing to reproach ourselves for,” Robert Andrich said up after the first home defeat for the Werkself this term. In terms of their play, too, the Black and Reds put in a respectable performance for long stretches of this intense and physical match, outperforming VfB Stuttgart in most areas. It was only in terms of efficiency in front of goal that the Swabians had the edge over the Werkself. Head coach Carles Martínez wants to learn from this so that, in future, they can “win this sort of match too”. The Werkself review.
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