SV Sandhausen and Bayer 04 meet in a competitive match for the first time. Sandhausen are the 91st opponent for the Werkself in the DFB Pokal, and Bayer 04 are opponent number 38 for SVS. Sandhausen have lost all of their last five cup ties against Bundesliga teams and only come out on top in three out of 17 cup ties against top-flight sides – on penalties each time.
SV Sandhausen are organising mug donations for the cup tie – including in the away section – for two-and-a-half-year- old Liem who is suffering from leukaemia. To increase Liem’s chances of being healthy again, he needs a stem cell donation. All money raised from the mug donations will go to the German Bone Marrow Donor Register (DKMS). Anybody wishing to make an additional donation can do so directly to the DKMS donation account using the following details:
IBAN: DE32 7004 0060 8987 0005 79
Reference: LYB001, Liem
The Werkself can once again look forward to great support on the road. Given the demand for tickets, Bayer 04 endeavoured to obtain a bigger allocation ahead of the cup tie. 3,000 Bayer 04 fans are set to travel to Sandhausen tomorrow. Standing tickets are still available with the ticket office at the ground opening at 16.30 CET. According to SV Sandhausen, 9,000 to 10,000 of their own fans are expected to attend the match.
SV Sandhausen recently put Jens Keller in charge of the team. The 52-year-old coach, who took Schalke 04 to the Round of 16 in the Champions League in 2013/14, is tasked with winning promotion. Keller's first outing as head coach at SVS was successful with a 2-1 away win Sandhausen against Borussia Dortmund II.
The possibility of going back up is on. The third division team are currently seventh in the table with 19 points from 13 games with only four points separating them from a play-off spot. Further information on today's opposition can be found in our lowdown on the next opponents.
The German Football Association (DFB) has appointed Richard Hempel to referee the cup tie. This will be the first game involving the Werkself for the 25-year-old match official. He will be assisted by Tobias Schultens and Eric-Dominic Weisbach on the touchlines and the fourth official is Lars Ebert. VAR is not used in the second round of the DFB Pokal.
As usual, Werkself Radio is available for anybody unable to be at today's game. The audio broadcast begins 30 minutes before kick-off with commentary provided by Niko Hartmann and Cedric Pick. In addition, the live text update service will keep you up-to-date to ensure you don't miss any of the key match action. Both Werkself Radio and the live text update service are available at bayer04.de and on the Bayer 04 app.
Bayer 04 Leverkusen have extended Abdoulaye Faye’s contract by a further year to 30 June 2031. During the 2026/27 season, the talented defender will play for Celta Vigo on loan without an option to buy. The 21-year-old Senegalese is set to feature in La Liga and the UEFA Europa League with last season’s sixth-placed side in Spain.
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The Werkself's training camp in Weimarer Land all in one place: in our daily blog you'll find all the insights and updates from the day. The programme on day one (Sunday 2 August) includes a media round with managing director sport Simon Rolfes, free time for the team after the friendly against Rot-Weiss Essen and before an intensive week of training begins, as well as a coffee get-together where CEO Fernando Carro and Rolfes met around 100 fans in the afternoon.
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Bayer 04 Leverkusen have agreed Kerim Alajbegovic’s transfer to Italian record champions Juventus. The club brought the 18-year-old attacking player back to Leverkusen this summer via a buy-back option, following a season at Red Bull Salzburg. Until his move to Austria, the Bosnia international had been playing for Bayer 04’s Under-19s.
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A warm welcome to the Weimarer Land, Bayer 04! The Werkself moved into their accommodation for this year’s training camp on Saturday evening. In Blankenhain, Thuringia, head coach Carles Martínez’s team have a programme of gruelling training sessions – several of which will be open to fans – and team-building activities lined up for the next six days. We’ll be following the Werkself up close and providing you with exclusive insights, quotes, photos and videos from the training camp.
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With 22 days to go until the start of the Bundesliga campaign, the Bayer 04 Women’s team have gained a fresh boost of confidence. In a friendly against Belgian top-flight side KRC Genk on Saturday afternoon, coach Roberto Pätzold’s team secured a 1–0 win. Lobke Loonen (20’) scored the winner for the Black and Reds at the Kurtekotten training centre.
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