#B04eSports in 2025
Club runners-up and first showdown winners in VBL history
A memorable 12 months: 2025 was a year marked by success, intense competition and groundbreaking innovations for the #B04eSports team. After ending the 2024/25 season as runners-up, the Leverkusen-based console pros got down to business in a new, completely restructured season model, in which showdowns rather than divisions were the decisive factor on the road to the final round of the German Club Championship. Bayer 04 quickly earned a place in the history books of the most prestigious competition in German eSports and secured some valuable advantages for the coming year. Bayer04.de takes a look back at 12 months full of passion and the determination to take the next step.
January: Important wins to start the year
After an unlucky first half of the season and finishing 14th out of 17 in the North-West Division, the action continued in January. The goal for the rest of the VBL Club Championship league phase was clear: finish at least in the top eight and keep the title hopes alive. While the top two teams in the North-West and South-East divisions would qualify directly for the final round of the German Club Championship, the teams ranked third to eighth would have to compete in the play-off round for the remaining places in the final round. So the team went into the first matches with fresh momentum: in the opening game, Marc and Sean Landwehr secured a win against Hamburger SV, followed by three points against SC Preußen Münster.
February: Bayer 04 win and keep moving up
In February, the Leverkusen side picked up more important points. Bayer 04 won against VfL Wolfsburg on Matchday 12 and then against FC Schalke 04. They were in ninth place at that point, and their goal of finishing in the top eight was becoming increasingly within reach. But then came a setback: Leverkusen suffered their first defeat of the new year against Holstein Kiel. Between the matches against Schalke and Kiel, the Landwehr cousins had confidently got the job done in the first round of the DFB-eCup, but in the second round nine days later, the Black and Reds were surprisingly knocked out. In the league, however, the success continued: Bayer 04 beat Hannover 96 and climbed to eighth place.
There was also good news that month from the ‘B04eAcademy’, which specifically nurtures up-and-coming eSports players. Markus Hüttemann, who was the first Leverkusen eTalent to secure his place at the eAcademy in the summer of last year, made his debut against FC Schalke in the most prestigious competition in German eSports – and with success, because, as mentioned, Leverkusen, including Hüttemann, won the match.
March: Into the final round via the play-offs – Bayer 04 finish as runners-up
Then, in March, they did it: Leverkusen secured three points against 1. FC Magdeburg on the 16th and penultimate matchday of the league phase and climbed to seventh place. A top-eight finish was now guaranteed. Bayer 04 wrapped up the league phase with a draw against Borussia Dortmund on the last matchday. However, there wasn't much time to catch their breath, as the play-off round was already scheduled for a week later. Leverkusen prevailed against VfB Stuttgart and, after their first participation last year, reached the final round of the German Club Championship for the second time in a row.
That took place in the middle of the month at the Straßenkickerbase in Cologne. The ten teams in the final round were divided into two groups of five. Bayer 04 faced SV Werder Bremen, VfL Bochum 1848, FC Bayern München and TSG Hoffenheim in Group B – and defeated them all! Undefeated, they advanced to the semi-finals, where Leverkusen faced the then double winners SC Paderborn 07, whom Bayer 04 also defeated to reach the final. The Black and Reds were closer to the title than ever before!
The opponents in the decisive match were RB Leipzig, against whom Leverkusen unfortunately came up short. While the Saxons were crowned champions and simultaneously record champions in VBL-CC history, Bayer 04 had to settle for second place. Marc Landwehr spoke afterwards of an "unlucky defeat" and added: "We can still be very proud. After a rather sobering start to the season, we turned things around in the last few weeks. It was an incredible few days for us. A big thank you goes out to all the fans here and watching on their screens!" His cousin Sean added: "In the end, we came up just a little bit short. Nevertheless, we're keeping our chins up and will go for it again next year! The path to another successful season has been paved, and every VBL club now has us on their radar!"
Marc Fiedler, eSports manager at Bayer 04, was also visibly proud and spoke for the entire Werksklub department: "What our boys have achieved this year, and especially in the last few days, is incredible. Reaching the final and the close result against Leipzig show the terrific quality we have in our club. The whole team are incredibly proud of Marc and Sean!’
April: Early exit in the single-player competition
Following the club championship, as usual, the single-player competition took place. On their way to the VBL Grand Final, the final round for the individual title, Marc and Sean Landwehr as well as Markus Hüttemann competed in the VBL Open. Here, 128 established eSports players and independent eFootball talents battled it out for 12 starting places in the Grand Final, where several participants were already waiting. Two individual players from the five best clubs in each division from the VBL CC league phase had qualified directly for the VBL Grand Final. Unfortunately, however, the Leverkusen side had to shelve their single-player competition ambitions early on. After their great successes in the VBL CC, they fell short of their expectations and were eliminated in the VBL Open, ending their season..
July: Landwehr cousins extend their contracts
Jumping forward to the summer: Following two quiet months, Leverkusen's eSports year continued with some exciting news: Marc and Sean Landwehr both extended their respective contracts by another two years. Marc said at the time: "The extension shows the trust the club has in us. We achieved a lot together last season, and I'm convinced that even more is possible." Sean stressed: "After a strong season last year, it quickly became clear to me that I wanted to continue my journey at Bayer 04. We've shown what we're capable of as a team – and I'm highly motivated to build on that in the next two years." With eTalent Markus Hüttemann, who extended his contract by one year, and the first eSports jersey from new kit supplier New Balance unveiled that month, Leverkusen were already looking forward to the new season with confidence.
September: Senkbeil becomes new eTalent under the cross
But before the 2025/26 season really got underway, the club sought to strengthen its squad by recruiting another new eTalent for the B04eAcademy in August and September. Justin Schwier, who joined Bayer 04 as an eTalent alongside Hüttemann the previous year, had left the club. Keanu Senkbeil came out on top in the new selection process and has been an asset to the eAcademy alongside Hüttemann ever since.
October: All change in the VBL CC – Bayer 04 win first showdown
In October, finally, it was time for the new season to begin. And ‘NEW’ was the key word here. The season saw the introduction of a completely restructured model. From that point on, the 35 clubs no longer competed against each other within two geographically divided divisions, but faced each other in monthly showdowns, which were always divided into an online preliminary round with six previously drawn opponents and a subsequent offline knockout round for the 16 teams with the most points from the preliminary round. The scoring system for individual matches had also changed: a pairing now consisted exclusively of two one-on-one matches, with the overall final score determining whether the match was won, drawn or lost.
And so began a new era for Bayer 04 – with a fresh format but big ambitions. At the start of the first online preliminary round, they faced heavyweights SC Paderborn, but Leverkusen came out on top. In game two, they also secured a win against DSC Arminia Bielefeld. The Black and Reds picked up another six points from the remaining four matches. This put Leverkusen in the top 16 and, as the 11th-placed side in the preliminary round, they advanced to the offline round of the first showdown. And at the event in Leipzig, Leverkusen achieved something historic! In the round of 16 in the city in Saxony, the first-placed team in the preliminary round met the 16th-placed team, the second-placed team came up against the 15th-placed side, and so on. It meant Bayer 04 faced FC Schalke, who had finished sixth in the preliminary round, whom they defeated. And they just kept going, beating FC St. Pauli, preliminary round opponents Paderborn and, finally, big beasts RB Leipzig in the final.
So they'd done it. Leverkusen secured their first eSports title and were crowned winners of the first showdown in VBL-CC history. That 26 October couldn't have been more perfect, and Marc and Sean Landwehr were absolutely delighted afterwards. "We left everything on the pitch and battled in every minute. That makes it all the nicer to be rewarded for it in the end and celebrate a title!" stressed Marc after the hugely exciting final against the very team they had had to settle for second place against just a few months previously. "It feels incredibly good to have done it this time. This showdown victory is our revenge," added Sean.
The win handed Leverkusen an outstanding start to the season, which not only boosted their confidence but was also immensely important, because they earned an additional eight points (two per knockout match won) for the overall table, which combines all points from all online and offline rounds of the five showdowns and will determine who advances to the final round of the club championship next year. Bayer 04, 11th in the preliminary round, moved up to second place in the overall table as a result!
November: Out in the preliminary round of the second showdown
Their great success was followed by bitter disappointment. For the second showdown, a new, separate showdown table was introduced and the clubs once again faced six opponents, who had been drawn at random in the preliminary round. The procedure was then the same: after the six matches, the 16 teams with the most points advanced to the offline round. The points from the online and offline rounds were added to the overall table. However, Bayer 04 only managed to finish 21st after the preliminary round matches (3 wins, 3 defeats), meaning the showdown winners in Leipzig missed out on a place in the offline round of the second showdown, which this time round took place in Frankfurt am Main. Another annoyance was that after the showdown, Bayer 04 slipped from second to fifth place in the overall table. Their rivals had picked up enough points in the offline round to move ahead of the Black and Reds. On a positive note, however, eTalent Keanu Senkbeil made his debut in the VBL CC in the preliminary round matches.
The team also used November, away from sporting competition, to establish valuable contacts in the European eFootball scene. As part of the Werkself's Champions League matches, the Leverkusen side met up with the eSports players from Manchester City and, in previous weeks with the console pros from Paris Saint-Germain and PSV Eindhoven. Together, they produced content for social media channels, among other things, and then watched the Champions League matches together in the evening.
December: Setback at the end of the year – Clear goals for 2026
The next month, the next showdown: In December, Leverkusen fought for their next points in the third showdown, but only managed to pick up seven in the preliminary round – not enough to keep up with the fierce competition. Finishing 22nd in the preliminary round, the showdown was over early and the result was reflected in the overall table: after the offline round – this time in Cologne – Bayer 04 slipped to ninth place. A setback to end the year.
Nevertheless, Leverkusen are ending this eventful year in a respectable position and can start the new year with a fresh outlook. The goal is already clear: to reach the final event of the German Club Championship (7/8 March 2026). Similar to the format of the UEFA Champions League, the teams in 1st to 8th place in the overall table qualify directly, while the teams in 9th to 24th place compete in a play-off round to determine the remaining eight teams for the final. And even outside the VBL CC, Leverkusen have exciting challenges ahead of them in the new year. In the DFB Cup final event, for example, the Landwehr cousins will be battling for another trophy.
The winners of the first four showdowns will face amateur clubs that have earned their place in previous qualifying months. Thanks to their success in the first showdown, Bayer 04 have already secured their place! And there's another advantage to be gained from the historic success in October: Marc and Sean Landwehr will definitely be competing in the VBL Grand Final of the German single-player competition in the new year after the VBL CC Final and won't have to go through any qualifying rounds beforehand – an advantage for the eSports players of the five showdown-winning clubs.
Even though the third showdown didn't go as planned, the Landwehr cousins have enjoyed the most successful year in Leverkusen's eSports history. Amidst historic successes, rookie debuts, contract extensions and international collaborations, this year ends with clear goals and invaluable starting positions. Black and Red head into the new year with renewed vigour and confidence – ready to celebrate the next successful chapters.
