While the Black and Reds had to enter the play-offs in ninth place in the overall league table, where they defeated SV Darmstadt 98t 98, HSV bypassed the intermediate round with just one point more than Bayer 04 in eighth place.
In front of a large number of opposing fans Sean 'SEAN_LDW07' Landwehr went behind early on against Hamburg's ‘offline ace’ Henning ‘HHENNING23’ Wilmbusse (10’). After that, the game meandered along before the action picked up after half-time and Wilmbusse created several great chances. However, Sean Landwehr also continued to make occasional attacks - and Patrik Schick equalised in the 80th minute to make it 1-1, which was also the final score. An important comeback to avoid going into the second 1v1 game on the back of a defeat.
Marc 'MARC_LDW23' Landwehr came up against Hamburg's Brandon ‘HSV_PERKKIX’ Wüschem, who made a very aggressive start to the game. After just three minutes, there was a setback in the form of an early goal for HSV. But Marc Landwehr did not give up, remained composed and played his game mainly down the flanks. In the closing stages of the first half, the Leverkusen man then scored twice (34', 43'). In the second half, Marc Landwehr finally utilised his routine and vast experience, playing in a cool and collected manner - and thus secured his place in the quarter-finals!
The results at a glance:
Round of 16 VBL CC 2025/26:
Hamburger SV (L) vs Bayer 04 (W)
‘HHENNING23’ 1-1 ‘SEAN_LDW07’
‘HSV_PERKKIX’ 1-2 ‘MARC_LDW23’
Final score: 2-3
The Leverkusen eSports players are in the quarter-finals on Sunday 8 March. Marc and Sean Landwehr face SC Freiburg, who beat FC Kaiserslautern in the Round of 16, from 14:00 CET. Gianluca ‘SCF_GIANLUCA’ Mautone plays alongside Nassim ‘NASSADA-‘ Dahman, currently the best player in the league, FC Pro Open Top 8 and World Cup entrant.
SCF finished the league phase in first place in the overall table. The eSports team from Freiburg entered the offline round in all five showdowns and progressed to at least the semi-finals each time. They went out in the last four three times, lost in a final against RB Leipzig and earned a win against Borussia Dortmund in the final in the fifth showdown.
All quarter-final matches and all subsequent duels in the final round of the VBL CC will be broadcast live on the VBL Twitch channel. Fans of eSports can also watch the event free of charge on site at XPERION in Hamburg. A possible semi-final involving the Black and Reds would start at 16:30 CET. The final for the club title will kick-off at 19:00 CET.
A fresh look for the BayArena: The Bayer 04 stadium will have new seating in the form of folding seats for the 2026/27 campaign that will ensure significantly improved seating comfort and simplified movement within the rows of seats. As part of routine replacement after 17 years, fans of the Werkself were able to purchase the existing seats, used to witness the first German league title in the club's history. In addition, a large proportion of the seats will be donated to charitable projects, primarily in the local region. Bayer 04 fans can look forward to new, functional folding seats for the season opener at the beginning of August - still in the club colours of black and red, of course. A glimpse at the BayArena during the refurbishment.
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On Monday evening, 8 June, around 250 people came to the Bürgerhaus Baumberg at the invitation of Bayer 04 to find out details of the new plans for the campus on Alfred-Nobel-Straße at an information event. More compact, greener and with many advantages for Monheim am Rhein - those are the aims. There were lively discussions for around three hours and some misunderstandings were cleared up.
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Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and Bayer 04 loanee Francis Onyeka are part of Germany's final squad for the U19 European Championships this summer. The tournament is in Wales from 24 June to 12 July.
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When Malik Tillman arrived at Bayer 04 Leverkusen from PSV Eindhoven last summer, he did more than just add attacking midfield strength to the team — he reconnected the club with a unique and understated American lineage that stretches back more than three decades.
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Bayer 04 are away to third-division club SV Wehen Wiesbaden in the first round of the 2026/27 DFB Pokal. That was the outcome of the draw on Saturday night, 6 June, at the German Football Museum in Dortmund. The Werkself first round tie will be played between 21 and 24 August. The exact date has yet to be finalised.
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