
De Cae and Wollin started as favourites in the three individual matches against the third bottom team from Hamburg. In the one-against-one games, both ‘Deto’, against Noah-Maurice ‘FCSP_Nooah’ Itgen on PlayStation, and ‘B04_Dubzje’ against Tom ‘FCSP_Tom’ Köst on XBOX, took the lead. However, both Black and Red eSports players conceded equalisers. The matches ended all square at 1-1. In the two-against-two mode, Wollin and De Cae held their nerve into added time scoring the winner at 2-1 in the fifth minute added on. The final result of matchday five was 5-2 in favour of Bayer 04. "They were three very tight games with a solid points return for us," was De Cae's assessment of part one of the double matchday. The duo then went into the clash with leaders Stuttgart on the back of the win.
They have been playing at their best in the early part of the season: The South Germans did not lose a single game in the first five VBL matches. But last night, it was the Bayer 04 eSports players who made their mark on the three games. "We surpassed ourselves," declared a happy ‘B04_Dubzje’. The Black and Reds picked up all nine points against the league leaders: The one-against-one matches Lukas ‘Lukas_1004’ Seiler and Marcel ‘Marlut’ Lutz were both won 4-2 by the Bayer 04 eSports players and the double match ended in a 2-1 victory. De Cae: "We are very happy about our performance levels at the moment. We will put our foot down in the coming weeks and work hard to be able to continue at this level."
On Monday 25 November, the Leverkusen players faced next to bottom Holstein Kiel at 18.00 CET. The Bayer 04 eSports players then take on RB Leipzig at 20.30 CET (17th in the table) with the recent football pro Diego Demme making his debut on the console.


Bayer 04 Leverkusen have appointed Carles Martínez Novell as the new head coach. The 42-year-old Spaniard worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. Martínez finished last term in ninth place with the club from the south of France. He will take over the Werkself on 1 July 2026 and has signed a contract to 30 June 2028. Martínez, whose contract with Toulouse expires at the end of the month, succeeds Kasper Hjulmand at Leverkusen, who is leaving the club after one season.
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Welcome to Leverkusen, Carles Martínez Novell. Bayer 04 have appointed the 42-year-old Spaniard as the new head coach on a contract to 2028. Martínez most recently worked for FC Toulouse in the French Ligue 1 until the end of the season. He previously spent four years at Barcelona's legendary academy La Masia in his home city. Bayer04.de introduces Martínez in more detail.
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Bayer 04 plans for the 2026/27 pre-season continue to take shape. The Werkself will kick off the new season in mid-July with the return to the training ground. The highlight will be the official season opener on 8 August at the BayArena, including a friendly against La Liga club Sevilla. Friendlies in Germany will take the team to neighbouring Monheim, Offenbach and Jena.
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Strengthening the Bayer 04 Leverkusen youth teams: Konstantinos Kotsifakis will join the Werkself from Bundesliga 2 club Hertha Berlin for the 2026/27 season, where he will be a permanent member of the Leverkusen U19 coaching set-up. The German-Greek will also take on an operational role in coaching the Bayer 04 Future Team. The 29-year-old was most recently head coach of the U17s at Hertha Berlin.
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Another award for the Bayer 04 head groundsman and staff: After coming top in the 2021/22, 2022/23 and 2024/25 seasons, the BayArena pitch came second in the Bundesliga Pitch of the Year ranking for the 2025/26 season. VfL Wolfsburg secured the top spot this year, with TSG Hoffenheim in third place.
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