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22.01.2026eSports

#B04eSports: The first opponents in the fourth showdown

The fourth showdown in the VBL Club Championship 2025/26 starts for the Leverkusen eSports team today, Thursday 22 January (live on the B04eSports Twitch channel and on the Bayer 04 app from 19:00 CET). In the online preliminary round, the Black and Reds will once again compete with six previously drawn opponents for a place in the Top 16 and the associated entry into the offline knockout round in Berlin on 2 February at the fourth showdown. The lowdown on our next three opponents in the online preliminary round.
Gegner-Check

As one of the 16 teams with the most points out of 35 teams in the online preliminary round, the #B04eSports players are looking to progress to the offline knockout round and fight to win in the showdown as well as pick up important points in the overall table (currently in ninth place). The points from all online preliminary rounds (3 per win) and offline rounds (2 per win) of the five showdowns are added together in this table, which will decide who will go through to the final round of the German Club Championship next year.

VfB Stuttgart: Experienced eSports players in their team

The fourth showdown kicks off against VfB Stuttgart. The Swabian side are currently two places behind Bayer 04 in eleventh in the overall table and they made it into an offline round for the first time in the previous third showdown in December. However, they were eliminated in the Round of 16 match against Hamburger SV. In Denis ‘DENIS’ Müller and Dylan ‘DULLENMIKE’ Neuhausen, VfB have two experienced eSports players in its ranks. Both have regularly reached the VBL Grand Final, the German individual championship, in recent years. Neuhausen's greatest success last season was playing in the quarter-finals. Müller reached the Round of 16 playing for Karlsruher SC.

VfB-eSports team stats:

Denis ‘DENIS’ Müller

  • 1.3 points per game (50th out of 92)
  • 2.7 goals per game (67/92)
  • 2.7 goals conceded per game (11/92)

Dylan ‘DULLENMIKE’ Neuhausen

  • 1.6 points per game (27/92)
  • 3.2 goals per game (47/92)
  • 3.3 goals conceded per game (41/92)

Hannover 96: Team one place below in second clash

Next up are Hannover 96, who are currently one place ahead of Stuttgart and one place behind Bayer 04 in tenth place in the overall table. So far, the Lower Saxony team has reached the offline round in the first and third showdowns. In the first, Hannover reached the quarter-finals and were knocked out by RB Leipzig, who later defeated Bayer 04 in the final to secure victory in the showdown. In the third showdown, Hannover were beaten in the Round of 16 by FC. St Pauli, winners of the second showdown.

Hannover 96 eSports team stats:

Djamal ‘DJAMALJNR’ Golla

  • 1.8 points per game (13/92)
  • 4.9 goals per game (3/92)
  • 4.0 goals conceded per game (74/92)

Mustafa ‘XMUSTI19’ Cankal

  • 1.4 points per game (45/92)
  • 3.3 goals per game (43/92)
  • 3.5 goals conceded per match (53/92)

Riad ‘ITSRIAAD’ Fazlija

  • 1.4 points per game (44/92)
  • 2.4 goals per game (76/92)
  • 2.4 goals conceded per game (3/92)

FC Augsburg: Big squad at FCA

FC Augsburg, currently lying 22nd in the overall table, await at the end of the first half of the online preliminary round. In the second showdown, FCA made it through to the offline round for the first time, where they reached the quarter-finals. They were knocked out by Borussia Dortmund, who went on to reach the final.

FCA eSports team stats:

Christoph ‘XTHEPUNISHER-96’ Geule

  • 1.0 points per game (68/92)
  • 2.6 goals per game (73/92)
  • 2.9 goals conceded per game (21/92)

Michael ‘FCA_MICHI’ Zwisler

  • 1.5 points per game (37/92)
  • 3.0 goals per game (55/92)
  • 4.5 goals conceded per game (86/92)

Niklas ‘NIKLASRANK’ Rank

  • 1.4 points per game (40/92)
  • 2.8 goals per game (61/92)
  • 2.8 goals conceded per match (14/92)

Yannic ‘YANNIC0109’ Bederke

  • 1.3 points per game (53/92)
  • 2.6 goals per game (72/92)
  • 3.2 goals conceded per game (37/92)

Matches and timings at a glance;

Match 1, 19:00 CET:

VfB Stuttgart vs Bayer 04

 

Match 2, 20:15 CET:

Hannover 96 vs Bayer 04

 

Match 3, 21:15 CET:

FC Augsburg vs Bayer 04

 

Matches live on the Bayer 04 app and on Twitch

If you want to follow the Leverkusen eSports team matches: All the matches will be broadcast live on the #B04eSports team's Twitch channel HERE. You can also watch them live on the Bayer 04 app.

The Black and Reds play the three remaining online preliminary round matches next Tuesday, 27 January, starting at 18:00 CET. The opponents are FC Kaiserslautern, SC Freiburg and RB Leipzig. The lowdown on these opponents to follow.

 

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