Bayer 04 have been in drawn an interesting group and the club has not faced any of the three opponents before.
Sporting managing director Rudi Völler: "This draw shows the appeal of the Europa League. I think our group is brilliant and there are great names in it. Our fans can look forward to that and hopefully enjoy a lot of success with us." And sporting director Simon Rolfes is also full of anticipation for the group stage to be played between September and December: "It's a really attractive group with strong teams. We look forward to the matches against such big clubs."
Celtic finished runners-up in the Scottish Premiership last season. After going out of the Champions League in the qualifying rounds, the team under Ange Postecoglou went through the Europa League qualifiers against FK Jablonec and AZ Alkmaar.
Real Betis qualified for the UEL by finishing sixth in La Liga. Ferencváros, this year coached by the former Bundesliga manager Peter Stöger, finished champions in the Hungarian top-flight last term. The team led by the 55-year-old are also in the Europa League after going out in the Champions League qualifiers.
"The opponents will pose a great challenge on the pitch and also be extremely attractive for our fans. It's a European cup and that's what you want from this competition. Our aim is to go through from this exciting group," said Bayer 04 head coach Gerardo Seoane.
Fixtures kick off at 18.45 or 21.00 Central European Time. Match details will be announced by Saturday morning.
The Werkself welcome FC Augsburg to the BayArena on Bundesliga matchday 30 in the 2025/26 season. The match on Saturday, 18 April kicks off at 15:30 CEST. Bayer 04 have organised a family matchday with exclusive offers for parents and children. Information on ticket sales.
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The Werkself host VfL Wolfsburg at the BayArena on matchday 28 in the 2025/26 Bundesliga season. The match is on Saturday, 4 April, with the kick-off at 15:30 CET. Information on ticket sales.
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It was the end of the road for the #B04eSports team against SC Freiburg. Marc and Sean Landwehr were narrowly defeated by the top favourites in the quarter-finals of the VBL Club Championship Final 2025/26. After a success in the first 1v1 game (4-2) and a subsequent defeat (0-4), the overall goals tally ultimately decided who progressed to the semi-finals in the clash against the league leaders from the previous phase.
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There was end-to-end action with both teams giving nothing away in Bayer 04's 3-3 draw at SC Freiburg that was a great advert for Bundesliga football. However, Leverkusen were by no means satisfied with the result after the hosts equalised late on. The Werkself review provides the latest information on the intense clash in Freiburg.
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