UEFA Europa League: Werkself face Qarabag in last 16
The draw for the round of 16 of the 2023/24 UEFA Europa League was made on Friday, pairing Bayer 04 with Azerbaijani club Qarabag FK, who the Werkself already met in the group stage.
Fernando Carro, CEO of Bayer 04, said on the draw: "It's a long journey but we're looking forward to the round of 16. We have a good and close relationship with Qarabag and the club's management. They played well in the play-off against Braga. We'll have to take them very seriously and remain as focused as we have been to date."
Simon Rolfes, managing director for sport: "It a familiar opponent for us but certainly not an easy one. Qarabag are a strong side, as they proved in the group stage just gone. The way they turned it around late on in the play-off against Braga deserves great respect. We'll approach this task with a high level of concentration in order to qualify for the quarter-finals over two challenging legs."
Qarabag finished second in Group H behind Bayer 04 and qualified for the round of 16 by beating Portuguese side Braga in the knockout round play-offs. It's the first time Qarabag have reached the last 16 of a UEFA competition.
The first leg will be played in Baku on Thursday 7 March, with the return leg a week later at the BayArena on Thursday 14 March. The exact kick-off times will be announced on the club's channels as soon as they're confirmed. Ticket information for both games will also follow in due course.
The Europa League quarter-finals take place on 11 and 18 April, the semi-finals on 2 and 9 May. The final in Dublin takes place on 22 May.
The round of 16 draw in full
Sparta Praha vs. Liverpool
Olympique Marseille vs. Villarreal CF
AS Roma vs. Brighton & Hove Albion
Benfica vs. Rangers
SC Freiburg vs. West Ham United
Sporting Lisbon vs. Atalanta
AC Milan vs. Slavia Praha
Qarabag vs. Bayer 04 Leverkusen
Related News
Women - 05.02.2026
Women’s Bundesliga sets course for next steps
At its first general meeting on 5 February 2026 in Frankfurt am Main, the Frauen Bundesliga FBL e.V. made key decisions regarding the future direction of the Women’s Bundesliga. The meeting was based on the results of the negotiations with the German Football Association (DFB) over the past few weeks.
Show more
Werkself-TV - 03.02.2026
TV highlights of 3-0 win against St. Pauli in DFB Pokal quarter-final
Werkself-TV shows the highlights of Bayer 04's 3-0 win against FC St. Pauli in the quarter-final of the DFB-Pokal 2025/26...
Show more
DFB-Pokal - 03.02.2026
3-0 against St. Pauli - Werkself through to Pokal semi-finals for third time in a row
Once again in the last four! Bayer 04 put in a mature and, for long stretches, commanding performance to defeat a courageous FC St. Pauli in the quarter-finals of the 2025/26 DFB Pokal to reach the semi-finals of the competition for the third time in a row. Martin Terrier gave Leverkusen the lead on 32 minutes before Patrik Schick made it 2-0 on 63 minutes. Substitute Jonas Hofmann capped off a strong second half for the Werkself with the third goal in added time.
Show more
Bayer 04 - 03.02.2026
Vote now for Quansah as BL Rookie of the Month for January
The German Football League (DFL) has announced the three candidates for the title of Bundesliga Rookie of the Month for January. That includes Werkself player Jarell Quansah. Fans of Bayer 04 can vote for their favourite on the Bundesliga app from now until Thursday, 5 January (23:59 CET).
Show more
DFB-Pokal - 03.02.2026
Matchday news #B04FCSP: DFB Pokal quarter-final against battling St. Pauli
As in the past two years, the Werkself are aiming to come out on top in the DFB Pokal quarter-finals on Tuesday night, 3 February (kick-off: 20:45 CET). With eleven home games in a row without defeat against the Kiezkicker, the Black and Reds go into the floodlit match in confident mood. But the Pokal, as is often said, has its own magic and the team from the Millerntor has much more to offer than the current 17th place in the Bundesliga would suggest. After all, Bayer 04 are one of the big German teams the combative Hamburgers have already made life difficult for this season. The matchday news.
Show more
