Fanzone official launch – 'First impression: Simply wow!'

There was a long queue at the entrance with huge interest from fans with a view of the pitch at the BayArena. The new space was officially opened at noon by Fernando Carro (Bayer 04 CEO), the club's record appearance maker Rüdiger Vollborn, club representative Stefan Kießling, Dirk von den Bergen (head of Bayer 04 shops) and Michele Lehnhoff (team leader Bayer 04 shops). Together they symbolically cut a red ribbon and personally welcomed the visitors. Carro, Vollborn and Kießling then mingled with the fans and exchanged views on their first impressions.

"The Fanzone is sensational, it invites you to spend time here and look around – and that with a unique view of the pitch at our stadium," said Caro. "I can only congratulate everybody involved in this great achievement. The Fanzone is another, essential element of the exceptional connection to our fans.

a very special first purchase

The Black and Red world of shopping and experience went down well with the numerous fans present. For example with Patrick, a long-standing Bayer 04 Club member and a season card holder in the North Stand who was the first fan to pass through the entrance to the Fanzone on Wednesday afternoon: "First impression: Simply wow! It's really great. There's lots of space, you have a brilliant view and there's even a bar – I particularly like that!"

The first item sold was exceptional: one of the signed, framed and strictly limited edition championship jerseys signed by one of the Werkself players, which is exclusively available at the Fanzone. But, of course, there were also Christmas decorations, pillows and footballs as well as – of course – jerseys in the shopping basket.

In addition to the sales areas, attention was particularly paid to the trophies and they were a popular subject for many fans to photo. Some fans had selfies with Carro, Vollborn and Kießling and others with Florian Wirtz, Victor Boniface and Co. at the digital photo point. DJ Actimax provided the right musical ambiance.

Exclusive Preview the night before

Staff at the Werkself plus sponsors and invited guests from Nordkurve12 had the opportunity to take in the Fanzone on Tuesday night. Bayer 04 mascot Brian the Lion, specially dressed in a suit and hat, mixed with the guests. Fernando Carro and Markus Breglec, chief marketing and innovation officer at Bayer 04, opened the event on the #B04eSports stage in an interview with stadium announcer Pitti Dahl and started by again thanking everybody who made this project possible.

Dirk von den Bergen (Head of the Bayer 04 shops), Silvia Talmon (Executive creative director at the planning agency The Retail Experience GmbH) plus Nadine Boes (Project management and site management at Bayer 04) and Dirk Heisterkamp (Head of sales and marketing at Früh Kölsch) then reported on the idea of the Fanzone, the motivation and resulting completion process. Boes revealed with a smile: "Everything we see here today has been created within four months since the season finale from the start of construction to completion now. Over the past few weeks, we have undertaken final snagging while the colleagues from the shop were hanging up jerseys and cleaning work was done at the same time."

Rüdiger Vollborn and Stefan Kießling revelled in memories and reviewed the development of the space from back in the day to now. Vollborn: "When this area was unveiled in 1997 it was home to the BayArena restaurant. Then there was even a disco and later it became the Barmenia Lounge. It's incredible to see what's here now."

acces via south-east corner at BayArena

Access to the new shopping and world of experience at Bayer 04 is via the Fanzone entrance at the south-east corner at the BayArena. Wheelchair users can enter via the south (SÜD) business entrance and use the lifts available there.

Opening hours:

• Monday to Friday from 10.00 to 19.04.
• Saturdays from 10.00 to 18.00
• Closed on Sundays and bank holidays

Please note: The Bayer 04 Fanzone will be closed from 16.00 CET on Thursday, 21 November, due to a big Bayer AG event.

On home matchdays (with the exception of Sundays) the Fanzone will open at 10.00 CET to visitors. The Fanzone will be closed to the public three hours before kick-off before being available to access by match ticket holders when the stadium opens (as a rule two hours before kick-off). If a home fixture is on a Sunday then the Fanzone is open to match ticket holders when the stadium opens.