
Captain Lars Bender and Stefan Kießling dropped in for 45 minutes to join the fans in getting in the mood for the cup semi-final against Bayern Munich. In addition, the two key players and fan favourites took part in a Q&A session in a relaxed atmosphere. The areas covered included the season to date and the forthcoming challenges in the Bundesliga and DFB Cup.
Even though some Black and Red supporters dared to dream of going to Berlin: Lars and Kies remained level-headed. "We'll do well to take it step-by-step. Bayern will present a really tough challenge that we want to overcome. It will be difficult but we'll give all we've got," promised the skipper. And Kies added: "We're really looking forward to a great night in the cup on Tuesday and we're relying on your full support. We want to work together to win it for us all."

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.
Show more
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.
Show more
Opening opponents, derby weekends, the opponents in the season finale: This information and more will be available to Bayer 04 fans on Thursday, 2 July, when the 2026/27 Bundesliga fixture list is published.
Show more
The next footballing highlight is just around the corner: the 2026 FIFA World Cup, the 23rd edition of the tournament, will be held in the USA, Canada and Mexico and feature 48 teams for the first time. Bayer04.de has all the latest on the Werkself players called up to represent their countries.
Show more
While the majority of the Bayer 04 Women are enjoying their summer break, nine Werkself players will be on duty for their national teams in the coming days. Three of them are competing for a place at the World Cup, while six are involved in two friendlies with the Germany U23 team.
Show more