Six clubs from the Bundesliga and the second division (VfL Wolfsburg, Werder Bremen, VfB Stuttgart, FC St. Pauli, SC Paderborn 07 and Bayer 04 Leverkusen) took part in the 'sustain Club' sustainability certification and as part of that process Bayer 04 were awarded the 'sustain Club silver’ certification.
With the achievement of this certification, the sextet of clubs assumed a pioneering role in professional sport. In cooperation with the Swiss organisation 'sustainable///sports', a pilot phase was held to develop the 'sustainedClub' standard, which was certified by the independent expert organisation DEKRA. It was the first recognised sustainability standard and orientation point in professional football.
"As a club, we are very happy about achieving silver status. I'd like to thank everybody who made a contribution to that," said Fernando Carro, chairman of the board at Bayer 04. "In this assessment by the experts, we not only recognise an award but we also value it as an additional incentive to continue to develop in the area of sustainability."
The six participating clubs have accepted the challenges relating to sustainability in professional football and are committed to a better future in the three areas of sustainability (economy, ecology and community). The standard involves the establishment of a CSR and sustainability management system, sustainability analysis and the identification of concrete improvement opportunities.
Today brings the first match of the season for the Werkself. Bayer 04 kick off the 2026/27 campaign today, Saturday 22 August, at 13:00 CEST with a first-round DFB Pokal tie away to third-tier side SV Wehen Wiesbaden. The 3,700 travelling fans can not only look forward to what will hopefully be a successful start to the season, but also now organise their journeys to Black and Reds games even more easily via the WERKSELFgo car-share platform. Meanwhile, following two defeats at the start of the league season, SV Wehen are hoping to spring a surprise in the DFB Pokal tie. Today’s matchday news.
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Carolin Simon is the new captain of the Bayer 04 women’s team. The full-back, who joined from Bayern Munich in the summer, will take over the captain’s armband for the 2026/27 season. Simon returned to Leverkusen in the summer after ten years away. The 33-year-old succeeds goalkeeper Friederike Repohl, who retired at the end of last season.
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Bayer 04 start the 2026/27 season away to third-division side SV Wehen Wiesbaden. Ahead of the DFB Pokal tie on Saturday 22 August (kick-off: 13:00 CEST), head coach Carles Martínez spoke at the pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon. The topics: anticipation, passion, the fans’ support – and the captaincy for the new season.
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After 62 days of preparation, the time has finally come: the Werkself kick off the new Google Pixel Women’s Bundesliga season on Sunday (16:00 CEST) with an away match at RB Leipzig. Following a major shake-up over the summer, with eleven players leaving and twelve new signings, initial impressions from the past few weeks have given manager Roberto Pätzold great cause for optimism.
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SV Wehen Wiesbaden undoubtedly envisaged a different start to the new season. After two matchdays, the Hessen side currently sit bottom of the Liga 3 table. On Saturday 22 August (kick-off: 13:00 CEST), SVWW host the Werkself in the first round of the DFB Pokal at their home ground, the BRITA Arena. It was there, in this very competition a year ago, that the club almost pulled off a massive upset. The lowdown on our next opponents.
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