“Vanessa has demonstrated her quality and efficiency in finishing at an impressive rate over several years. She has also played in all league games in the past two seasons,” said Bayer 04 Women sporting director Achim Feifel. “At 23, she still has great development potential and can be deployed in all positions in attack. That makes her a very good fit for our philosophy.”
Born in Nuremberg, Fudalla has scored 69 goals in 107 competitive matches for Leipzig since 2020. She was promoted to the Bundesliga with the club in 2023 as top scorer in the second division (20 goals). She has scored 10 goals in each of the past two seasons. The 23-year-old also has one goal in four caps for Germany’s U23s.
“After five years at Leipzig, it's time for me to take on a new challenge. Leverkusen has always been a very attractive club for me,” said Fudalla. “When the people in charge got in touch, I didn't have to think twice. The development of the past season in particular shows that a lot is possible here. I would like to play a part in this and strengthen the team with my qualities.”
Traveling to North America for the World Cup this summer to see your favorite Bayer 04 players? Here’s a quick cheat sheet with thumbnail portraits and insider tips for each city from a local expert, so you can make the most of your visit and activities beyond the game!
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A fresh look for the BayArena: The Bayer 04 stadium will have new seating in the form of folding seats for the 2026/27 campaign that will ensure significantly improved seating comfort and simplified movement within the rows of seats. As part of routine replacement after 17 years, fans of the Werkself were able to purchase the existing seats, used to witness the first German league title in the club's history. In addition, a large proportion of the seats will be donated to charitable projects, primarily in the local region. Bayer 04 fans can look forward to new, functional folding seats for the season opener at the beginning of August - still in the club colours of black and red, of course. A glimpse at the BayArena during the refurbishment.
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On Monday evening, 8 June, around 250 people came to the Bürgerhaus Baumberg at the invitation of Bayer 04 to find out details of the new plans for the campus on Alfred-Nobel-Straße at an information event. More compact, greener and with many advantages for Monheim am Rhein - those are the aims. There were lively discussions for around three hours and some misunderstandings were cleared up.
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Werkself player Montrell Culbreath and Bayer 04 loanee Francis Onyeka are part of Germany's final squad for the U19 European Championships this summer. The tournament is in Wales from 24 June to 12 July.
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When Malik Tillman arrived at Bayer 04 Leverkusen from PSV Eindhoven last summer, he did more than just add attacking midfield strength to the team — he reconnected the club with a unique and understated American lineage that stretches back more than three decades.
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