Youth teams review 2025

Last-minute ecstasy, huge disappointment and a historic performance on the European stage - 2025 was a real emotional roller coaster, especially for the U19s. A rousing run in the knockout phase secured the team a place in the final of the German championships, where they lost by the narrowest of margins. Despite the departure of several key players, the young Werkself team quickly regained their usual strength and qualified for the knockout rounds in the UEFA Youth League for the first time at the end of the year. In 2025, youngsters Jeremiah Mensah and Montrell Culbreath made their debuts in the Bundesliga, the DFB Pokal and the UEFA Champions League. The other youth teams also contributed great performances and a number of trophies to the collective Black and Red success, while the successful Bayer 04 Future Kids project broke new ground. Read on for the 2025 review of the youth teams.

January: Six youth players on international duty

The new year began with a highlight for six Leverkusen youth players: Ben Hawighorst, Jeremiah Mensah and Nebe Domnic travelled to Spain for the Germany U17 squad, as did Elia Datené and Ivan Massek with the U16s, for sessions on the Spanish Mediterranean coast. Andrea Natali was in action for Italy U19s.

The other junior teams had a successful start to the new year in top quality tournaments. The Black and Reds showed particular class at the prestigious Blaustein Indoor Cup: Both the U14s and U13s plus the U11s finished runners-up after beating high-calibre opponents such as Schalke 04, VfB Stuttgart and Red Bull Salzburg. Elias Ly from the Leverkusen U14 team was named best player and U11 goalkeeper Rune Kilberth best goalkeeper of the tournament.

February: U19s beat champions of Germany – U14 double in Munich

The U19s won two of their first four games in February to kick off the main round of League A. These included a convincing 4:0 against the reigning German U19 champions, TSG Hoffenheim. Alejo Sarco, who signed for Bayer 04 in the winter transfer window, made his debut against Hoffenheim and helped striker Artem Stepanov secure a brace. "It was a good and, above all, focused performance from the first to the last minute," said assistant coach Gilbert Gorges, who replaced the suspended Sergi Runge. The U17s coached by Kevin Brok also made a good start in Group G of League B thanks to a brace from Ivan Massek in a 3-0 win at TSV Meerbusch. In addition, some of last year's U17 players were present at the TSV Bayer 04 youth awards and spoke on stage about their strong season, which took them to the final of the German championships.

The younger youth teams also reported impressive successes: Head coach Benjamin Adam's U16s turned around a 2-0 deficit in less than a quarter of an hour to win 3-2 against FC Rheinsüd Köln in the league opener. The U14s defeated both of Munich's top teams, 1860 with 5:1 and FC Bayern with 4:3.

March: U16s win derby encounter - U11s lift first trophy

Once again, the U16s continued their winning run in March. With a commanding 3-1 victory in the derby against previous league leaders FC Köln, the Bayer 04 youngsters knocked the cathedral city team off top spot and took 13 points from their first five league games. A week later, the Adam lads won beat Panathinaikos in Group A of the AL ABTAL CUP. "These European games are great for the lads' development," said Adam.

However, the first trophy of the year was won by the U11s at the Paderborn Lippesee Cup - and they showed no nerves. After beating Borussia Mönchengladbach, the Black and Reds beat RB Leipzig and Arminia Bielefeld on penalties to secure the tournament victory. The U14s also achieved success at the prestigious Algarve Cup in Portugal. As the only German participant, the Black and Reds defeated Benfica and SC Braga. The icing on the cake of a golden March for the Bayer 04 youngsters was the U19s, who beat league leaders VfL Bochum 2-1 thanks to a last-minute goal from Montrell Culbreath to secure a slot in the last 16 of the DFB Youth League.Sergi Runge's team previously beat Hamburg SV 1-0 despite being a man down for 80 minutes.

April: U19 win Pokal derby – U8s meet Benjamin Henrichs

April got off to a trophy-laden start. The U13s won their tournament in Culemburg in the Netherlands, beating top teams such as FC Copenhagen and RB Leipzig. And the U11s also did something for the Black and Red trophy cabinet in Bürstadt, Hessen, after beating Bayern Munich and TSG Hoffenheim.

While the U17s and U16s fought their way to the top of their respective leagues after great runs, the U19s hosted FC Köln in the quarter-finals of the association cup. As the score was 1-1 after 120 minutes, the game went to a penalty shoot-out, where Bayer 04 keeper Moritz Schrief was the match winner with two penalty kicks saved, sending the young Werkself team through to the semi-finals. Just over a week later, the next big match awaited Sergi Runge's team - and the Round of 16 match in the DFB Youth League against Mainz 05 also turned into a real thriller. Artem Stepanov made it 1-0 in extra time but Mainz levelled. With the very last action of the match, Kerim Alajbegovic scored Bayer 04's much-celebrated winner to advance to the quarter-finals.

An unforgettable experience awaited the U8s at the competition in Leipzig: Former Werkself player and current RB Leipzig star Benjamin Henrichs visited the youngest Bayer 04 players and was reminded of his own time under the Cross. "It's amazing how quickly time flies. At the same time, I'm grateful I know how I started and that I had a dream that I'm still living today," said Henrichs afterwards. Afterwards, the U8 players were able to watch Leipzig's Bundesliga match against TSG Hoffenheim (3-1) at the Red Bull Arena.

 

May: Thrilling final in front of 24,000 fans at the BayArena

There were also additions to the Black and Red trophy cabinet in May: With just five matchdays to go, the U14s secured the championship in the Regional League West. Meanwhile, the U11s lifted the trophy at a tournament in Griesheim near Darmstadt after beating VfB Stuttgart and Mainz.

Winning the FVM Pokal after an impressive 3-1 win against Alemannia Aachen was the final highlight of an U19 season finale that was hard to beat in terms of drama: The Bayer 04 youngsters first held their nerve in the quarter-finals of the German championships beating Schalke 04 on penalties. In the semi-final, Runge's team equalised in stoppage time against Bayern Munich in front of 2,500 spectators and turned around a deficit in extra time to win with goals from Francis Onyeka and Aaron Heard late on. Despite putting up a great fight, the Black and Reds then narrowly lost 4-3 against FC Köln in the final in front of 24,250 fans at the BayArena. Head coach Sergi Runge said after the defeat: "It's always disappointing when you lose a final. It will take a few days to get over it. But after that we can be proud of a great season." In the meantime, the team had to do without Jeremiah Mensah, Ben Hawighorst and Nebe Domnic, who were playing in the U17 European Championships in Albania.

 

June: U17 Women’s team win double

The Women’s U17s were able to celebrate twice in June: First, a 1-0 win in the final derby against FC Köln secured them the FVM Pokal. Just over a week later, the team led by coach Lars Heinrichs won the double with the championship title in the Regional League West. "The two trophies are confirmation of our good work across all age groups," said a delighted Heinrichs afterwards. The U16s just missed out on winning the Middle Rhine League. At the end of an impressive campaign, Benjamin Adam's team finished in a very good second place - and that in a competition primarily involving U17 teams.

International tournaments around the world awaited for all the U8 to U15 teams. While the U15s finished third at the MIC Football Tournament in Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, against clubs from the USA, Mexico and Panama, the youngest Leverkusen players won the title in Gummersbach, unbeaten and after defeating Ajax and FC Köln. "The lads have developed really well over the course of the season and this time earned the tournament win with a lot of enthusiasm," declared a proud coach Mark Fuldauer.

There have also already been some personnel changes in the youth programme: Adam welcomed a new assistant coach to the U16s in the form of Sören Schuschke. His predecessor Albert Bunjaku moved to the U17s as assistant coach, as did Adrian Grümer (previously U19). The U19s have a new goalkeeping coach in Marco Kostmann and an additional fitness coach in Oscar Balaguer Cabeza.

July: Turay and Buck arrive – Alajbegovic, Stepanov and Onyeka leave

Bayer 04 loaned out several top players from the strong U19 squad of the previous season before the start of the preseason to further their footballing development. In addition to Francis Onyeka, who will be playing for VfL Bochum this season, Artem Stepanov at FC Nürnberg can benefit from the expertise of the local coach and former star striker Miroslav Klose. 17-year-old Kerim Alajbegovic made a permanent move to Red Bull Salzburg but Bayer 04 did secure a buy-back option for the top talent. "Kerim Alajbegovic will now take the next important steps in his professional career in Austria. We have a lot of confidence in him and will closely follow his development," said managing director sport Simon Rolfes.

Replacements for the departed players were not long in coming: In addition to left-back Osman Turay, the vice-captain of the Germany U17s from Schalke 04, striker Dustin Buck from FC Augsburg also joined the U19s under the Cross. "If he continues in the current manner, Dustin has every opportunity of moving up to the Bayer 04 first team squad in the future," said Bayer 04 director of football Kim Falkenberg, explaining the transfer. Shortly before the start of the season, former Werkself player Hüzeyfe Doğan completed the team supporting U19 head coach Sergi Runge as assistant coach.

August: "Highlight of the preseason" - U16s win tournament

The U16s, who were in great early form, won their first trophy of the new season in Beusichem in the Netherlands. At the two-day BZS Trophy tournament, the team left top European teams Slavia Prague and KRC Genk in their wake. "The lads put in a cohesive, committed team performance," said a satisfied Benjamin Adam about "the highlight of our preseason." With Sören Schuschke as the new assistant coach, the U16s are also starting a new competition. In the WDFV U16 Youth Cup, the young Werkself team will face U16 teams from all twelve other performance centres in the region. Adam: "It's an exciting and attractive competition that represents a good development for youth football and the players."

The U19s copied the U16s' successful league opener and also advanced to the second round of the DFB Pokal with a commanding 6-0 win over SV 07 Elversberg. The U17s also won at the start of the season, while the U15s once again lifted a trophy unbeaten at the tournament in 's-Heerenberg in the Netherlands. Leverkusen's Luis Parpart was also voted best player, while Mike Fahrenkamp earned the title of top scorer.

September: New competitions, new coaches

Both the junior teams from the U12s to U15s and the junior women's teams between the U12s and the U19s all started the new season - and they did well. With the exception of one draw, there were only wins for the Bayer 04 youngsters. The U14s, U13s and U12s, like the U16s, competed in new competitions against other performance centres in the region. The U13s and U12s also had to get used to a new game mode in the first half of the season: In the so-called twin games, two games are played simultaneously several times in a row with four to eight players per team on half-sized pitches.

With the appointment of Kasper Hjulmand as head coach of the Werkself, there some were changes to the youth team coaching set-up. U19 coach Sergi Runge was appointed to the first team coaching staff. He was succeeded at U19 level by former U17 coach Kevin Brok, while Benjamin Adam moved from the U16s to the U17s. His former assistant coach Sören Schuschke took over on an interim basis before Andreas Bona from the Borussia Dortmund U15s to become the new U16 head coach a few weeks later.

October: Mensah debuts in Pokal and UCL - expansion of Bayer 04-Future Kids

Further trophies in the new season were won by the U16 and U13 juniors, who defeated Vorwärts Spoho and FC Köln in their finals in winning the district cup. Meanwhile, the U19s were able to show what they could do on the European stage in the UEFA Youth League and two victories against FC Copenhagen (2-0) and PSV Eindhoven (3-2) were followed by a 2-2 draw against Paris Saint-Germain.

However, October was a very special month for one U19 player: Jeremiah Mensah not only made his senior debut in the DFB Pokal against SG Sonnenhof Großaspach (4-0), but he also made his first appearance in the Champions League as the fourth-youngest Werkself player in this competition against PSG (2-7). At the end of the month, he was once again called up to the the Germany U17 squad for the World Cup in Qatar alongside Ben Hawighorst, Nebe Domnic and Osman Turay .

After a successful year, the Bayer 04 Future Kids project was also expanded. The existing locations at the Kurtekotten Performance Centre, in Zündorf and Eschweiler will be joined by Büderich and Wuppertal for the 2026/27 season, where the first introductory training sessions have already taken place and preparations are in full swing. The promising first twelve months have demonstrated to Simon Rolfes, managing director sport at Bayer 04: "We will consistently continue along this innovative path [...] in order to discover and train the best players in these new regions and retain them at Bayer 04 at an early stage." The project aims to sustainably develop young talent between the U8 and U10 levels by, among other things, reducing travelling distances and increasing the quality of training on site.

November: U17 qualify for League A, U16s travel to Egypt

While the aforementioned quartet of youngsters reached the Round of 32 at the U17 World Cup in Qatar thanks in part to a Mensah brace, the exit came with a very narrow defeat against Burkino Faso (0-1). Not far from the desert state, the U16s also made memories to last a lifetime at the Al Ahly International Cup in Egypt. In addition to excursions to the pyramids and camel rides, Andreas Bona's team faced high-calibre opponents from South Africa, Brazil and Ghana.

Meanwhile, Benjamin Adam's U17s secured their place in League A of the main round of the U17 DFB Youth League for the first time after a strong group stage following a 2:1 win at runners-up MSV Duisburg - the team had been in League B in the first edition of the competition last season. The U15s topped the Regional League West table with a 3-0 win over Fortuna Düsseldorf and held on to this position until the winter break. The U13s did the same with just one defeat in the Leistungsstaffel West, a league with mainly junior teams.

December: U19s progress in Youth League - Culbreath debuts and scores in big match

The U14s were in a festive mood early on after winning the "Rave + Bösch Cup" indoor tournament in Dorum near Bremerhaven. After wins against top European teams such as RB Leipzig, Aalborg BK and Liverpool, the Black and Reds deservedly came out on top - with Justin Safenreider and Malte Bohlen in the team of the tournament.

There was also a pre-Christmas treat for the U19s: After the U17s, Kevin Brok's team also qualified for League A of the main round - and in style. The final score was 11-1 against TSV Schott Mainz followed the next weekend by an 8-1 win against FSV Frankfurt. At the end of the year, the Bayer 04's youngsters then achieved something historic: For the first time in the club's history, the U19s qualified for the knockout round of the UEFA Youth League thanks to a 2-1 win against Newcastle United. "It's incredible, the first time this has happened. I'm so happy for the lads and the staff," said a happy Kevin Brok after the game. "It's wonderful," said a delighted Jefta Bresser, head of the Performance Centre at Bayer 04, who also has high expectations for the coming year: "Our goal now is to achieve that every year."

Montrell Culbreath provided the very last highlight of 2025 from a youth perspective - somewhat unexpectedly - four days before Christmas Eve. The 18-year-old striker from the U19s was brought on in the closing stages of the first team top match at RB Leipzig and he promptly scored in added time after a superb solo run to make it 3-1. A goal on his professional debut - and a great end to a special year for the youngster!

The first opportunity for Culbreath's U19s to prove themselves in the new year will be at the two-day Mercedes-Benz Junior Cup 2026 in Sindelfingen on 10 and 11 January 2026, where opponents such as Bayern Munich, FC São Paulo and FC Basel await the Black and Reds. Kevin Brok's team will continue in League A of the DFB Youth League against TSG Hoffenheim and 1. FC Union Berlin, among others. Also in League A, just one age group below, the U17s will face VfB Stuttgart and FC Augsburg. On the European stage in the knockout phase of the UEFA Youth League, the U19s will face Villarreal away from home at the beginning of February.