Discover Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen – from the Factory XI to unbeaten champions
Some clubs tell their story mainly through the trophies they have won. For a long time, Leverkusen’s story was shaped just as strongly by the prizes that slipped away. This red-and-black club experienced European triumphs, painful final defeats and years of being told that something would always go wrong when it mattered most.
That is what made its eventual breakthrough so powerful. Bayer 04 did more than win a competition. It changed the way the football world talked about the club.
1904: a story that began with factory workers
The club’s roots lie with employees of the Bayer company who wanted a sports association of their own. It was founded on 1 July 1904, with the football section following in 1907. The number in the club’s name therefore marks the foundation of the wider association, rather than its first football match.
The journey to the top was gradual. When the Bundesliga began in 1963, Leverkusen was not among its founding members. Promotion came in 1979. The club now associated with major European nights first had to earn its place on the national stage.
The Werkself: an identity to be proud of
“Die Werkself” translates roughly as “the Factory XI”. It describes a relationship that makes Leverkusen distinctive: Bayer is not simply a sponsor’s name on the shirt, but part of the club’s origins.
Opposition supporters have often used that corporate connection as a target for criticism. For home fans, however, it is also a source of tradition. Behind the company name are generations of people who worked locally, watched the team and passed their support down through their families. Leverkusen’s industrial background is something the club embraces.
1988: a European final rescued from the brink
Leverkusen’s first major trophy arrived in the 1988 UEFA Cup. The final was then played over two legs, and Bayer returned from the opening match against Espanyol with a 3–0 deficit.
The second leg produced a remarkable turnaround. Goals from Tita, Falko Götz and Cha Bum-kun levelled the aggregate score before Leverkusen prevailed in the penalty shootout.
This was a breakthrough far beyond a single evening. A club previously outside Europe’s main spotlight had won a major continental competition. Its supporters also gained an unforgettable lesson: even a three-goal deficit did not necessarily mean the story was over.
Ulf Kirsten and cup glory in Berlin
Another landmark came in 1993, when Leverkusen beat Hertha Berlin’s reserve team 1–0 in the German Cup final. Ulf Kirsten scored the winning header from a cross delivered by Czech midfielder Pavel Hapal.
Kirsten became one of the defining figures in the club’s history. A three-time Bundesliga top scorer, he excelled through movement, determination and an instinct for where the ball would arrive. He did not need an elaborate finish to decide a match. His ability to find space inside the penalty area made him a formidable striker and a lasting favourite with supporters.
“Neverkusen”: when finishing second became a label
Around the turn of the millennium, Leverkusen repeatedly came close to winning the league. Being within touching distance only made the disappointments harder to bear.
In 2000, a draw at Unterhaching on the final day would have secured the championship. Instead, Bayer lost 2–0 and Bayern Munich took the title. Michael Ballack’s own goal became one of the painful images associated with that afternoon.
The labels “Vizekusen” and “Neverkusen” reduced the club to a cruel stereotype: good enough to challenge, but never quite able to finish the job. It was an unfairly narrow view of a strong team, yet football nicknames can be remarkably difficult to escape.
2002: three opportunities, three runners-up finishes
The 2001/02 campaign remains one of European football’s most extraordinary near misses. Leverkusen challenged for the Bundesliga, reached the German Cup final and made it all the way to the Champions League final.
It finished second in all three competitions. Dortmund won the league, Schalke took the domestic cup with a 4–2 victory and Real Madrid prevailed 2–1 in Glasgow.
Zinédine Zidane’s decisive volley became one of the Champions League’s most celebrated goals. For Leverkusen supporters, however, it carries a different meaning: a reminder of the night their club came within reach of Europe’s greatest prize.
Remembering that side only for its defeats would miss the point. It eliminated both Liverpool and Manchester United on the way to the final. Leverkusen had earned its place among the best.
Ballack, Schneider and a team with real character
Michael Ballack, Bernd Schneider, Zé Roberto and Lúcio gave the team around 2002 a compelling blend of strength, technique and ambition.
Ballack supplied a major goal threat from midfield, Schneider brought exceptional touch and control, and Lúcio could surge forward from defence with an attacker’s conviction. It was the Brazilian who scored the decisive goal in the 4–2 home victory over Liverpool in the Champions League quarter-finals.
That generation showed how a team could capture attention through its football. Leverkusen did not need the most famous badge to become a club that neutral supporters wanted to watch.
2024: champions without a league defeat
Under Xabi Alonso, the 2023/24 season transformed the club’s reputation. Leverkusen won its first Bundesliga title and became the first team to complete an entire season in the competition without losing.
The record was outstanding: 28 wins, six draws and 90 points.
There was no final-day collapse. A 5–0 home victory over Werder Bremen secured the championship with five matches remaining. After so many painful near misses, the breakthrough was emphatic.
Fifty-one unbeaten matches and a historic double
Leverkusen’s resilience extended beyond the Bundesliga. The team went 51 competitive matches without defeat before Atalanta ended the run in the Europa League final. Ademola Lookman scored all three goals in a 3–0 victory.
This time, a painful final did not define the season. A few days later, Bayer beat Kaiserslautern 1–0 in the German Cup final through a Granit Xhaka strike.
The league championship and domestic cup secured a historic double. The contrast with 2002 could hardly have been greater: losing one trophy no longer overshadowed everything the team had achieved.
The Czech connection and Patrik Schick’s unforgettable night
Leverkusen holds particular appeal for Czech supporters. Pavel Hapal and Michal Kadlec both represented the club, while Patrik Schick, Adam Hložek and Matěj Kovář were part of the remarkable 2023/24 squad.
Schick delivered one of that season’s most dramatic performances. In the home leg of the Europa League round of 16 against Qarabağ, Bayer fell 2–0 behind. After the team pulled one back, Schick scored twice in stoppage time to complete a 3–2 comeback and secure progress.
Few matches captured that Leverkusen side more clearly. Until the referee blew the final whistle, the outcome was still open.
The Cologne derby: neighbours with plenty at stake
Leverkusen’s most personal local rivalry is with 1. FC Köln. The proximity of the two cities gives their meetings an edge that goes well beyond league positions.
Cologne brings its big-city identity and substantial support. Leverkusen is the smaller industrial neighbour that has established a powerful footballing presence of its own. For Bayer fans, the derby offers an opportunity to demonstrate that the size of a city does not determine what happens on the pitch.
Matches against Borussia Mönchengladbach also carry regional significance. Meetings with Cologne, however, are among those whose results remain part of local conversation long after matchday.
The goal that went through a hole in the net
Leverkusen was involved in one of the Bundesliga’s strangest controversies in 2013. Stefan Kießling headed wide against Hoffenheim, but the ball entered the goal through a hole in the side netting. The referee awarded a goal.
Bayer won 2–1, and the result stood despite Hoffenheim’s protest.
The “ghost goal” remains a striking example of the extraordinary situations football could produce before goal-line technology arrived in the Bundesliga. For Hoffenheim it was a serious injustice; for the competition’s history, it became an incident that would be difficult to believe without the footage.
BayArena: top-level football at close range
Leverkusen’s home is the BayArena, with a capacity of 30,210. Its appeal lies in its compact layout and proximity to the pitch. Supporters can follow the movement, physical contests and pace of the game from stands that keep the action close.
It offers a different experience from watching high above the field in a vast stadium. Football here feels immediate. The red-and-black crowd, the home supporters’ section and a European night under the lights can create an intensity that a capacity figure alone cannot explain.
Why experience Leverkusen live?
A visit to Bayer 04 is about more than remembering one exceptional season. The attraction lies in the whole story: industrial roots, outstanding players, European comebacks and the determination to keep trying after disappointment.
And if the club’s history offers one practical piece of advice for a visit, it is this: stay until the final whistle. Some of Leverkusen’s finest stories have been written in the minutes when others thought the match was already over.
