The 2025–26 season was the 122nd season in the history of Bayer 04 Leverkusen, and the club's 47th consecutive season in the top flight of German football. In addition to the domestic league, the club participated in this season's editions of the DFB-Pokal and the UEFA Champions League.
Season summary On 20 June 2025, attacking midfielder Florian Wirtz joined Premier League club Liverpool for a reported base fee of depending on the source £100 million (€117.5 million) or £107 million (€125 million), with £16 million (€18.8 million) or €25 million in bonuses. Wirtz became the sixth most expensive footballer of all time surpassing Enzo Fernández £106.8 million transfer to Chelsea in 2023. He also became the largest transfer in the history of the Bundesliga, replacing Ousmane Dembélé as record holder.
This season saw Dutchman Erik ten Hag become the new head coach of Bayer Leverkusen on 1 July, following Xabi Alonso's departure to Real Madrid.
On 1 September, Ten Hag was sacked by Bayer Leverkusen after two Bundesliga games and three total competitive games in charge, setting a new record for the fewest league matches in charge before being dismissed in Germany. On 8 September, former Denmark manager Kasper Hjulmand assumed head coach responsibilities.
Players First-team squad
Players out on loan
Transfers In PlayerTransferred fromFeeDateSource Hertha BSC€12,000,000 Brentford€10,000,000 BK Häcken€2,700,000 VfL Bochum€1,800,000 Paris Saint-GermainFree Liverpool€35,000,000 Albacete€5,000,000 PSV Eindhoven€35,000,000 Manchester CityUndisclosed RB Leipzig€2,000,000 AZ€10,000,000 Manchester CityLoan Sevilla€25,000,000Free Monaco€30,000,000 Al-QadsiahUndisclosed DjolibaUndisclosed Borussia MönchengladbachLoan Total expenditure: €168.5 million (excluding potential add-ons, bonuses and undisclosed figures)
Out PlayerTransferred toFeeDateSource Bayern Munich€800,000 VfL BochumLoan Liverpool€35,000,000 Liverpool€117,500,000 Atalanta€20,000,000 Luca Novodomsky TSV SolingenFree Sturm GrazLoan 1. FC NürnbergLoan PSV EindhovenLoan LorientLoan Sunderland€15,000,000 Monaco€2,000,000 Bournemouth€29,000,000 ArsenalLoan Werder BremenLoan Racing Santander€3,500,000 VfL BochumLoan AZLoan Manchester CityLoan recall PSV Eindhoven€5,000,000 Borussia MönchengladbachLoan VfL WolfsburgLoan Total income: €227.8 million (excluding potential add-ons, bonuses and undisclosed figures)
Pre-season and friendlies The club's pre-season tour to Rio saw them become the first Bundesliga club to stage a pre-season tour in South America, along with also being the first Bundesliga club to open and operate a football academy in Brazil, nicknamed the "Bayer 04 Football Academy São Paulo," led by former Brazilian and Leverkusen forward Paulo Sérgio.
Competitions Overall record
Bundesliga
League table
Results summary
Results by round
1 Matchday 17 (vs Hamburger SV) was postponed due to weather-related safety concerns.
Matches The league fixtures were released on 27 June 2025.
DFB-Pokal
The second round draw was held on 31 August 2025.
UEFA Champions League
League phase
The draw for the league phase was held on 28 August 2025.
Knockout phase
Knockout phase play-offs The draw for the knockout phase play-offs was held on 30 January 2026.
Round of 16 The draw for the round of 16 was held on 27 February 2026.
Statistics Appearances and goals
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Goalkeepers
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Defenders
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Midfielders
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Forwards
! colspan=14 style=background:#dcdcdc; text-align:center| Players transferred/loaned out during the season
Notes
References