Bayer 04 Leverkusen - Germany's most family-friendly club

Founded in the early 20th century by a group of pharmaceutical company workers, Bundesliga mainstays and one-time winners of Europe's second major club prize, Bayer 04 Leverkusen pride themselves on being Germany's most family-friendly football club. Check out the unique atmosphere at the 30,000-capacity BayArena for yourself by purchasing Bayer 04 Leverkusen tickets on StubHub.

The football superstars arrive

The origins of Bayer 04 Leverkusen go back to 1904 when employees at pharmaceutical giant Friedrich Bayer and co. petitioned to form a sports club. Their football department went on to join Germany's lower leagues before achieving promotion to the top tier in 1951. The club nicknamed Die Werkself (The Company) missed out on a place in the newly-formed Bundesliga but eventually made it there in 1979, where they have remained ever since. Their biggest achievement came in 1988, when they overturned a 3-0 first-leg deficit against Espanyol to lift the second most prestigious cup in European football. This remarkable comeback helped to attract numerous star names, including Brazilians Paulo Sergio and Jorginho and the East German trio of Andreas Thom, Ulf Kirsten and Jens Melzig. World Cup winner Rudi Voller then joined the fold after Leverkusen's 1993 DFB-Pokal triumph, while the late '90s saw them welcome the likes of Michael Ballack, Lucio and Emerson. Bayer 04 Leverkusen tickets for both their home and away fixtures are available to buy on StubHub now.

So near, yet so far

Bayer 04 Leverkusen narrowly missed out on the Bundesliga title an agonising four times around the turn of the century, twice on the final day of the season where their fate rested in their own hands. They continued to assert their place in the German elite by reaching the 2004 Champions League final, becoming the first ever club to do so without winning their respective league, and beating Real Madrid 3-0 in the following season's campaign. Bayer 04 Leverkusen enjoyed seven consecutive top-five finishes from the 2009-10 season onwards and added to their list of near-misses in 2011, when they placed second behind champions Borussia Dortmund. With management in 2018 from their former forward Heiko Herrlich and captained by Olympic silver medalist Lars Bender, the club hoped to finally secure that elusive first title with a squad featuring numerous players with World Cup experience under their belt, including Croatia's Tin Jedvaj, Germany's Julian Brandt and Chile's Charles Aranguiz. You can both buy and sell Bayer 04 Leverkusen tickets on StubHub.