Bayer Leverkusen: From infamous runners-up to champions

The club was founded in 1904 as a sports team for workers of the Farbenfabrik vormals Friedrich Bayer Co. Leverkusen, which later became today's pharma giant Bayer AG. The team played in the lower leagues until 1979 when they were promoted to the Bundesliga. Their first top-flight game was a 3-1 loss at Bayern Munich.

In a rare bit of silverware, Leverkusen won the UEFA Cup against Espanyol in 1988. Back then, the final was still played as a first and second leg. Leverkusen lost 3-0 in Barcelona and only equalized the tie in the second half at home, scoring three goals. The game went to penalties and Bayer triumphed 3-2 in the shootout, thanks to keeper Rüdiger Vollborn.

Five years after their success in the UEFA Cup, Leverkusen lifted their second trophy. In the 1993 German Cup final, goalscorer Ulf Kirsten (right) and co. beat the reserve team from Hertha Berlin, who sensationally made it to the final. Leverkusen won 1-0, but it was the start of a long dry spell.

At the end of the 1990s, Leverkusen became a real top team. General manager Reiner Calmund (right) hired coach Christoph Daum (left) and the club finished second in the Bundesliga three times (1997, 1998, 2000). But the taunts of "Vizekusen" ("Runner-upkusen" in German) or "Neverkusen" began to take hold.

Before the last Bundesliga matchday of the 1999/2000 season, Leverkusen had a three-point lead over Bayern Munich and only needed one more point at promoted Unterhaching to clinch the title. "Nobody can stop us," Daum said before the game. But an own goal by Michael Ballack (left) led to a 2-0 defeat. Bayern became champions instead.

In 2002, the "Neverkusen" effect was at its most extreme. First coach Klaus Toppmöller (third from left) saw his side let the Bundesliga title slip from their grasp in the last few matchdays and only finished second. Then Leverkusen also lost the German Cup final against Schalke. But the biggest game in the club's history, the third chance at a trophy in 2002, was still to come...

Leverkusen were also beaten in the 2002 Champions League final against Real Madrid in Glasgow. Zinedine Zidane (right) scored the winning goal with a famous volley. Leverkusen put up a respectable fight but lost 2-1. Shortly afterwards, five German national team players from Leverkusen also became runners-up at the World Cup. The national coach was Rudi Völler — a Leverkusen legend.

It took seven years for the Werkself to get another chance at a trophy. However, Leverkusen deserved to lose out to Werder Bremen in the 2009 German Cup final. The 1-0 win for Bremen sounds closer than the game turned out to be. Mesut Özil scored the winning goal. Current Leverkusen sporting director Simon Rolfes (center) also played.

In 2011, Leverkusen and coach Jupp Heynckes (right) set a then Bundesliga record of 24 unbeaten games to start the season. However, Bayer never topped the table and Borussia Dortmund ended up as champions. Heynckes and his assistant coach Peter Hermann (left) were then hired by Bayern Munich, with whom they won the treble in 2013.

The 2020 German Cup final was bleak across the board for the Werkself. Due to the COVID pandemic, there were no spectators in Berlin's Olympic Stadium. Leverkusen had no chance against Bayern Munich, mainly due to a poor first half, and lost 4-2. The wait for their first trophy since 1993 continued until this season's Bundesliga master class.