SV 07 Elversberg - Bayer Leverkusen live - Football

On 29 August 2026, the Waldstadion Kaiserlinde in Spiesen-Elversberg hosts a moment of footballing history: SV 07 Elversberg take on Bayer Leverkusen in the club's very first Bundesliga match, becoming the team from the smallest town - around 13,000 inhabitants - ever to compete in Germany's top flight. Elversberg arrive in confident mood after beating MSV Duisburg 3-1 in the DFB Pokal, while Leverkusen - now under new head coach Carles Martínez - crushed Wehen Wiesbaden 4-0 in their own cup opener. The two sides have met just twice before, both times in the DFB Pokal, with one win apiece.

Match Info: SV 07 Elversberg vs Bayer Leverkusen

The match takes place on Saturday, 29 August 2026 at 14:30 BST (13:30 UTC) at the Waldstadion Kaiserlinde in Spiesen-Elversberg, as part of Matchday 1 of the 2026/27 Bundesliga season.

Where to Watch SV 07 Elversberg vs Bayer Leverkusen?

In the United Kingdom, no dedicated broadcaster is listed for this fixture. Internationally, US viewers can stream the match on Peacock, while Canadian fans have the choice of DAZN, fuboTV Canada, or OneSoccer. Subscribers in Australia can follow the action on beIN Sports Connect Australia, and viewers in New Zealand on beIN Sports Connect New Zealand.

Across Latin America, Disney+ holds the rights in Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela, while Brazil has coverage on CazéTV. Asian fans can turn to DAZN in Japan and Coupang Play in South Korea, with beIN Sports Connect serving Malaysia and Singapore.

In Germany, the game is available both on satellite and cable TV via Sky Sport Bundesliga 4 and online through Sky Go Deutschland and WOW. Italian fans can watch on Sky Go Italia, while viewers in Spain have DAZN España. Turkey is covered by S Sport+, and Russia by Okko Sport.

Match between SV 07 Elversberg and Bayer Leverkusen - Preview

Few opening-day fixtures in Bundesliga history carry the weight of this one: a first-ever top-flight appearance for Elversberg, the fairy-tale club from a Saarland village, against a side that two years ago were the unbeaten Bundesliga champions.

Elversberg's rise is one of German football's most remarkable stories. Just four years ago they were competing in the Regionalliga Südwest, Germany's fourth tier. A succession of promotions under Horst Steffen and then Vincent Wagner brought them to the 2. Bundesliga, and on 17 May 2026 they clinched automatic promotion to the Bundesliga for the first time in their 119-year history, finishing runners-up behind Schalke 04. Wagner's team showed they mean business in the DFB Pokal round of 64 on 22 August: they edged past third-tier MSV Duisburg 3-1, with captain Luca Schnellbacher opening the scoring and substitute Francis Onyeka sealing the win with two goals in the closing minutes.

Leverkusen, meanwhile, are looking to rediscover the form that made them legendary under Xabi Alonso. A difficult 2025/26 campaign - sixth place in the Bundesliga, two managerial changes - led to the appointment of Carles Martínez, the Catalan coach who built his reputation at Toulouse. The new era began with a dominant 4-0 DFB Pokal win at Wehen Wiesbaden on 22 August, where Patrik Schick, Luis Vázquez, Nathan Tella and Cheick Kofane all got on the scoresheet.

Head-to-Head: SV 07 Elversberg vs Bayer Leverkusen

The head-to-head record between these two sides is as short as it is dramatic: just two meetings, both in the DFB Pokal, each producing a winner - with Elversberg memorably shocking Leverkusen in their first-ever encounter. Saturday marks the first competitive league meeting in the clubs' histories.

Here is a summary of their previous meetings:

• 30 July 2022 - DFB-Pokal 2022/23, Round 1 - SV Elversberg 4-3 Bayer Leverkusen
• 29 October 2024 - DFB-Pokal 2024/25, Round 2 - Bayer Leverkusen 3-0 SV Elversberg

SV 07 Elversberg - Recent Form

Elversberg arrive at their historic first Bundesliga match with genuine momentum, having gone 4 wins and 1 draw from their last 5 outings while scoring 14 goals.

Pre-season brought encouraging displays: a 5-2 thrashing of Strasbourg in Haguenau, a 4-1 home win over FC Lorient, and a 1-0 victory against NEC Nijmegen. A 1-1 draw with Real Mallorca was the one occasion they failed to find a winner. When competitive action arrived, Wagner's side delivered: trailing 1-1 at Duisburg in the DFB Pokal, they turned the tie around thanks to two late goals from substitute Onyeka - in the 89th and 90+2nd minutes - to win 3-1. The result demonstrated both their resilience and their depth in attack.

Elversberg's greatest strength is their collective identity and pressing intensity - the same qualities that took them from the fourth tier to the Bundesliga in four seasons. The question at this level is whether that approach can translate against opponents of a different calibre entirely.

Bayer Leverkusen - Recent Form

Leverkusen head into their first Bundesliga match of the season in good shape, having won their DFB Pokal opener convincingly and recording 4 wins from their last 5 matches across all competitions.

Pre-season offered a promising picture under Martínez: wins over RW Essen (3-0), Genk (4-0), Sevilla (2-1) and Newcastle United (2-1) sandwiched a 1-2 defeat against Nottingham Forest. The DFB Pokal first round on 22 August provided the sterner test - Wehen Wiesbaden held firm until first-half stoppage time, but Leverkusen's class told after the break as Schick, Vázquez, Tella and Kofane made it 4-0. Ibrahim Maza and Malik Tillman were particularly sharp throughout, suggesting that Martínez's pressing game is already taking shape.

After three coaching changes in three years, Leverkusen supporters need stability - and Martínez, contracted until June 2028, appears determined to provide it. Opening the campaign away from home against a newly promoted, passionate opponent is not the easiest of assignments, but the 4-0 in Wiesbaden offered a reassuring first look at the Werkself under their new manager.

Facts and Statistics

SV 07 Elversberg and Bayer Leverkusen represent one of the most striking contrasts in this season's Bundesliga: a club with pharmaceutical-industry backing and decades of top-flight experience against a side that was playing fourth-division football as recently as 2022. Their history as opponents is brief, but the rivalry is already loaded with memorable moments.

• Elversberg are the 59th club to play in Bundesliga history and come from the smallest town - Spiesen-Elversberg, population approximately 13,000 - ever to host top-flight German football.
• In their only DFB Pokal victory over Leverkusen, in July 2022, Elversberg were a third-division side and won 4-3 - one of the biggest cup upsets in Germany that season.
• Leverkusen's new head coach Carles Martínez is the third person to manage the club in the space of a single calendar year, following Erik ten Hag and Kasper Hjulmand.
• Elversberg completed their rise from Germany's fourth tier to the Bundesliga in just 4 seasons, one of the fastest climbs the modern game has seen.
• Bayer Leverkusen finished 6th in the Bundesliga in 2025/26, their lowest league position since 2019/20, and are aiming to return to the top four for a Champions League place this season.