SV 07 Elversberg vs Bayer 04 Leverkusen

Bundesliga history is about to be made. SV Elversberg welcome Bayer Leverkusen for their first-ever top-flight match, opening the 2026/27 season after finishing as 2. Bundesliga runners-up last term. Leverkusen, meanwhile, are using the trip as the first real test for new coach Carles Martinez Novell, who is tasked with restoring the club's identity and pushing back toward the top of the table. Elversberg looked lively in preseason, hammering Strasbourg 5-2 and Lorient 4-1, with striker David Mokwa and winger Lukas Petkov among the standouts, though shaky defending on the counter remains a concern. Leverkusen arrive in similarly good shape, winning four of their last five friendlies, including a 4-0 rout of Genk, with new signing Afonso Moreira and striker Victor Boniface both catching the eye. The two sides have met just twice before, both in the DFB Cup: Elversberg won 4-3, before Leverkusen hit back with a 3-0 win fuelled by a Patrik Schick brace. Our prediction: 1-2