LEVERKUSEN, Germany (Interstat) — A red-hot Köln U17 side, fresh off an eight-goal victory, will face a Bayer Leverkusen U17 team favored by statistical models when the young rivals open the U17 Bundesliga season Thursday at Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion.

The match, scheduled for Feb. 19, 2026, is the Week 1 fixture for both clubs in Germany’s top U17 division. It pits two teams entering with starkly different recent results.

Köln arrives with formidable momentum, having demolished Frankfurt U17 8-0 in its last outing on Sept. 20, 2025. That rout capped a dominant four-game stretch to close its previous campaign, which included three consecutive clean-sheet wins. Köln outscored opponents 17-1 across those final matches.

In contrast, Leverkusen is looking to rebound from a 3-2 away defeat to MSV Duisburg U17 on that same September date. Prior to that loss, Leverkusen had shown its own attacking prowess with a 4-0 win over Wuppertaler and a 3-0 victory against Kickers Offenbach.

Despite the contrasting form, advanced metrics heavily favor the home side. Interstat’s ELO rating system gives Bayer Leverkusen U17 a 78% probability of winning the contest. The organization’s game simulator predicts a 2-1 victory for Leverkusen.

The setting adds to the intrigue, as Leverkusen will host at the Ulrich-Haberland-Stadion, a venue familiar to the first-team squad.

Köln’s schedule shows a concurrent fixture against Deutz U17 also listed for Feb. 19, 2026, suggesting a possible scheduling conflict or error in the provided data. Leverkusen’s upcoming slate also lists two simultaneous away games for that date, at Deutz U17 and at Sportfreunde Siegen U17, indicating similar discrepancies.

Thursday’s marquee matchup, however, is clearly set. It offers Köln’s potent attack, which has averaged 4.25 goals over its last four games, a chance to defy the projections against a Leverkusen side eager to start its season with a statement win at home.