City Ground | 2026 pre-season friendly | Wednesday, August 12 | 7:45pm BST
In what is both sides penultimate pre-season friendlies before the new season gets underway, BetVictor News delivers the in-depth Forest vs Leverkusen preview – including the score prediction, overall H2H record, team news, latest odds, the best betting angles and more.
- Forest vs Leverkusen prediction: Tricky Trees get back to winning ways
- Bet on pre-season football with BetVictor
Forest Vs Leverkusen Preview
Having won three of their opening four friendlies, Nottingham Forest have lost their last three on the bounce to Sporting Lisbon, Udinese and Barcelona. Despite that, the Forest vs Leverkusen odds favour a home win.
With a new era set to begin under the guidance of Oliver Glasner, the Tricky Trees will be aiming to restore that winning feeling before their Premier League opener against Leeds. Before they face Daniel Farke’s charges, the Reds will round off pre-season with a home game against Brest on August 16.
As for the Bundesliga giants, they have endured an extremely handsome summer period on the pitch. New head coach Carles Martínez Novell has won all five off-season matches by an aggregate score of 19-2. The most recent win came against LaLiga side Sevilla on August 8.
Forest Vs Leverkusen H2H Record
As per a number of reports, this will be the first ever meeting between Nottingham Forest and Bayer Leverkusen. The two sides have never crossed paths in a friendly or European competition.
Forest Vs Leverkusen Team News
Hoping to defy the Premier League odds this season – similar to the 2024-25 campaign – expect Nottingham Forest to name their strongest starting XI ahead of the Brest friendly and seasonal opener against Leeds. That means the likes of Chris Wood, Nikola Milenkovic and Morgan Gibbs-White should all feature from the off.
As for Bayer Leverkusen, they will likely adopt the same approach. However, they will have to do so without the services of injured quartet Kennet Eichhorn, Eliesse Ben Seghir, Nathan Tella and Montrell Culbreath.
Forest’s pre-season results:
- Barcelona 1-0 Forest
- Udinese 1-0 Forest
- Sporting 4-1 Forest
- Portimonense 1-2 Forest
- Forest 1-1 Vitoria
- Forest 3-0 Blackburn
- Notts County 0-2 Forest
Leverkusen’s pre-season results:
- Leverkusen 2-1 Sevilla
- Leverkusen 3-0 Essen
- Leverkusen 4-0 Genk
- Kickers Offenbach 1-3 Leverkusen
- SF Baumberg 0-7 Leverkusen
Forest Vs Leverkusen Predicted Lineups
Nottingham Forest predicted lineup:
Sels; Aina, Milenkovic, Murillo, N Williams; Sangare, McAtee; Ndoye, Gibbs-White, Sa; Wood
Bayer Leverkusen predicted lineup:
Flekken; Arthur, Bade, Tapsoba, Gutierrez; Andrich, Palacios, A Garcia; Tillman; Moreira, Kofane
How To Watch Forest Vs Leverkusen
Nottingham Forest vs Bayer Leverkusen will not be shown on traditional TV channels in the UK. Instead, supporters are able to tune in via a live stream (Forest TV). Please note, subscription fees will apply.
Forest Vs Leverkusen Betting Angles
Key Match Stats
- This will be the first ever meeting between the two clubs.
- Forest stats – The Tricky Trees have lost their last three friendly clashes.
- Leverkusen stats – Die Schwarzroten have won all five of their pre-season matches this summer
Top Betting Angles for Forest vs Leverkusen
- Over 3.5 goals (6/4)
- BTTS – Yes (40/85)
- Forest win and BTTS – (29/10)
Forest Vs Leverkusen Prediction
Although Nottingham Forest lost to Sporting, Udinese and Barcelona, we are predicting a win for Oliver Glasner’s side tonight. The Tricky Trees are set to take the game to Bayer Leverkusen and with the German side missing a number of key players, we fancy the Premier League side to prevail.
Prediction: Forest 3-1 Leverkusen
If you intend to bet on Forest vs Leverkusen then please take the time to read through BetVictor’s safe and responsible gambling page which will provide good advice on how to stay in control when betting on football.
Any betting decisions should be made responsibly and there are no guarantees when it comes to match outcomes. All odds correct as of 11am on August 12, 2026 and are subject to change.
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