An apparatus (1) for the sterilization of plastics material containers (10), and in particular of plastics material pre-forms (10), with a conveying device (2) which conveys the plastics material containers (10) along a pre-set conveying path, with at least one stressing device (4) which acts upon an external surface of the plastics material containers to be sterilized with a flowable medium. According to the invention the stressing device is arranged in such a way that it acts upon a pre-set area of the plastics material containers (10)—situated below an aperture of the plastics material pre-forms—with the sterilization medium.
