Mathys Henri Tel (born 27 April 2005) is a French professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who plays as a forward for club Tottenham Hotspur.

Club career

Rennes

A former youth academy player of Paris FC, Tel joined

Rennes Rennes (; ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Resnn''; ) is a city in the east of Brittany in Northwestern France at the confluence of the rivers Ille and Vilaine. Rennes is the prefecture of the Brittany (administrative region), Brittany Regions of F ...

in 2020. He made his professional debut on 15 August 2021 in a 1–1 league draw against Brest. His debut at 16 years and 110 days made him the youngest player to appear in an official match for Rennes, a record which was previously held by Eduardo Camavinga.

Bayern Munich

2022–23: Debut season

On 26 July 2022, Tel signed for

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

club Bayern Munich on a four-year contract. The transfer fee paid to Rennes was of €28.5 million, bonuses included. On 31 August 2022, he scored his first goal in a 5–0 win over

Viktoria Köln Viktoria usually refers to Viktoria, a name which is the same as Victoria (name), but may also refer to: Places * FK Viktoria Stadion, stadium of Viktoria Žižkov * Viktoria-Luise-Platz, building in Berlin * Viktoriastadt, now known as Victo ...

in the

DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal (), also known as the German Cup in English language, English, is a German knockout Association football, football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competiti ...

, to become the youngest goalscorer for the club in a competitive match, aged 17 years and 126 days. He scored his first Bundesliga goal in a 2–2 draw against

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabian German, Swabian: ; Alemannic German, Alemannic: ; Italian language, Italian: ; ) is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, largest city of the States of Germany, German state of ...

on 10 September 2022, to be the youngest scorer for the club in that competition.

2023–24 season

On 2 September 2023, he scored a late winner in a 2–1 away victory over

Borussia Mönchengladbach Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e.V. Mönchengladbach, better known as Borussia Mönchengladbach () and colloquially known as just Gladbach, is a professional Association football, football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-W ...

, which ended a five-match winless streak against them. On 20 September, he scored his first Champions League goal in the second minute of stoppage time to secure a 4–3 win over

Manchester United Manchester United Football Club, commonly referred to as Man United (often stylised as Man Utd) or simply United, is a professional association football, football club based in Old Trafford (area), Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, Engl ...

. On 3 October, he scored the winning goal in a 2–1 away victory over

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

in his second consecutive Champions League match of the season. On 6 March 2024, he extended his contract at the club until 2029.

2024–25: Limited playtime and loan to Tottenham Hotspur

Tel struggled for game time under coach

Vincent Kompany Vincent Jean Mpoy Kompany (born 10 April 1986) is a Belgian professional Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former Association football, player who played as a centre-back. He is currently the head coach of ...

at Bayern, making just two Bundesliga starts. On 3 February 2025, he was loaned to

Premier League The Premier League is a professional association football league in England and the highest level of the English football league system. Contested by 20 clubs, it operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the English Football Lea ...

club Tottenham Hotspur for the remainder of the 2024–25 season, with an option of a permanent transfer for a reported fee of £50m in summer. On 9 February, he scored his first goal for Tottenham in the stoppage time of a 2–1 away defeat against Aston Villa in the

FA Cup The Football Association Challenge Cup, more commonly known as the FA Cup, is an annual Single-elimination tournament, knockout association football, football competition in domestic Football in England, English football. First played during ...

. Two months later, on 6 April, he netted his maiden Premier League goal from a penalty in a 3–1 victory over

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

. Tel also made 5 appearances for Tottenham in the 2024–25 UEFA Europa League and helped them win the competition, breaking a 17-year trophy drought for the club.

Tottenham Hotspur

On 15 June 2025, Tottenham confirmed the permanent signing of Tel from Bayern, on a deal running until 2031, for a reported fee of £30 million.

International career

Tel is a French youth international, notably for the under-18s since September 2021, where he has proven to be a prolific goal scorer. In May 2022, he was selected for the France under-17 team for the 2022 UEFA European Under-17 Championship in Israel. He established himself as a starter during the competition, serving as

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

of the team on three occasions. He stood out by scoring three goals in the group stage: one goal against

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, and a brace against

Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of the Danube river and west of the Black Sea. Bulgaria is bordered by Greece and Turkey t ...

. France qualified for the final after a penalty shootout against

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, with a 2–2 score at the end of regulation time. On 1 June 2022, with a 2–1 victory against the Netherlands, Tel won the 2022 Euros with the French under-17 team. In May 2023, Tel's club Bayern Munich prevented his participation in the

2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup The 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup was the 23rd edition of the FIFA U-20 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth Association football, football championship contested by the under-20 national teams of the member associations of FIFA, since i ...

with the France under-20 team. His club also denied him permission to compete in the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

on home soil.

Style of play

Tel started his career as a

centre-back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield player whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Defenders fall into four main categories: centre-backs, full-backs, sweepers ...

and showcased a remarkable versatility early on. Equipped with exceptional technical abilities, game intensity, and agility, Tel has the capability to excel in almost any position on the field. Notably, during his early matches for both

and the national youth teams, he has demonstrated proficiency as a winger, centre-forward, and

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

in the style of Anthony Martial.

Sponsorship

Tel has been sponsored by Nike since he was 14 years old. His contract requires him to play and practice in Nike apparel (for which he can receive up to 10,000 euros per year). After he stopped wearing Nike gear in the summer of 2023, Tel was ordered to resume using them until mid-2024 due to his contract.

Personal life

Born in

Sarcelles Sarcelles () is a Communes of France, commune in the northern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the Kilometre Zero#France, centre of Paris. Sarcelles is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Val-d'Oise Departments of Franc ...

, France, Tel is of

Guadeloupean Guadeloupe is an Overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department and region of France in the Caribbean. It consists of six inhabited islands—Basse-Terre Island, Basse-Terre, Grande-Terre, Guadeloupe, Grande-Terre, Marie-Galant ...

descent. Since 2024, he has been in a relationship with Indira Ampiot, Miss France 2023.

Career statistics

Honours

Bayern Munich *

: 2022–23, 2024–25 Tottenham Hotspur *

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

: 2024–25 France U17 *

UEFA European Under-17 Championship The UEFA European Under-17 Championship, or simply the Euro Under-17, is an annual Association football, football competition contested by the men's under-17 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Spain national under-17 football team, ...

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

References

External links

Profile
at the FC Bayern Munich website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tel, Mathys 2005 births Living people Footballers from Sarcelles Black French sportspeople French men's footballers French people of Guadeloupean descent Men's association football forwards Paris FC players Stade Rennais FC players FC Bayern Munich footballers Tottenham Hotspur F.C. players Ligue 1 players Championnat National 3 players Bundesliga players Premier League players UEFA Europa League–winning players France men's youth international footballers France men's under-21 international footballers French expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in England Expatriate men's footballers in Germany French expatriate sportspeople in England French expatriate sportspeople in Germany 21st-century French sportsmen