Frans Lares Krätzig (born 14 January 2003) is a German 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 full-back and

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

for

Austrian Bundesliga The Bundesliga ( , "Federal League"), also known as Admiral Bundesliga for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Austria and the highest level of the Austrian football league system. The competition decides the A ...

club Red Bull Salzburg.

Club career

Early career

Krätzig was born in

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

, in the

Franconia Franconia ( ; ; ) is a geographical region of Germany, characterised by its culture and East Franconian dialect (). Franconia is made up of the three (governmental districts) of Lower Franconia, Lower, Middle Franconia, Middle and Upper Franco ...

region of Germany. He started playing at Post SV Nürnberg before joining 1. FC Nürnberg in 2012, followed by the youth set-up of Bayern Munich in 2017. Due to the distance from his home, he attended boarding school and was one of the first talents on the FC Bayern Campus that opened in summer of 2017. Whilst playing for the under-19 team, Krätzig signed a professional contract with Bayern Munich in February 2021. In September 2021, he sustained a persistent pubic bone injury which sidelined him until April 2022. Formerly an attacking midfielder, Krätzig was converted to a left-sided full-back at

Bayern Munich II FC Bayern Munich II (''FC Bayern Munich Amateure'' until 2005) are the German reserve football teams, reserve team of Football in Germany, German association football club FC Bayern Munich, Bayern Munich, currently playing in the Regionalliga B ...

, under Holger Seitz.

Bayern Munich

In March 2023, Krätzig signed a two-year contract extension with Bayern Munich. He was selected to join with the first-team squad on a pre-season tour of

Singapore Singapore, officially the Republic of Singapore, is an island country and city-state in Southeast Asia. The country's territory comprises one main island, 63 satellite islands and islets, and one outlying islet. It is about one degree ...

in the summer of 2023, and played against

Manchester City Manchester City Football Club is a professional association football, football club based in Manchester, England, that competes in the Premier League, the English football league system, top flight of Football in England, English footbal ...

in July 2023. Krätzig scored a spectacular long range goal in the last minute to allow Bayern Munich to earn a 4–3 win over

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

on 2 August 2023 in the Audi Football Summit and win the Singapore Trophy. He was then called up on the bench for the 2023 DFL-Supercup match against

RB Leipzig RasenBallsport Leipzig e.V. (), commonly known as RB Leipzig or informally as Red Bull Leipzig, is a German professional association football, football club based in Leipzig, Saxony. The club was founded in 2009 by the initiative of the company ...

that ended 3–0 as a defeat, on 12 August 2023. On 23 September 2023, Krätzig made his

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 ...

debut, coming off the bench in the 65th minute replacing

Alphonso Davies Alphonso Boyle Davies (born November 2, 2000) is a professional soccer player who plays as a left-back for club Bayern Munich and captains the Canada national team. Regarded as one of the best full-backs in the world, Davies has earned the nic ...

, in a 7–0 home victory against

VfL Bochum Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as VfL Bochum (), is a Football in Germany, German professional association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia. They currently play ...

. Three days later, he made his second official appearance for Bayern Munich, coming off the bench at the 11th minute and contributed to a 4–0 away victory, scoring the second goal and his first professional official goal for the senior team at a match in the first round of the

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

against

3. Liga The 3. Liga is a professional association football league and the third division in Germany. In the German football league system, it is positioned between the 2. Bundesliga and the fourth-tier Regionalliga. The modern 3. Liga was formed for t ...

club

SC Preußen Münster SC Preußen Münster (English: Prussia Münster) is a German sports club based in Münster, North Rhine-Westphalia which is mostly recognised for its Association football, football section. The football team currently plays in the 2. Bundesliga w ...

. On 6 October 2023, he extended his professional contract with the club until 2027. On 29 November, he made his Champions League debut, coming off the bench in the 86th minute, in a goalless draw against

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 ...

Loan to Austria Wien

On 6 February 2024, Krätzig joined

side

Austria Wien Fußballklub Austria Wien AG (), known in English as Austria Vienna, and Austria Wien in German-speaking countries, is an Austrian professional association football club from the capital city of Vienna. It has won the most trophies of any Aust ...

on a six-month loan, until the end of the season. Later that month, on 17 February, he scored his first goal in a 2–1 victory over Rheindorf Altach.

Loan to VfB Stuttgart

On 28 June 2024, Krätzig signed a one-year loan contract with fellow Bundesliga club

VfB Stuttgart Verein für Bewegungsspiele Stuttgart 1893 e. V. (), commonly known as VfB Stuttgart (), is a German professional sports club based in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg. The club's Association football, football team is currently part of Germany's f ...

, with the option to make the move permanent at the end of the season. On 2 January 2025, it was announced that Krätzig's loan to VfB Stuttgart would be terminated and he would return to his parent club Bayern Munich.

Loan to 1. FC Heidenhein

On 3 January 2025, one day after his loan spell with VfB Stuttgart was cut short after just six months, he immediately moved to fellow Bundesliga club 1. FC Heidenheim on a six-month loan, until the end of the 2024–25 season, with Krätzig also joining former teammate Paul Wanner. He made a goalscoring debut, scoring in their 2–0 victory over

Union Berlin 1. Fußballclub Union Berlin e. V., commonly known as Union Berlin (), is a professional Football in Germany, German football club based in Berlin. The club's origins can be traced to 1906, when its predecessor FC Olympia Oberschöneweide was fo ...

on 11 January 2025.

Red Bull Salzburg

On 28 May 2025, Krätzig moved back to Austria and joined Red Bull Salzburg permanently, for an estimated €3.5 million transfer fee, choosing the number 13 shirt and signing a contract until June 2028.

International career

In September 2023, Krätzig played his first international matches for Germany U20 during the 2023–24

Under 20 Elite League The Under 20 Elite League, also known as the European Elite League, is an under-20 (U20) association football tournament founded in 2017. History Competed in by national European U20 teams, it is the successor to the Under-20 Four Nations Tourn ...

against

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and

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 ...

, in which both matches ended in a 1–1 draw.

Career statistics

;Notes

References

External links

Profile
at the FC Bayern Munich website * {{DEFAULTSORT:Krätzig, Frans Living people 2003 births Footballers from Nuremberg Men's association football midfielders German men's footballers Germany men's youth international footballers 1. FC Nürnberg players FC Bayern Munich footballers FC Bayern Munich II players FK Austria Wien players VfB Stuttgart players VfB Stuttgart II players 1. FC Heidenheim players FC Red Bull Salzburg players Bundesliga players 3. Liga players Regionalliga players Austrian Football Bundesliga players German expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Austria German expatriate sportspeople in Austria Germany men's under-21 international footballers 21st-century German sportsmen