Mario Gómez García (; born 10 July 1985) is a German former 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 played as a
striker. He represented the
Germany national team over a period of 11 years between 2007 and 2018.
Gómez began his professional career with
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 ...
. When the team won the
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 ...
in 2006–07, Gómez contributed 14 goals and 7
assists and was selected as
German Footballer of the Year. In 2009, he
signed for
Bayern Munich for an estimated €30–35 million, a league record at the time. With Bayern, Gómez was the Bundesliga top scorer in 2011 and helped the team win seven trophies, including the
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
in 2013. He left for
Serie A
The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...
team
Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Florence, Tuscany. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while ...
in 2013 and was affected by injury during his time in Italy. Gómez was loaned to Turkey's
Beşiktaş
Beşiktaş () is a district and municipality of Istanbul Province, Turkey. Its area is 18 km2 and its population is 175,190 (2022). It is located on the European shore of the Bosphorus strait. It is bordered on the north by Sarıyer and ...
in 2015 and was top scorer as the club won the
Süper Lig
The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), also known as Trendyol Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Turkey and the highest level of the Turkish football league system. In the 2023–2024 season, twen ...
. He subsequently returned to Germany by joining Bundesliga side
VfL Wolfsburg for the
2016–17 season, helping them avoid relegation. He rejoined Stuttgart the season after, helping them achieve promotion to the Bundesliga after the
2019–20 campaign.
Gómez made his international debut for Germany in February 2007 and was included in their squads for three
UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro or Euros, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition ...
s and two
FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
s, finishing as top scorer at
UEFA Euro 2012
The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2012 or simply Euro 2012, was the 14th UEFA European Championship, European Championship for List of men's national association football teams#UEFA (Europe), men's ...
. He retired from international football in 2018.
Club career
Stuttgart
Gómez played for
VfB Stuttgart II in the
Regionalliga Süd in the
2003–04 and
2004–05 seasons. He scored six goals in 19 appearances during the 2003–04 season
and 15 goals in 24 appearances in the 2004–05 season.
On 9 March 2004, Gómez played ten minutes for
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 ...
in the
Champions League first knock-out round against
Chelsea and made his debut in the
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 ...
on 8 May,
coming on for
Imre Szabics in a 2–1 loss to
Hamburger SV
Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), or HSV (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its Association football, football department. Though the current HSV was founde ...
. These were his only two appearances for the first team during the
2003–04 season.
He went on to make eight league appearances,
one
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 ...
appearance,
and one
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
appearance.
In the
2005–06 season, Gómez joined the first team permanently. He played in 30 matches in the Bundesliga, scoring six times.
His first goal came on 17 September 2005, the winner in a 2–1 defeat of
Mainz 05. Gómez also played five times in the
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
,
scoring twice, and played three times in both the DFB-Pokal
and
DFL-Ligapokal.

In the
2006–07 season, Gómez established himself as one of the top scorers in the Bundesliga. However, he broke his hand on 10 March 2007 and suffered a torn ligament in his left knee. He made his comeback on 12 May 2007 and immediately scored after coming on from the bench. In that match, Stuttgart defeated
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 ...
(3–2) and went two points clear heading into the Bundesliga's final weekend, where they won at home against
Energie Cottbus
FC Energie Cottbus (Lower Sorbian: ''Energija Chóśebuz'') is a Football in Germany, German football club based in Cottbus, Brandenburg. It was founded in 1963 as SC Cottbus in what was East Germany. After the German reunification, reunificatio ...
, thus becoming
German champions. Stuttgart also reached the final of 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 ...
, where Gómez participated, but Stuttgart lost to
1. FC Nürnberg. He finished the season with 14 goals in 25 league appearances and two goals in five DFB-Pokal appearances.
After the season, he was named
German Footballer of the Year for 2007 and extended his contract at Stuttgart until 2012.
In the
2007–08 season, Gómez scored 19 goals in 25 appearances,
elevating him to second in the Bundesliga's top scorer list, just behind
Bayern Munich's
Luca Toni, who scored 24 times. 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 ...
, Gómez was the top scorer with six goals. Because of his development, many clubs became interested in the then-23-year-old forward. Gómez gained the nickname "Mr. Zuverlässig" ("Mr. Reliable"), as seen in his second of three goals in a 6–3 win against Bundesliga rival
Werder Bremen
Sportverein Werder Bremen von 1899 e. V. (), commonly known as Werder Bremen, Werder or simply Bremen, is a German professional sports club based in Bremen. Founded on 4 February 1899, Werder are best known for their professional association foo ...
, where he managed to net in a virtually unreachable
pass by teammate
Yıldıray Baştürk. On 9 May 2009, Gómez hit four goals in a 4–1 victory over Bundesliga champions
VfL Wolfsburg. He also had six goals in three DFB-Pokal appearances and three goals in four
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
appearances.
The
2008–09 season was his last in a Stuttgart uniform, as he transferred to Bayern Munich after the season.
During the season, he scored 24 goals in 32 league appearances, three goals in two
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 ...
appearances, and eight goals in ten
UEFA Cup
The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a Typography, typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a star (heraldry), heraldic star.
Computer scientists and Mathematici ...
appearances.
Bayern Munich
2009–2011
On 26 May 2009, Gómez transferred to Bayern Munich for a Bundesliga record transfer fee,
signing a four-year contract. The reported amount of the transfer fee varies from €30–35 million, depending on different sources.
Gómez scored ten league goals and one
Champions League goal in his
first season for Bayern.
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 ...
, Gómez was more prolific, with three goals in four matches.
After an erratic first season at Bayern with 10 goals in 29 league appearances,
Gómez established himself as a starter during the
2010–11 season (to an extent at the expense of
Miroslav Klose
Miroslav Josef Klose (, ; born Mirosław Marian Klose; 9 June 1978) is a German professional Manager (association football), football manager and former Football player, player who currently serves as head coach of 1. FC Nürnberg. A Forward (as ...
and due to an injury sustained by
Ivica Olić) and finished as top goalscorer in the Bundesliga with 28 goals.
He scored his 100th Bundesliga goal with his third strike in a 1–8 away victory over
FC St. Pauli
Fußball-Club St. Pauli von 1910 e.V., commonly known as simply FC St. Pauli (), is a German professional association football, football club based in the St. Pauli district of Hamburg. The team plays in the Bundesliga from the 2024–25 Bundesli ...
on 7 May 2011; the
hat-trick
A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three.
Origin
The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three Wick ...
was his fifth in the Bundesliga in the 2010–11 season and his sixth overall after a hat-trick against
CFR Cluj
Fotbal Club CFR 1907 Cluj, commonly known as CFR Cluj ( or ) or simply CFR, is a Romanian professional association football, football club based in the city of Cluj-Napoca, Cluj County, that competes in the Liga I. Founded as ''Kolozsvári Vasut ...
in the Champions League.
Gómez scored 13 hat-tricks in his Bundesliga career, three with VfB Stuttgart and ten with Bayern. Gómez also netted eight times in the
Champions League and finished second in the season's top scorers, tied with
Samuel Eto'o
Samuel Eto'o Fils (; born 10 March 1981) is a Cameroonian Association football, football administrator and former Football player, player who is the current president of the Cameroonian Football Federation. He is often regarded as one of the ...
, although Bayern was eliminated in the round of 16 by
Inter Milan
Football Club Internazionale Milano, commonly referred to as Internazionale () or simply Inter, and colloquially known as Inter Milan in English-speaking countries, is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football ...
. Gómez scored 39 goals in all competitions in his second season with the
Bavaria
Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...
n club.
2011–12 season
Gómez scored his first league goal of the
2011–12 season on 20 August 2011 in Bayern's win over Hamburger SV. Seven days later, Gómez scored a hat-trick away against
1. FC Kaiserslautern
1. Fußball-Club Kaiserslautern e. V., also known as 1. FCK, FCK (), FC Kaiserslautern (), K'lautern or colloquially Lautern (), is a German sports club based in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate. In addition to Association football, football ...
. On 10 September, Gómez scored four goals as Bayern beat
SC Freiburg
Sport-Club Freiburg e.V., commonly known as SC Freiburg (), is a Football in Germany, German professional football club, based in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg. It plays in the Bundesliga, having been promoted as champions ...
7–0, sealing four straight wins for the Bavarians and a return to the top of the Bundesliga table. Gómez' two first-half goals on 27 September helped Bayern defeat
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 ...
2–0 in the group stage of the
Champions League.
Gómez scored his second brace of the
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 ...
campaign against
Hertha BSC
Hertha, Berliner Sport-Club e. V., commonly known as Hertha BSC () or Hertha Berlin, is a German professional football club based in Berlin. Hertha BSC plays in the 2. Bundesliga, the second tier of German football league system, German footbal ...
when Bayern won 4–0, followed by another brace on 29 October when Bayern defeated 1. FC Nürnberg 4–0. On 11 December 2011, he scored his third brace of the season and sealed Bayern's 2–1 win over southern rivals VfB Stuttgart, his former club. On 2 November 2011, he scored
a hat-trick in a Champions League group stage match against
Napoli
Naples ( ; ; ) is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its province-level municipality is the thir ...
. Bayern went on to win the game 3–2. 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 ...
, Gómez contributed two goals. Gómez's 40th goal of the calendar year of 2011 came on 16 December 2011 against
1. FC Köln.
On 10 January, when FC Bayern Munich visited India to play in a farewell match for Indian footballer
Baichung Bhutia, Gomez scored the opening goal for Bayern as Bayern Munich won 4–0 over the
India national football team
The India national football team represents India in men's international Association football, football and is governed by the All India Football Federation, the governing body for Football in India, football in India. It is a member of FIFA, ...
.
On 13 March 2012, during the second leg of their Champions League tie against
Basel
Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...
, Bayern Munich overturned their 0–1 away loss as Gómez netted four of Bayern's seven goals, firing the Bavarians through to the quarter-finals 7–1 on aggregate. In the quarter-finals, Bayern faced French
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 (; ), officially known as Ligue 1 McDonald's France, McDonald's for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in France and the highest level of the French football league system. Administered by the Ligue de ...
side
Olympique de Marseille
Olympique de Marseille (, ; , ), also known simply as Marseille, or by the abbreviation OM (, ), is a French professional Association football, football club based in Marseille which competes in Ligue 1, the French football league system, top f ...
; in the first leg on 28 March, Gómez fired in his 11th Champions League goal of the campaign in a 2–0 win for the Bavarians.
On 4 April, Gómez signed a new contract with Bayern Munich, keeping him at the club until the summer of 2016. Gómez scored the winning goal in Bayern's 2–1 victory over
Real Madrid
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (), commonly referred to as Real Madrid, is a Spanish professional Football club (association football), football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, th ...
in the first leg of their semi-final clash. Bayern went on to win the tie 3–1 on
penalties after the teams were deadlocked 3–3 on aggregate. On 19 May 2012, Gómez played in the
Champions League final against Chelsea. He failed to find the net in regular time in the game but scored in the penalty shoot-out as Bayern fell at the final hurdle, losing 4–3 on penalties after a 1–1 finish. Gómez finished the 2011–12 season with 26 goals in 33 league appearances, two goals in five DFB-Pokal appearances, and 13 goals in 14 Champions League appearances.
2012–13 season
Gómez came back late to the squad after having ankle surgery post UEFA Euro 2012. Because of his injury and the signing of Croatian striker
Mario Mandžukić
Mario Mandžukić (; born 21 May 1986) is a Croatian association football, football coach and a former player who was most recently an assistant coach for the Croatia national football team, Croatia national team. As a player, he played as a for ...
from VfL Wolfsburg, Gómez was relegated to the bench as Mandžukić hit a run of form that made him the Bundesliga's top scorer.
Gómez returned to action on 20 November 2012 in the club's 1–1 draw with
Valencia
Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...
in the group stage of the
Champions League, coming on as a 79th minute substitute for winger
Franck Ribéry. The striker scored his first goal within a minute of 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 ...
season debut, capping off a 5–0 victory over
Hannover 96
Hannoverscher Sportverein von 1896, commonly referred to as Hannover 96 (), is a German professional association football, football club based in the city of Hanover, Lower Saxony. They played in the Bundesliga for a total of 30 years between 19 ...
on 24 November. On 5 December, Gómez opened the scoring for the hosts in their final group game of the Champions League, a 4–1 defeat of
BATE Borisov, which secured the Bavarians top spot in the group over Valencia.
Following the winter break, Gómez pushed for a first-team berth, scoring two goals and setting up another as Bayern cruised past Werder Bremen 6–1 on 23 February 2013. The game was his manager
Jupp Heynckes' 1,000th game as a player and coach in the Bundesliga. The striker was a used substitute against
Eintracht Frankfurt
Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a German professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The club currently plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German footb ...
on 6 April, as a lone
Bastian Schweinsteiger
Bastian Schweinsteiger ( , ; born 1 August 1984) is a German former professional Association football, footballer who played as a midfielder. Earlier in his career, he primarily played as a wide midfielder before later switching to a central mi ...
strike confirmed an 11th successive victory and a 23rd national title for the club. It was Gómez's second title win with Bayern, and his third overall.
On 16 April, in the DFB-Pokal semi-final against VfL Wolfsburg, Gómez scored a six-minute hat-trick after being substituted on in the 77th minute, rounding off a comfortable 6–1 victory and securing a spot in the
final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
against southern rivals and former club Stuttgart. In the club's next league match, on 20 April, Bayern managed another 6–1 victory and Gómez recorded a second brace in four days to lift Bayern to a 26th league victory of the campaign, a new Bundesliga record. Gómez led the line in the absence of Mario Mandžukić in the semi-finals of the Champions League on 23 April, poking home Bayern's second goal in their 4–0 first-leg defeat of
Barcelona
Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
.
Despite missing the better half of the first three months of the campaign, Gómez still managed 11 Bundesliga strikes, placing him as third top-scorer in the league for the club. He made an appearance as a late substitute in Bayern's 2–1
Champions League final victory over German rivals
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, often known simply as Borussia Dortmund () or by its initialism BVB (), or just Dortmund by International fans, is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is ...
on 25 May at
Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium, currently branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE Limited, EE for sponsorship reasons, is an association football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Sta ...
in
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
. He scored a second-half brace in the DFB-Pokal final on 1 June as Bayern defeated Gómez's former club Stuttgart 3–2 at the
Olympiastadion in
Berlin
Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
. The win secured a 16th DFB-Pokal trophy and an unprecedented league, cup and European cup treble for the Bavarians. Gómez finished the
2012–13 season with 11 goals in 21 league appearances.
On 6 June 2013, Gómez's consultant Uli Ferber announced that it "is quite clear that he will separate from Bayern" as he had fallen behind Mario Mandžukić in the pecking order for starting striker.
Fiorentina
On 8 July 2013, Gómez signed a four-year deal for
Serie A
The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...
side
Fiorentina
ACF Fiorentina, commonly referred to as Fiorentina (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Florence, Tuscany. The original team was founded by a merger in August 1926, while ...
for a fee believed to be around €20 million. He was officially unveiled as a Fiorentina player on 15 July to a crowd of 20,000 people. Gómez scored his first two goals for ''la Viola'' in a 5–2 defeat of
Genoa
Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...
on 1 September. In the following match, a 1–1 draw with
Cagliari
Cagliari (, , ; ; ; Latin: ''Caralis'') is an Comune, Italian municipality and the capital and largest city of the island of Sardinia, an Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Italy. It has about 146,62 ...
, Gómez sustained an injury which kept him out of the team until Fiorentina's match against Internazionale on 15 February 2014. On 13 March, Gómez scored his first European goal for Fiorentina in a 1–1 draw against
Juventus
Juventus Football Club (; from , ), commonly known as Juventus or colloquially as Juve (), is an Italian professional Association football, football List of football clubs in Italy, club based in Turin, Piedmont, who compete in Serie A, the ...
in the first leg of a
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 ...
round of 16 tie. Three days later, he scored his first goal at the
Stadio Artemio Franchi in a 3–1 win against
Chievo. Gómez damaged the ligaments in his left knee on 23 March in a 1–0 win at Napoli and was later ruled out for the remainder of the season by Fiorentina manager
Vincenzo Montella. During the
2013–14 season, he scored three goals in nine league appearances and one goal in six Europa League appearances.
Gómez scored twice in Fiorentina's 3–1 win over
Atalanta
Atalanta (; ) is a heroine in Greek mythology.
There are two versions of the huntress Atalanta: one from Arcadia (region), Arcadia, whose parents were Iasus and Clymene (mythology), Clymene and who is primarily known from the tales of the Caly ...
in the
last 16 of the Coppa Italia on 21 January 2015, and followed this up with another brace 13 days later in a 2–0 quarter-final win away against
Roma. He finished the
2014–15 season with 4 goals in 20 league appearances, four goals in four Coppa Italia appearances and two goals in eight Europa League appearances.
Loan to Beşiktaş
On 30 July 2015, Gómez joined Beşiktaş on a season long
loan
In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money.
The document evidencing the deb ...
contract from Fiorentina for
2015–16 Süper Lig, with a
buy option.
The contract consisted of €3.50 million of seasonal wages.
He successfully completed a
medical test
A medical test is a medical procedure performed to detect, diagnose, or monitor diseases, disease processes, susceptibility, or to determine a course of treatment. Medical tests such as, physical and visual exams, diagnostic imaging, genetic ...
on 31 July 2015.
Gómez officially signed for the club along with 4 other new players, including his compatriot
Andreas Beck, at a press conference held on 7 August 2015.
He chose number 33 for his shirt.
Gómez made his
Süper Lig
The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), also known as Trendyol Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Turkey and the highest level of the Turkish football league system. In the 2023–2024 season, twen ...
debut on 16 August 2015 against
Mersin İdman Yurdu at
Mersin Arena
The Mersin Stadium, is a multi-purpose stadium in Mersin, Turkey. Completed in 2013, it was the new home ground for Mersin İdman Yurdu, replacing the old Tevfik Sırrı Gür Stadium. It hosted the opening and closing ceremonies for the 2013 Medit ...
, when he was substituted on for
Oğuzhan Özyakup in the 73rd minute. The game ended 5–2 in favour of Beşiktaş.
Gómez scored both goals as Beşiktaş beat
Medipol Başakşehir 2–0 at the
Atatürk Olympic Stadium on 13 September 2015 in gameweek 4.
On 21 September 2015, during the week 5 game against
Gençlerbirliği, Gómez reportedly narrowly escaped a
red card
A red card is a type of penalty card that is shown in many sports after a rules infraction.
Red card may also refer to:
Art, entertainment, and media
* ''Red Card'' (album), 1976 release by Streetwalkers
* Red card, suit (cards) of hearts or di ...
for an alleged deliberate elbow on Icelandic midfielder
Ólafur Ingi Skúlason during the 55th minute.
On 27 September 2015, Gómez scored two goals during the
derby game against
Fenerbahçe. Beşiktaş won 3–2 and went to the top of the Süper Lig standings.
Gómez scored twice during the week 7 game against
Eskişehirspor
Eskişehirspor Kulübü is a Turkish football club located in Eskişehir. Founded in 1965, Eskişehirspor competed in the top division of Turkish football for 16 years until they were relegated. After being out of the Süper Lig for 12 years the ...
at
New Eskişehir Stadium, which ended 2–1.
By end of week 7 of the Süper Lig, Gómez had scored six goals with a shooting accuracy of 50%, with six successful shots out of twelve.
Gómez scored the equaliser during week 3 of Beşiktaş'
Group H game against
Lokomotiv Moscow
FC Lokomotiv Moscow (, ) is a Russian professional association football, football club based in Moscow. Lokomotiv have won the Russian Premier League on three occasions; the Soviet Cup twice; and the Russian Cup (football), Russian Cup a record ...
, which ended 1–1 at
Lokomotiv Stadium, Moscow, on 22 October 2015.
Gómez scored the third goal in Beşiktaş' week nine game against
Antalyaspor
Antalyaspor Kulübü is a Turkish professional multi-sport club based in Antalya, southern Turkey. The club's colours are red and white.
The association football, football side play their home matches at the Antalya Stadium. In Turkey, the cl ...
, helping secure a 5–1 win.
During Beşiktaş' week 12 game against
Sivasspor
Sivasspor Kulübü, known as Net Global Sivasspor due to sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish sports club based in Sivas. The primary department of the club is men's football. Formed in 1967, its football department has competed in Süper Lig since t ...
, Gómez scored the first goal of the game via a 44th minute
penalty kick; the game ended 2–0.
On 5 December 2015, Gómez scored against
Kayserispor
Kayseri Spor Kulübü, commonly known as Kayserispor, and also called Bellona Kayserispor due to sponsorship reasons, is a Turkish professional football club based in Kayseri. They play their home matches at the RHG Enertürk Enerji Stadium ...
in a 2–1 win for Beşiktaş.
On 10 December 2015, Gómez scored Beşiktaş' only goal against
Sporting in the Europa League Group Stage as the game ended 3–1 for the Portuguese side. Beşiktaş were eventually eliminated from the competition.
On 14 December 2015, Gómez scored Beşiktaş' first goal with a diving
header in the
derby game against
Galatasaray that ended 2–1 for Beşiktaş.
During week 16, Gómez opened the scoring tally for Beşiktaş while they were 2–0 down against
Osmanlıspor; the game ended 3–2 in favour of Beşiktaş.
On 28 December 2015, Gómez scored the 2nd goal of the week 17 encounter against
Konyaspor
Konyaspor Kulübü (, Konya Sports Club), commonly referred to as Konyaspor, is a Turkish professional football club based in Konya, one of the largest cities in central Anatolia. Due to sponsorship agreements, the club is also officially known ...
, which ended in a 4–0 win.
Gómez, along with Samuel Eto'o, was the top scorer of the first half of the Super Lig, with 13 goals;
Gómez completed the first half of the season with highest shooting accuracy, with 29 shots on target.
He also scored two goals in the UEFA Europa League by the end of 2015.
In the Süper Lig week 20 game against
Gaziantepspor
Gaziantepspor was a Turkish football club located in the city of Gaziantep. Formed in 1969 and dissolved in 2020, Gaziantepspor were nicknamed the ''Şahinler'' (The Falcons). The club colours were black and red, and they played their home matc ...
, Gómez scored twice as Beşiktaş achieved a comfortable 4–0 win.
Gómez added another goal to his tally in the 64th minute in Beşiktaş' week 22 game against Gençlerbirliği and secured a 1–0 win.
Gómez scored twice against Eskişehirspor during the game on 7 March 2016, which ended 3–1 for Beşiktaş.
His tally of 19 Süper Lig goals equalised the club record for "most scoring foreign player in single Süper Lig season", along with
Pascal Nouma and
Demba Ba.
Beşiktaş and
Trabzonspor
Trabzonspor Kulübü is a Turkish professional sports club located in the city of Trabzon, located in Black Sea region, northeastern Turkey. Established in 1967 through the merger of several local clubs, Trabzonspor is one of the most prominent A ...
faced each other in a rescheduled week 19 game on 14 March 2016. Gómez scored the first goal in a 2–0 win.
Gómez scored the first goal ever scored in Beşiktaş' newly built
Vodafone Park in the 22nd minute of the encounter against
Bursaspor during the 2015–16 season. The game ended 3–2 as Beşiktaş recorded their first win in this stadium.
[ ][ ] This was Gómez's 21st goal of the 2015–16 season.
Gómez continued to produce goals in May 2016. He scored once more in the Istanbul derby versus Galatasaray in the 76th minute, which sealed a final score of 1–0 for Beşiktaş in week 32.
Gómez scored again in the week 33 game against Osmanlıspor. It was the fifth consecutive Süper Lig game in which he had scored and his last league goal for Beşiktaş as the game ended 3–1.
This goal, his 28th in all competitions, made Gómez the "most scoring foreign player across all competitions in single season", beating the previous record of Demba Ba with 27 goals scored in the
2014–15 season.
Gómez became the season
Süper Lig top scorer with 26 goals, ahead of Samuel Eto'o and
Hugo Rodallega.
He completed the season with 28 goals in 41 games played in all competitions.
On 20 July 2016, Gómez announced his farewell message via his
Facebook
Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...
account, stating that he would not continue to play for Beşiktaş. He described it as a "difficult decision" on a political basis, which was perceived as a reference to
2016 coup d'état attempt in Turkey.
In 2016, Gómez expressed his satisfaction with his spell at Beşiktaş in an interview with German newspaper
Die Welt
(, ) is a German national daily newspaper, published as a broadsheet by Axel Springer SE.
is the flagship newspaper of the Axel Springer publishing group and it is considered a newspaper of record in Germany. Its leading competitors are the ...
, stating: "
y time atBeşiktaş was a pure dream for me. It was wonderful. I had a consistent season there. It was my biggest success after 2013 Champions League title".
Wolfsburg
On 17 August 2016, Gómez returned to the Bundesliga by signing for VfL Wolfsburg. He scored his first goal for the club on 22 October, netting in a 3–1 defeat to
Darmstadt 98. His goal was the 1,000th scored by Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga.
On 2 April 2017, Gómez scored his first hat-trick for the club, netting three times in seven minutes as Wolfsburg came from 2–0 down to draw 3–3 with
Bayer Leverkusen
Bayer 04 Leverkusen, officially known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH () and commonly known as Bayer Leverkusen or simply Leverkusen, is a German professional football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. It competes in the B ...
. His third goal on the night was his 150th goal scored in the Bundesliga. He ultimately scored 16 league goals during the
2016–17 season as Wolfsburg narrowly avoided relegation via the relegation play-offs. Gómez finished the
2016–17 season with 18 goals in 37 appearances in all competitions.
After keeping his team in the top flight, Gómez signed a new contract in June 2017. In August, manager
Andries Jonker named him 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 ...
, succeeding
Diego Benaglio. Gómez scored only once in his last 15 appearances at the
Volkswagen Arena.
Return to VfB Stuttgart
On 22 December 2017, it was announced that Gómez would return to VfB Stuttgart on 1 January 2018 for an undisclosed fee.
[ He signed a contract until June 2020. He finished the 2017–18 season with eight goals in 16 appearances.]
Gómez was Stuttgart's top scorer with seven goals in 2018–19. In the first leg of the play-off defeat to 1. FC Union Berlin that caused Stuttgart's relegation, Gómez scored an additional goal, becoming the first player to score for two teams in Bundesliga relegation play-offs.
On 28 June 2020, Stuttgart announced that Gómez had ended his professional career, after scoring in his final match for the club and helping them secure promotion back to the Bundesliga.
International career
Gómez has both German and Spanish citizenship, but played for all German youth national teams from age 14. He made his debut for the Germany senior team against Switzerland
Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
on 7 February 2007 in Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...
. Germany won the match 3–1, with Gómez scoring Germany's second goal. Gómez gained his second cap
A cap is a flat headgear, usually with a visor. Caps have crowns that fit very close to the head. They made their first appearance as early as 3200 BC. The origin of the word "cap" comes from the Old French word "chapeau" which means "head co ...
for Germany by coming on as a substitute for Kevin Kurányi in a UEFA Euro 2008 qualifier against San Marino
San Marino, officially the Republic of San Marino, is a landlocked country in Southern Europe, completely surrounded by Italy. Located on the northeastern slopes of the Apennine Mountains, it is the larger of two European microstates, microsta ...
. He scored twice as the game ended in a 6–0 victory.
UEFA Euro 2008
After Gómez impressed in pre-tournament friendlies, Germany head coach Joachim Löw called him up to the German squad for Euro 2008. Löw broke up the strike partnership of Lukas Podolski
Lukas Josef Podolski (; born Łukasz Józef Podolski, , 4 June 1985) is a professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward or attacking midfielder for Ekstraklasa club Górnik Zabrze. He is kno ...
and Miroslav Klose, with Podolski moving out to the left wing at the expense of talismanic midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger and Gómez partnering Klose up front. Unfortunately, Gómez was not able to reproduce his club form and missed several chances, including one in the last group match against Austria
Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
, a performance for which he was criticized by the German media and many fans of the national team. Germany eventually won courtesy of a Michael Ballack
Michael Ballack (; born 26 September 1976) is a German former professional footballer. He was selected by Pelé as one of FIFA's 100 Greatest Living Players, and as the UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year in 2002. He won the German Footballer of ...
free-kick to seal a place in the knockout stages, but Löw dropped Gómez to the bench and reverted to the Podolski–Klose partnership. Gómez was an unused substitute in the quarter-final and semi-final and later came off the bench in the final
Final, Finals or The Final may refer to:
*Final examination or finals, a test given at the end of a course of study or training
*Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which d ...
of Euro 2008 for Klose, but could not prevent Germany from losing 1–0 to Spain
Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
on 29 June.
2010 FIFA World Cup
In a friendly match against the United Arab Emirates
The United Arab Emirates (UAE), or simply the Emirates, is a country in West Asia, in the Middle East, at the eastern end of the Arabian Peninsula. It is a Federal monarchy, federal elective monarchy made up of Emirates of the United Arab E ...
played on 2 June 2009, Gómez scored four goals in Germany's 7–2 victory, ending his 15-game goal drought for the national team.
Gómez was named as one of the six forwards in Joachim Löw's 23-man squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup
The 2010 FIFA World Cup was the 19th FIFA World Cup, the world championship for List of men's national association football teams, men's national Association football, football teams. It took place in South Africa from 11 June to 11 July 2010. ...
in South Africa. He featured in four out of seven German matches at the World Cup, all from the substitutes' bench; he played against Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, replacing Mesut Özil
Mesut Özil (, ; born 15 October 1988) is a German former professional association football, footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. Known for his ball control, technical skills, creativity, passing skills, and vision, he is widely re ...
in the 73rd minute; Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
, coming on for left back Holger Badstuber in the 77th minute; England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
, coming on for Miroslav Klose in the 72nd minute; and Spain, replacing defensive midfielder Sami Khedira
Sami Khedira (; ; born 4 April 1987) is a German former professional Association football, footballer who played as a central midfielder.
He began his career at VfB Stuttgart, winning the Bundesliga in 2007, before moving to Real Madrid CF, Re ...
in the 80th minute. However, Gómez again did not score a goal at a major tournament.
UEFA Euro 2012
Despite being second choice, behind Miroslav Klose, for centre-forward during Germany's qualification
Qualification may refer to:
Processes
* Qualifications-Based Selection (QBS), a competitive contract procurement process established by the United States Congress
* Process qualification, ensures that manufacturing and production processes can ...
for Euro 2012, Gómez played regularly and contributed goals against every opponent of that campaign: Kazakhstan
Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a landlocked country primarily in Central Asia, with a European Kazakhstan, small portion in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia to the Kazakhstan–Russia border, north and west, China to th ...
, Austria, Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...
, Turkey
Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...
and Belgium
Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...
. This included two goals against Austria in Germany's 2–1 away win in the Ernst-Happel-Stadion
Ernst-Happel-Stadion (), known as Praterstadion until 1992, is a association football, football stadium in Leopoldstadt, the 2nd district of Austria's capital Vienna. With 50,865 seats, it is the largest stadium in Austria. It was built between 1 ...
, scoring into the very same goal in which he had been unable to score four years earlier during Euro 2008. In a gesture of relief, he kissed the goalpost after he scored the first goal.
Prior to Euro 2012, Gómez captained Germany for the first time in a 3–3 draw against Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the List of European countries by area, second-largest country in Europe after Russia, which Russia–Ukraine border, borders it to the east and northeast. Ukraine also borders Belarus to the nor ...
in the first match at the renovated Olympic Stadion of Kyiv. It was his 50th international cap, and aged 26, he was Germany's oldest player in the starting lineup.
Gómez scored the only goal 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 ...
in their first group match at Euro 2012, securing a 1–0 win for Germany. He then scored twice against the Netherlands
, Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
in Germany's second Group B match, making it three goals in two matches. Gómez finished as second-best scorer of the tournament, behind Spain's Fernando Torres
Fernando José Torres Sanz (; born 20 March 1984) is a Spanish Association football, football Manager (association football), manager and former Football player, player who played as a Striker (association football), striker. He is the curr ...
. Both had three goals and one assist; however, Torres became top scorer of the tournament because he had played fewer minutes than Gómez.
2014 FIFA World Cup
After missing the majority of the 2013–14 season with a knee injury, Gómez was not included in Joachim Löw's squad for the 2014 World Cup which Germany went on to win.
UEFA Euro 2016
Gómez was excluded from the national team for UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying Group D encounters against Ireland
Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...
and Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States
Georgia may also refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Georgia (name), a list of pe ...
. His performance in the first half of the 2015–16 Süper Lig led Gómez to be recalled to the national team for the first time since the international friendly against Argentina on 4 September 2014. He was included the Germany squad for friendlies against France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
and the Netherlands in November 2015. Gómez scored his first international goal in four years in a 2–3 loss to England in Berlin on 26 March 2016.
On 21 June 2016, Gómez was selected to start in Germany's final Euro 2016 group match against Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
; he scored the winning goal in the 30th minute. On 26 June 2016, Gómez scored in the 43rd minute in Germany's Round of 16
A single-elimination knockout, or sudden-death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of a match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final match-up, w ...
3–0 win against Slovakia
Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...
, becoming Germany's all-time leading scorer at the UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro or Euros, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition ...
with five goals.
2018 FIFA World Cup
On 4 June 2018, Gómez was selected in Joachim Löw's 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup
The 2018 FIFA World Cup was the 21st FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national association football, football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Russia from 14 June to 15 July 2018, after the country was awarded t ...
. He made an appearance during Germany's opening match against Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, coming on for Marvin Plattenhardt in the 79th minute, but the game ended in a 1–0 loss for Germany. On 24 June, Gómez provided an assist to Marco Reus
Marco Reus (; born 31 May 1989) is a German professional association football, footballer who plays as a Forward (association football), forward for Major League Soccer club LA Galaxy.
Reus spent his youth career at Borussia Dortmund, prior to l ...
' equalizing goal with his first touch during Germany's second group stage match against Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...
; the game ended in a 2–1 victory. On 5 August, he announced his retirement from international football.
Style of play
During his prime, Gómez was considered one of the best strikers in world football. Throughout his career, Gómez was known for his ability to shoot with both feet and was considered an aerial threat. Additionally, his ability to anticipate crosses and passes and position himself to shoot were considered to be some of his best attributes. Arsenal
An arsenal is a place where arms and ammunition are made, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether privately or publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly ...
manager Arsène Wenger
Arsène Charles Ernest Wenger (born 22 October 1949) is a French former association football, football Manager (association football), manager and football player, player who is currently serving as FIFA's Chief of Global Football Development. ...
described him as "a great finisher who is often in the right place to finish off moves". Gómez's body balance and ability to hold up the ball often created trouble for defenders. During his time at Bayern, his ability to appear "at the right place at the right time" proved to be one of Bayern's most lethal attacking weapons, as Franck Ribéry and Arjen Robben could often outrun defenders and provide a cross for Gómez. However, despite his goal-scoring abilities, Gómez was often accused of having limited skills and a poor work ethic.
Personal life
Gómez was born in Riedlingen, in the state of Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million i ...
. He was brought up in nearby Unlingen, an Upper Swabia
Upper Swabia ( or ) is a region in Germany in the federal states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria.''Brockhaus Enzyklopädie.'' 19. Auflage. Band 16, 1991, p. 72. The name refers to the area between the Swabian Jura, Lake Con ...
n village in Baden-Württemberg, about south of 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 ...
and west of Munich
Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...
. Gómez is of German-Spanish descent. His father, José "Pepe" Gómez García, is a Spaniard
Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking Ethnicity, ethnic group native to the Iberian Peninsula, primarily associated with the modern Nation state, nation-state of Spain. Genetics, Genetically and Ethnolinguisti ...
from Albuñán, Granada
Granada ( ; ) is the capital city of the province of Granada, in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada (Spain), Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence ...
, and his mother, Christel Roth, is German. He has dual citizenship and opted to play for Germany.
Gómez ended his nine-year relationship with Silvia Meichel on 2 October 2012. Gómez began dating German model Carina Wanzung in December 2012. They married on 22 July 2016.
Career statistics
Club
International
:Source:
:''Germany score listed first; score column indicates score after each Gómez goal.''
Honours
VfB Stuttgart
* 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 ...
: 2006–07
Bayern Munich
* Bundesliga: 2009–10, 2012–13[
* ]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 ...
: 2009–10, 2012–13[
* ]UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League (UCL) is an annual club association football competition organised by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) that is contested by List of top-division football clubs in UEFA countries, top-divisio ...
: 2012–13;[ runner-up: 2009–10, 2011–12
Beşiktaş
* ]Süper Lig
The Süper Lig (, ''Super League''), also known as Trendyol Süper Lig for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Turkey and the highest level of the Turkish football league system. In the 2023–2024 season, twen ...
: 2015–16
Germany
* UEFA European Championship
The UEFA European Football Championship, less formally the European Championship and informally the Euro or Euros, is the primary association football tournament organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA). The competition ...
runner-up: 2008
2008 was designated as:
*International Year of Languages
*International Year of Planet Earth
*International Year of the Potato
*International Year of Sanitation
The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
; third place: 2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
* FIFA World Cup
The FIFA World Cup, often called the World Cup, is an international association football competition among the senior List of men's national association football teams, men's national teams of the members of the FIFA, Fédération Internatio ...
third place: 2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
Individual
* Silbernes Lorbeerblatt: 2010
* German Footballer of the Year: 2007
* UEFA European Championship top scorer: 2012
2012 was designated as:
*International Year of Cooperatives
*International Year of Sustainable Energy for All
Events January
*January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins.
* January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...
* Bundesliga top scorer: 2011
The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...
* DFB-Pokal top scorer: 2008
2008 was designated as:
*International Year of Languages
*International Year of Planet Earth
*International Year of the Potato
*International Year of Sanitation
The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...
, 2013
2013 was the first year since 1987 to contain four unique digits (a span of 26 years).
2013 was designated as:
*International Year of Water Cooperation
*International Year of Quinoa
Events
January
* January 5 – 2013 Craig, Alask ...
* Coppa Italia
Coppa Italia () is the annual domestic cup of Italian football. The knockout competition was organized by the DDS and the Lega Calcio until the 2009–10 season and by Lega Serie A ever since.
Juventus is the competition's most successf ...
top scorer: 2015
2015 was designated by the United Nations as:
* International Year of Light
* International Year of Soil __TOC__
Events
January
* January 1 – Lithuania officially adopts the euro as its currency, replacing the litas, and becomes ...
* Süper Lig top scorer: 2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
* Süper Lig Team of the Season: 2015–16
* '' kicker'' 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 ...
Team of the Season: 2007–08, 2010–11, 2011–12
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gomez, Mario
1985 births
Living people
People from Riedlingen
Footballers from Tübingen (region)
German people of Spanish descent
Spanish people of German descent
Sportspeople of Spanish descent
German men's footballers
Spanish men's footballers
Germany men's youth international footballers
Germany men's under-21 international footballers
Germany men's B international footballers
Germany men's international footballers
Men's association football forwards
VfB Stuttgart II players
VfB Stuttgart players
FC Bayern Munich footballers
ACF Fiorentina players
Beşiktaş J.K. footballers
VfL Wolfsburg players
Regionalliga players
Bundesliga players
Serie A players
Süper Lig players
2. Bundesliga players
UEFA Champions League–winning players
UEFA Euro 2008 players
2010 FIFA World Cup players
UEFA Euro 2012 players
UEFA Euro 2016 players
2018 FIFA World Cup players
Kicker-Torjägerkanone Award winners
German expatriate men's footballers
Spanish expatriate men's footballers
Expatriate men's footballers in Italy
Expatriate men's footballers in Turkey
German expatriate sportspeople in Italy
German expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Italy
Spanish expatriate sportspeople in Turkey
21st-century German sportsmen
21st-century Spanish sportsmen