Niklas Süle (born 3 September 1995) 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 either 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 ...

right-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 ...

for club

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 ...

and the Germany national team. Süle started his career at TSG Hoffenheim, before joining Bayern Munich in 2017, where he won five Bundesligas, 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 ...

, and four

DFL-Supercup The Franz Beckenbauer Supercup or ''German Super Cup'' is a one-off association football, football match in Germany that features the winners of the Bundesliga championship and the DFB-Pokal. The competition is run by the Deutsche Fußball Liga (E ...

titles, in addition to one each of

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 ...

UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup Association football, football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions: the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's offic ...

and

FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup (FIFA CWC) is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' (FIFA), the sport's global sports governing body, governing body. The compe ...

. He later signed for Borussia Dortmund in 2022. At international level, he represented Germany, in which he achieved the

2017 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup was the tenth and final edition of the FIFA Confederations Cup, a quadrennial international men's Association football, football tournament organised by FIFA. It was held in Russia, from 17 June to 2 July 2017, ...

, and featured in 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 in

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

and

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 ...

Club career

Early career

Süle started his career with Rot-Weiß Walldorf. In July 2006, he signed for the youth team of

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 ...

, where he played until the end of the 2008–09 season. In July 2009, he signed for the youth team of SV Darmstadt 98, and only half a year later he left for the youth team at 1899 Hoffenheim.

1899 Hoffenheim

left, Süle with Hoffenheim in 2014 On 11 May 2013, Süle made his debut for Hoffenheim in a

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 ...

game against

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 ...

. He started the match but was substituted for Andreas Ludwig in the 81st minute. Hoffenheim lost the game 4–1. During the 2012–13 season, Süle made two Bundesliga appearances and two relegation playoff appearances as Hoffenheim defeated

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 ...

to stay in the Bundesliga. During the 2013–14 season Süle established himself as an important first team player for Hoffenheim. Süle played in 25 Bundesliga matches and scored four goals as he helped Hoffenheim finish 9th in the league. Süle started the 2014–15 season strong and played every minute during the first 14 Bundesliga matches. On 12 December 2014, Süle suffered a torn

anterior cruciate ligament The anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) is one of a pair of cruciate ligaments (the other being the posterior cruciate ligament) in the human knee. The two ligaments are called "cruciform" ligaments, as they are arranged in a crossed formation. In ...

during matchday 15 against Frankfurt. Süle was sidelined for the rest of the season due to the injury. Hoffenheim finished 8th in the league. Süle returned for the 2015–16 season after the ACL tear. He played every minute in 33 Bundesliga matches as Hoffenheim finished a disappointing 15th in the league. Süle had a very impressive 2016–17 season for Hoffenheim as he played in 33 Bundesliga matches. Hoffenheim finished in an impressive 4th in the Bundesliga. Süle's performance drew interest from clubs like Bayern Munich and Chelsea. On 15 January 2017, Bayern Munich had announced that they had signed Süle along with Sebastian Rudy from Hoffenheim as a double swoop. Both Süle and Rudy joined Bayern Munich on 1 July 2017.

Bayern Munich

upSüle training with Bayern in 2018 Süle's first appearance came as he was named a starter for Bayern Munich's season opener against

Bayer 04 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 association football, football club based in Leverkusen, North Rhine-Westphalia. ...

on 18 August 2017. He scored the first goal of the

2017–18 Bundesliga The 2017–18 Bundesliga was the 55th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football competition. It began on 18 August 2017 and concluded on 12 May 2018. The fixtures were announced on 29 June 2017. Following an offline test phase in the ...

season, heading in a free kick from fellow Bayern newcomer and Hoffenheim-product Sebastian Rudy. On 12 September 2017, Süle made his Champions League debut against

Anderlecht Anderlecht (; ) is one of the List of municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, 19 municipalities of the Brussels-Capital Region, Belgium. Located in the south-western part of the region, it is bordered by the City of Brussels, Forest, B ...

. Süle played in 27 Bundesliga matches and scored two goals. He made nine appearances in the Champions League during the season. Süle won his first Bundesliga title after Bayern Munich finished 21 points ahead of second-placed Schalke 04. Süle also reached his first

final as Bayern Munich were beaten 3–1 by Süle's former youth club, Eintracht Frankfurt. Süle started the 2018–19 season by playing in the 2018 German Super Cup, which Bayern won 5–0. On 20 April 2019, Süle scored the winning goal in a 1–0 win over

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 ...

. The win kept Bayern at the top of the Bundesliga table. On 18 May 2019, Süle won his second Bundesliga title as Bayern finished with 78 points, two points above Dortmund. A week later, Süle won his first DFB-Pokal as Bayern defeated

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 ...

3–0 in the 2019 DFB-Pokal Final. He played in 31 Bundesliga matches and scored two goals. During the Bundesliga season, Süle had a 95 percent pass completion while having the fourth most touches of any Bundesliga player. Süle appeared in 42 matches in all competitions and scored two goals. Süle tore his

in the 12th minute of the team's eighth league match of the 2019-20 season and was expected to be out of the line-up for eight to ten months, preventing him from participating with Germany for

UEFA Euro 2020 The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the Anniversary#Latin-derived numerical names, quadrennial international men's association footb ...

, before the tournament was postponed. On 8 August 2020, Süle played against Chelsea in the Champions League, marking his first match since October 2019. He then started from the bench in the later games in the Champions League. On 23 August 2020, Süle came on from the bench in the 2020 UEFA Champions League Final and replaced Jérôme Boateng after he suffered an early injury. He won the Champions League, completing the continental treble for that season. On 9 December 2020, Süle scored his first Champions League goal in a 2–0 win over

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 ...

Borussia Dortmund

Süle agreed to join

starting from the 2022–23 season on a free transfer on a four-year contract. On 22 October 2022, he recorded his first goal and assist for the club in a 5–0 win over

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 ...

International career

Süle participated in the 2012 UEFA European Under-17 Championship with the German U17 team. He was part of the squad for the

2016 Summer Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

, where Germany won the silver medal. Süle was called up in August 2016 when the Germany national team played

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

and

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

. He was brought off in the 59th minute against Finland. Süle was named in Germany's final 23-man squad by Joachim Löw 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 ...

. On 27 June, Süle made his first

World Cup A world cup is a global sporting competition in which the participant entities – usually international teams or individuals representing their countries – compete for the title of world champion. The event most associated with the name is ...

appearance in the last match of the group stage in a 2–0 defeat to

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

, as Germany got knocked out of the World Cup in the first round for the first time since

1938 Events January * January 1 – state-owned enterprise, State-owned railway networks are created by merger, in France (SNCF) and the Netherlands (Nederlandse Spoorwegen – NS). * January 20 – King Farouk of Egypt marries Saf ...

. On 19 May 2021, he was selected for the

squad. On 10 November 2022, he was called up for the

2022 FIFA World Cup The 2022 FIFA World Cup was the 22nd FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for national football teams organized by FIFA. It took place in Qatar from 20 November to 18 December 2022, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

in Qatar.

Personal life

Süle was born in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

. His grandfather György emigrated with his wife from

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

to Germany. His father Georg worked as a coach at Rot-Weiss Walldorf; meanwhile, his elder brother, Fabian, had a football scholarship at the St. Francis College in New York to study Business Management, Economics and Finance. His family name is of Hungarian origin, but the manager of the

Turkish Football Federation The Turkish Football Federation (; TFF) is the governing body of association football in Turkey. It was formed on 23 April 1923, and joined FIFA the same year and UEFA in 1962. It organizes the Turkey national football team, the Turkish Foo ...

under-16 national team contacted Süle during his teenage years about the possibility of playing for them as Süle's surname seemed Turkish to him. He was also eligible for the Hungary national team, since he holds Hungarian citizenship. Süle had a son in late 2020 with his girlfriend Melissa Halter.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''As of match played 26 September 2022. Scores and results list Germany's goal tally first.''

Honours

Bayern Munich *

: 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22 *

: 2018–19, 2019–20 *

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

2021 Like the year 2020, 2021 was also heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, due to the emergence of multiple Variants of SARS-CoV-2, COVID-19 variants. The major global rollout of COVID-19 vaccines, which began at the end of 2020, continued ...

: 2019–20 *

Borussia Dortmund *UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2023–24 Germany Olympic *

Summer Olympic Games The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The 1896 Summer Olympics, inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, ...

silver medal:

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 ...

Germany *

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBO ...

Individual * UEFA Champions League Breakthrough XI: 2017 * Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2016–17 * '' kicker'' Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2021–22

References

External links

Profile
at the Borussia Dortmund website * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sule, Niklas 1995 births Living people Footballers from Frankfurt German men's footballers German people of Hungarian descent Sportspeople of Hungarian descent Men's association football central defenders Men's association football fullbacks TSG 1899 Hoffenheim II players TSG 1899 Hoffenheim players FC Bayern Munich footballers Borussia Dortmund players Regionalliga players Bundesliga players UEFA Champions League–winning players Germany men's youth international footballers Germany men's under-21 international footballers Germany men's international footballers 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2018 FIFA World Cup players UEFA Euro 2020 players 2022 FIFA World Cup players FIFA Confederations Cup–winning players Olympic footballers for Germany Footballers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for Germany Olympic medalists in football 21st-century German sportsmen