Born in Stuttgart, the state capital of Baden-Württemberg, to Norbert Klopp, a travelling salesman and a former goalkeeper, Klopp grew up in the countryside in the Black Forest village of Glatten near Freudenstadt with two older sisters. He started playing for local club SV Glatten and later TuS Ergenzingen as a junior player, with the next stint at 1. FC Pforzheim and then at three Frankfurt clubs, Eintracht Frankfurt II, Viktoria Sindlingen and Rot-Weiss Frankfurt during his adolescence. Introduced to football through his father, Klopp was a supporter of VfB Stuttgart in his youth. As a young boy, Klopp aspired to become a doctor, but he did not believe he "was ever smart enough for a medical career", saying "when they were handing out our A-Level certificates, my headmaster said to me, 'I hope it works out with football, otherwise it's not looking too good for you'".
Early life and playing career
Jürgen Klopp
Jürgen Klopp | Early life and playing career
In 1990 1990 1990 1990
how many times has liverpool won the premiership
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Nineteen times
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when was this football club formed?
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In 1892
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who was its founder?
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John Houlding
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what was this person's profession?
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He was the chairman of the Club
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how would you describe this club's badge?
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It has the city's symbol of the liver bird in its badge
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where do they play their home games?
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At Anfield
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is this above place a stadium?
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Yes it is a stadium
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other than sports, does this place also host other events?
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It has been a venue for musicians of different genres as well as evangelical preachers
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approximately how many people can be seated in this place?
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It has a seating capacity of 53,394
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can you name a few players or managers from that sporting club in the 19th century?
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Jürgen Klopp and Rafael Benítez
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when did the first person begin his football career?
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Born in Stuttgart, the state capital of Baden-Württemberg, to Norbert Klopp, a travelling salesman and a former goalkeeper, Klopp grew up in the countryside in the Black Forest village of Glatten near Freudenstadt with two older sisters. He started playing for local club SV Glatten and later TuS Ergenzingen as a junior player, with the next stint at 1. FC Pforzheim and then at three Frankfurt clubs, Eintracht Frankfurt II, Viktoria Sindlingen and Rot-Weiss Frankfurt during his adolescence. Introduced to football through his father, Klopp was a supporter of VfB Stuttgart in his youth. As a young boy, Klopp aspired to become a doctor, but he did not believe he "was ever smart enough for a medical career", saying "when they were handing out our A-Level certificates, my headmaster said to me, 'I hope it works out with football, otherwise it's not looking too good for you'".
Jürgen Klopp | Early life and playing career
While playing as an amateur footballer, Klopp worked a number of part-time jobs including working at a local video rental store and loading heavy items onto lorries. In 1988, while attending the Goethe University of Frankfurt, as well as playing for Eintracht Frankfurt non-professionals, Klopp managed the Frankfurt D-Juniors. In the summer of 1990, Klopp was signed by Mainz 05. He spent most of his professional career in Mainz, from 1990 to 2001, with his attitude and commitment making him a fan-favourite. Originally a striker, Klopp began playing as a defender in 1995. That same year, Klopp obtained a diploma in sports science at the Goethe University of Frankfurt (MSc equivalent), writing his thesis about walking.
Jürgen Klopp | Early life and playing career
He retired as Mainz 05's record goal scorer, registering 56 goals in total, including 52 league goals. Klopp confessed that as a player he felt more suited to a managerial role, describing himself saying "I had fourth-division feet and a first-division head". Recalling his trial at Eintracht Frankfurt where he played alongside Andreas Möller, Klopp described how his 19-year-old self thought, "if that's football, I’m playing a completely different game. He was world-class. I was not even class". As a player, Klopp closely followed his manager's methods on the training field as well as making weekly trips to Cologne to study under Erich Rutemöller to obtain his Football Coaching Licence.
Jürgen Klopp | Early life and playing career
His younger brother Klaus is also a professional footballer.
Jürgen Gjasula | Personal life
Football started in six years. First coach — Andreý Skripçenko. Then worked with Boris Grigorýans. He graduated from the International Turkmen-Turkish University.
Berdi Şamyradow | Early life
Born in Lampertheim, Hesse, Schlappner's early career in football was not particularly eventful. He played for his local football team in Lampertheim in his youth and only progressed up to amateur football or lower league regional football. He moved instead into coaching before he retired playing and achieved the necessary coaching certificates in 1976 before carrying on with his studies in Cologne to achieve a certificate in teaching football management.
Klaus Schlappner | Early career
In 1905 he started in the first ever home match of the Netherlands national football team, a 4-0 victory against Belgium. Some historians attribute one of the goals scored to him.
Willem Hesselink | International career
Born in Kassel, he started playing football in Erlangen. His first club was Potsdamer Kickers 94, where he played for the F- to D-Youth teams. Subsequently, he went through the youth ranks of nearby SV Babelsberg and Hertha BSC.
Jan Löhmannsröben | Early life
He was part of the 1954 FIFA World Cup-winning squad, and also played in the 1958 FIFA World Cup.
Bernhard Klodt | Football career
In the summer of 1997, Kientz returned to his country and to 1860 Munich, now in the top level, starting in one season and being backup in the other. He scored his first goal in the competition on 7 November 1998, albeit in a 1–3 derby loss against FC Bayern Munich.
Jochen Kientz | Football career
Walter was exposed to football early with his parents working at the 1. FC Kaiserslautern club restaurant. By 1928 he had joined the Kaiserslautern youth academy, and he made his first team debut at 17, continuing an association with the club that would be his only professional club. International pro teams had repeatedly offered him hefty sums, but with support from his wife always declined in order to stay at home, to play for his home town, the national team and "Chef" (German for "boss") Herberger.
Fritz Walter | Early club career
Five days later he played his first match as a professional, starting in a 0–1 away loss against Girona FC.
Iñaki Sáenz | Football career
Sillak was born in Märjamaa. He began playing football in 1919, at age 13, with the Sport U19 academy.
Karl-Rudolf Silberg-Sillak | Early life
Chencho Gyeltshen hails from Paro District. He started playing football in primary school, with his brother inspiring him to play. He cites Cristiano Ronaldo as the player who is his inspiration. From class six to ten, he studied in Loselling MSS. He attended Kelki Higher Secondary School until class XII. He originally intended to become a martial artist before deciding to stop his studies to become a professional football player.
Chencho Gyeltshen | Early life and education
At the age of 16 he played youth football for Fyllingen. After two seasons in Vadmyra IL, where he played both junior and senior football, he returned to Fyllingen, this time in the senior team.
Erik Huseklepp | Early career
He injured a ligament in his left knee, and was unable to fully recover. He ended his professional football career in 1997, only 28 years old.
Jakob Kjeldbjerg | Club career
Janssens began playing football in 2003 with Tubize. In 2012, he switched to the academy of Belgian First Division A side Mons and then to Gent for one season in 2014.
Mathias Janssens | Early career
Born in Tirana, Albania, Gjasula started his career in the town where he grew up at SC Freiburg in Germany in 2002. At the age of 17 he was put into the first team but did not make any appearances.
Jürgen Gjasula | Freiburg
Jürgen Wilhelm spent three seasons in professional football:
Jürgen Wilhelm | Professional career
Dolf made his debut as a football player at seventeen years of age, at the Hague football club HVV. At first he stood leftback, later he was a right winger. At HVV he became national champion four times between 1901 and 1905. On 30 April 1905 he was captain during the first official international match of the Dutch national team. They beat Belgium with a 4–1 score. The second interland and first home match also saw Kessler leading the team. For his third and last interland in 1906 Dolf had passed the captaincy on to Kees Bekker. Kessler seriously considered a career in football until later that year he dislocated his knee, ending his career in football.
Dolf Kessler | Football career
Jesper Fredberg began his career as a professional player at the age of 15. He played in the club of AGF Aarhus.
Jesper Fredberg | Professional football career
Say no more he began playing football with NFC Rot-Weiß Neukölln, before moving to the youth program of Union Berlin via Tasmania Gropiusstadt and Tennis Borussia Berlin.
Ahmed Waseem Razeek | Early career
Jürgen Damm was born to an upper middle class family. His paternal grandfather is from Germany, and as a result, he holds a German passport. He was born in the coastal city of Tuxpan, state of Veracruz, and due to his father's job, 2-year-old Damm and his family moved to Toronto. After two years in Canada, Jürgen and his family returned to Mexico and settled in Guadalajara, where he began his football career. As his father always believed education was first, due to their family heritage, so Jürgen was not allowed to join any clubs until age 17, and he continues to pursue a degree in Business Administration.
Jürgen Damm | Early life
During his youth in Kiel, Sieloff aimed to become a boxer, having stood in the ring 25 times by the age of 14. When his family moved to Rottweil near Stuttgart and after visiting football games of VfB Stuttgart at Neckarstadion, Sieloff's interest however shifted from boxing to football. In October 1960, he played his first game for VfB Stuttgart in the Oberliga Süd. There he soon became a fixture in the stopper position in Stuttgart's team.
Klaus-Dieter Sieloff | Early life
According to Bergkamp, his childhood footballing heroes were Glenn Hoddle, whom he admired for his soft precise touch, and Johan Cruyff, who once coached him when he was twelve.
Dennis Bergkamp | Early life
Anecdote has it that some Viennese football fans went to Sindelar's games not only to see him play but to get a better understanding of how football should be played.
Matthias Sindelar | Club career (1918–1939)
Born in 1998, Thurnwald started his football career with Rapid Wien youth team.
Manuel Thurnwald | Early career
Van Breukelen, born in Utrecht, started playing club football at amateur team BVC from De Bilt in 1964. In 1974, he reached the BVC first team at age 17. A few months later, Van Breukelen was transferred to FC Utrecht. In his youth, he studied to become a teacher; even after he signed for FC Utrecht, he finished his study in pedagogy and taught at schools.
Hans van Breukelen | Early years
While beginning his career as a football player, Gourcuff admired and drew inspiration from the playing style of the Brazil national team from the 1970s, whom he discovered from watching tapes with his father. He often attempted to emulate the skills of Brazilian legend Pelé.
Yoann Gourcuff | Early and personal life
He was known for being one of the first "playing" goalkeepers, actively participating in the game. In games he always wore a grey sweater and a flat cap.
Heinrich Stuhlfauth | Playing career
Peqini started his youth career at age of 14 with KF Elbasani in September 2012. During the 2013–14 season he played with under-17 side and made 22 appearances. In the 2015–16 season he appeared for under-19 side playing 14 matches and scoring 2 goals and also he gained entry with the first team.
Jurgen Peqini | Early career
Demirbay was born in Herten, North Rhine-Westphalia. He began playing club football with FC Schalke 04 in 1999. After several years with the club, he continued his training with Borussia Dortmund and SG Wattenscheid 09.
Kerem Demirbay | Early life and career
He scored two goal in the domestic league, the other six were scored during the test games.
Heinrich Hess (footballer) | Football career
His first exposure to football occurred on his first day of school in 1984, when he watched BYU play at Pitt in BYU's Cougar Stadium. After seeing that action Greg knew he had found his calling and applied for a job at KBYU. They sent him to work covering the fencing team.
Greg Wrubell | Early life
In the early 20th century, football began to catch on in the general population of the United States and was the subject of intense competition and rivalry, albeit of a localized nature. Although payments to players were considered unsporting and dishonorable at the time, a Pittsburgh area club, the Allegheny Athletic Association, of the unofficial western Pennsylvania football circuit, surreptitiously hired former Yale All-American guard Pudge Heffelfinger. On November 12, 1892, Heffelfinger became the first known professional football player. He was paid $500 to play in a game against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club. Heffelfinger picked up a Pittsburgh fumble and ran 35 yards for a touchdown, winning the game 4–0 for Allegheny.
Early history of American football | Early players, teams, and leagues (1892–1919)
Friedrich and his brother Dragutin began playing at the NK Slaven Belupo but soon left for the HAŠK club in 1923 although Krešimir was mostly a reserve player in the latter team.
Krešimir Friedrich | Football career
Kirsten was born in Riesa, East Germany. In 1989, at the age of two, he began to play football at Dynamo Dresden and in July 1990 left with his father Ulf Kirsten for Bayer 04 Leverkusen where he played the following 16 years with the side's youth team.
Benjamin Kirsten | Early life
Afterwards he retired from competitive sport. He later worked as a civil servant in Main-Kinzig-Kreis. May is 1.74 m tall and had a match weight of 68 kg.
Jürgen May | New start in the FRG
After a brief discussion, the man gave Rooney a typed, 49-page manuscript about the early history of pro football. Ross' examination of Pittsburgh newspapers indicated that the first pro American football player actually was Pudge Heffelfinger, an all-American guard from Yale, who was hired to play for Allegheny on November 12, 1892 for $500 ($ in dollars). The Pro Football Hall of Fame soon discovered a page torn from an 1892 account ledger prepared by Allegheny manager, O. D. Thompson, that included the line item: "Game performance bonus to W. Heffelfinger for playing (cash) $500." Though the payment was not verified until the acquisition of an Allegheny Athletic Association expense ledger from the day by the Pro Football Hall of Fame, this fee established Heffelfinger as being the first professional American football player on record.
Pudge Heffelfinger | First professional football player
Khlebasolaw started his football career at age 23 after three years in the navy.
Andrey Khlebasolaw | Career
In the early 20th century, football began to catch on in the general population of the United States and was the subject of intense competition and rivalry, albeit of a localized nature. Although payments to players were considered unsporting and dishonorable at the time, a Pittsburgh area club, the Allegheny Athletic Association, of the unofficial western Pennsylvania football circuit, surreptitiously hired former Yale All-American guard Pudge Heffelfinger. On November 12, 1892, Heffelfinger became the first known professional football player. He was paid $500 to play in a game against the Pittsburgh Athletic Club. Heffelfinger picked up a Pittsburgh fumble and ran 35 yards for a touchdown, winning the game 4–0 for Allegheny.
History of American football | Early players, teams, and leagues (1892–1919)
Furlano began playing football at the age of five at Barrie SC. He later attended St. Peter’s Secondary School and Bill Crothers Secondary School.
Steven Furlano | Early career
Nowak became notable for being the first attacking full-back in German football. Between September 1961 and November 1964, Nowak was the standard right back of West Germany, starting in 15 out of 20 international games during that period. He didn't score during this period.
Hans Nowak | International career
He hold the record for being the oldest person to have played in a professional Chinese football match aged 42 years and 348 days, as well as the oldest person to have scored in a professional Chinese football match aged 42 years and 292 days before 2018 when Zhuang Yi broke his records.
Anatoli Davydov | Career
His brother Sebastian currently plays football for SSV Ulm 1846.
Manuel Fischer | Personal life
Sports, however, remained important to him.
Dolf Kessler | Football career
On 28 January 2010, he announced his retirement from professional football.
Christoph Preuß | Career
Paul Oßwald began as a youth player at local club VfL Saalfeld/Thüringen. At Minerva 93 Berlin he played as a senior player in the midfield. He graduated at the German sport academy and took the examination as a sports teacher. The then German national manager Otto Nerz discovered his ability for team leading and managing and connected him to Eintracht Frankfurt in 1928.
Paul Oßwald | Early career, 1918–28
His brother Karl was also a professional football player and manager.
Ferdinand Humenberger | Personal life
His longest period in the side came in the 1909–10 season, when he took over from new signing Andrew Davidson after the first six matches, retaining the No. 5 shirt for the remainder of the season. Jepp started the following season as the regular centre-half, before losing his place to Frank Monk after five matches. Although Jepp made a further four appearances later in the season, including playing as centre-forward against Luton Town on New Year's Eve, he was unable to regain a regular place in the side and was released in the summer of 1911.
Sam Jepp | Football career
Chappuis began his playing career with hometown club FC Kloten but soon moved on to SC YF Juventus, spending some time in their youth ranks. He was on the move again though as Swiss Super League side Grasshopper Club snapped up the promising midfielder in July 2003.
Charyl Chappuis | Early career
In 1983, he served as a technical advisor in Korea Football Association
Bernhard Zgoll | Career
Marin began his footballing career as a youth player, first with SG 01 Hoechst and then with Eintracht Frankfurt.
Marko Marin | Early career
Sørensen played for Odense BK among other clubs. However at the age of 30 he suffered a knee injury that ended his playing career.
Jan Vang Sørensen | Football career
Putzendopler started his youth football and his football career by Rapid Wien. During the season 1919/20 he played a total of four games in the Austrian Championship. During 1920 he and his elder brother Gustav Putzendopler moved to Switzerland to find work. Both had suffered due to the First World War, in fact Gustav had been held captured by the Russians for over 40 months. The brothers had completed an apprenticeship in Galvanoplastic and after the War both were unable to find an occupation in their home country. In Basel they both found work and both joined FC Basel and settled in quickly, they played regularly.
Karl Putzendopler | Football career
He was part of the Netherlands national football team, playing 1 match on 31 August 1919 against Norway. He was the first player from Limburg to play for the national team.
Huub Felix | International career
After his retirement from football, Klodt among other things coached the youth team of FC Schalke 04 and also worked as salesman for a brewery. After suffering a heart attack and a stroke in 1990, he was paralysed from the right.
Bernhard Klodt | After football
Ostendarp was born in Baltimore, Maryland in 1923. He began playing football at age eight and later recalled his early years playing the game as follows: I grew up in Baltimore and all the kids play football in that city. On a Sunday afternoon there must be 50 kids' games going on there. They're all neighborhood teams. I started playing first for a team that was formed by the kids on the street I lived on. We played against kids from the nearby streets. When I was 10 I played for a club team. I mean we just got together and formed a club and gave it a name.
Jim Ostendarp | Early years
Following his retirement from football, Kreische worked as a coach with Dynamo's youth system and had a brief spell as first-team manager, during the 1995–96 season. As of April 2010, he is working as a successful scout for RB Leipzig.
Hans-Jürgen Kreische | After football
As a player for amateur side SC 09 Oberlahnstein, Wilhelm played one game for the German national amateur football team, a 4–2 loss to Luxembourg on 3 March 1971.
Jürgen Wilhelm | Early career
Hesse spent most of his childhood in Creutzwald, where he started to play football.
Patrick Hesse | Early life
Van Beveren was born in Amsterdam, where he spent his first years. His father was Wil van Beveren, a sprinter who appeared at the 1936 Olympic Games, competing against Jesse Owens in the 200 metres event. His mother was a regional athlete. Van Beveren immediately started playing football as a goalkeeper at age 3 with his brother Wil. His first footballing years were spent on the Stadionplein, next to the Olympic Stadium. In 1958, the Van Beveren family moved to Emmen, where father Wil could get a job at the local newspaper. The two sons Jan and Wil subsequently joined amateur club VV Emmen.
Jan van Beveren | Early years
In doing so, Askildsen became the first player born after the Millennium to score for Sampdoria.
Kristoffer Askildsen | Career
Damet was born on 19 March 1990 in Marseille, France. He first started playing football at age 8 following the 1998 FIFA World Cup, which was both hosted in and won by France. At age 17, he says he played club football at the fifth tier of the French football league system. However, he did not think he was skilled enough to play professionally, so he turned his interests to coaching at age 16. In 2011, he earned a degree in sports training with a specialty in football from the University of Burgundy in Dijon, France.
Yoann Damet | Early life
It proves that tallness isn't really important for football. Quality, ability and competence are. He showed he is such a competent player, in spite of his young age."
Dudu (footballer, born 1992) | Early career
He was born in Cuenca. His younger brother Martin was also a footballer.
Fausto Klinger (footballer, born 1976) | Early and personal life
In 2001, Loeffen retired from professional football due to injuries at age 29. He had appeared in 216 league matches for TOP Oss, SBV Vitesse, FC Zwolle and Willem II Tilburg.
Huub Loeffen | Career
In 1976, he joined 1. FC Köln, becoming the first player in German football to be signed for a transfer fee of DM 1 million.
Roger Van Gool | Club career
Engelkes started playing football at amateur club Alliance '22 from his hometown, Haarlem. Soon, he was scouted by a professional football club, HFC Haarlem. However, he would only appear for their reserve team, and during his early twenties, he expressed interest in becoming a manager.
Ed Engelkes | Playing career
As a young boy, Graf was an avid footballer. He started with his local football club DJK Engen and later became a goalkeeper at FC Höhen. In his teens, he was selected to join a group of talented young players trained by Sepp Herberger. Herberger was a forward in the German national team from 1921–25, and later head coach of the German 1954 FIFA World Cup-winning team. However, a broken thumb ended Graf's early hopes for a professional football career. Graf finished his "Volksschule" (primary school) in 1926 at the age of thirteen. Without the means to fund a higher education, Graf applied for an apprenticeship.
Hermann Graf | Early life
Kiefer was a member of this tour. He played in all ten of these games. Kiefer scored his first league goal for the club on 13 March 1966, it was the equaliser in the away 1–1 draw against Young Boys.
Josef Kiefer | Football career
Ulrich started playing football at Akademisk Boldklub of Copenhagen and later in Kjøbenhavns Boldklub. After retiring, he served as a football referee for 25 more years.
Einer Ulrich | Football career
During his football career, he played as a defender for Velocitas 1897 from Groningen.
Ron Groenewoud | Playing career
Mentzingen was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and attended the Instituto São José in São José dos Campos. He began playing football when he was four years old.
Rafael Mentzingen | Early life
Wahyudi started playing football at the age of nine, but football was not his first love. He started off participating in his elementary school band, before joining the school football team after many of his friends did so. Wahyudi did not even have a proper pair of soccer boots during his first training session, and used his school shoes to play then. It was his speed and shooting skills that ultimately earned the favour of his school coach and got him selected into the school team. Wahyudi took his first step towards building his footballing career when he turned out for Tanjong Pagar United's Centre of Excellence trials at the age of fifteen.
Wahyudi Wahid | Early life
"My first year here in Germany has been nice," Boakye told in April 2004. “I’m very happy to start my career here, and I hope to get the chance to play in the Bundesliga soon. Bielefeld is doing well now, and the football is very competitive. That's good for me.”
Isaac Boakye | Professional career
He began his football career with Navbahor Namangan in 1997 at the age of 15.
Server Djeparov | Early career
After a loan to Turkey's Besiktas JK, Ohen's final years were highly irregular, and he also dealt with injury problems. After an unassuming spell with CD Leganés, he saw out his career with his first club Julius Berger.
Christopher Ohen | Football career
His niece is the footballer Katie Zelem. Zelem was the first post-war Football League player to have a surname beginning with a Z, first appearing the season before Romeo Zondervan joined Ipswich Town.
Peter Zelem | Playing career
His brother, Ludwig, has also played professional football.
Guillaume Norbert | Personal life
In this varied bunch, some players rose above others in terms of talent. A key player early on was Johannes Rosenløwe, who was a versatile playmaker known for both his strong offensive as well as defensive abilities. He would later become priest in . Another noteworthy player of the early days was Aage Ewald Sørensen, who was club captain and is remembered as an inspirational figure on – but also off – the pitch, where he would continue his career as a sexton in Silkeborg.
Silkeborg KFUM | Formation and beginnings (1918–1920)
He played professional football for FC Volendam (1996-1997), Sparta Rotterdam (1997-1999) and FC Dordrecht (1999).
Gert Aandewiel | Club career
He was born in Lier, Belgium. By the age of 7, Ceulemans was playing billiards on the table in his father's café. He also liked to play association football at the local club. Although he was a good midfielder (in 1958 he was discovered by the club K. Beerschot V.A.C. but a transfer was never made) he stopped playing football and began to concentrate on billiards.
Raymond Ceulemans | Early life
He was part of the Netherlands national football team, playing 2 matches against Germany and Belgium. He played his first match on 5 April 1914.
Nico Buwalda | International career
Dieter Klaußner (born 1 June 1938) is a German soccer player who played as a defender before retiring from professional play in 1973.
Dieter Klaußner | Introduction
Mohammed began his footballing career in 1995 with his hometown, Abidjan-based Ecole de Football Attécoubé of Attécoubé where he played for 4 consecutive years.
Mohamed Koffi | Youth career
In his long career he played amongst others also for Dresdner SC, FSV Frankfurt, Vereinigte Breslauer Sportfreunde. In 1911 he played briefly for the now extinct club Stade Helvétique Marseille in France, where he was taken aback by the conditions; a wooden cabin to change was all on offer. Often he changed clubs in order to follow career prospects. He ended his playing career in the mid-1920s in Leipzig.
Camillo Ugi | Football career
Friedenreich would play football from his early childhood and then on. His father was very supportive of his skills and really helped him on his path to the great player he would become. At first in his career was not very good and would not hit his peak performance until 1925. At some point in his life he married his wife named Jonas and together they had a son who they named after Friedenreich's father, Oscar. Both would out live Friedenreich and would be left with no money.
Arthur Friedenreich | Personal life
His football career took off immediately and quite immediately after Pasha came to Sweden, he visited the local club Rönninge/Salem Fotboll.
Peshraw Azizi | Early years
Kovač started training football as an eight-year old with Rapide Wedding in Berlin. After that he joined Hertha Zehlendorf and soon became a member of the first team. He moved to Hertha BSC in 1991 and started his professional career with the club that competed in the 2. Bundesliga at the time. During his youth, Kovač in parallel with football practised judo, earning the blue belt. After finishing high school (gymnasium) he continued his education at Free University of Berlin. He pursued a degree in business studies while playing for Hertha BSC. After eight semesters, he left university when he secured a contract with Bayer Leverkusen.
Niko Kovač | Early career (1987–1996)
He started playing football at age 11. He studied at the institution from Grade 1. He had to repeat one whole school year of 2nd year high school education after he failed to meet his requirements. During his college years he received a scholarship from the YCO Athletic Club.
Johnny Romualdez | Early life and education
Born in Mannheim, Germany, Kuhn started playing football at age 14. He was introduced to the sport while spending vacations with his family in Florida. His interest and curiosity led him to start playing football in Germany and he eventually began playing linebacker and defensive tackle for the Weinheim Longhorns, winning Rookie of The Year. Kuhn was a four-time German Football League All-Star.
Markus Kuhn (American football) | Early years
He gained his first regular experience of senior football with 22 appearances for the reserve team.
Christian Nørgaard | Early years
As an amateur he was automatically released at the end of the season, although he played one further game for the club in an emergency.
Neil Paterson (writer) | Early life and football career
Gede began playing football in FC Schalke 04 in 1975. In 1977, he joined to SC Preußen Münster and after playing 71 times for club, he left Preußen and joined SC Fortuna Köln. He made 344 appearances for Fortuna Köln and scored 48 goals. He retired in 1991.
Hans-Jürgen Gede | Playing career
This is believed to be the earliest known picture of an England football team.
Edgar Field | Career outside football
Mainz 05 Borussia Dortmund Liverpool Individual
Jürgen Klopp | Honours
Than his family moved to Jablonec where he started playing football for FK Jablonec. In his 15 years he moved to Brno.
Tomáš Weber | Early career
Born in Osterode am Harz, Ebbighausen began his career at fellow Niedersachsen-based clubs Arminia Hannover and Hannover 96 as a youth player. Following his education, Ebbighausen played senior football for Karlsruher SC, FT Braunschweig and .
Klaus Ebbighausen | Playing career
Holebas' first club was local youth team Südring, which he joined in 1992 when he was eight. He played at non-professional youth football teams in German football which included playing for Südring, FC Kleinwallstadt and TSV Teutonia Obernau until 2001, when his girlfriend got pregnant and José, at age 18, decided to temporarily give up football. He had to work the double shift as a warehouse assistant in order to financially support his family. A year later, in 2002 and with the guidance of his German-American uncle, Alfonso, whom Holebas described as his "second father" and "who gave me the kicks I needed to get my life back on track," helped him begin playing football again.
José Holebas | Early years