Julian Brandt

The 27-year-old midfielder has been under contract with Borussia Dortmund since July 2019. The international made 169 appearances (30 goals / 34 assists) for BVB across all competitions byJune 2023 (cut-off date for all data) and won the DFB Cup in 2021.

The early years: From SC Borgfeld to the U19 championship

Julian Brandt was born in Bremen on 2 May 1996 and started out as a five-year-old at suburban club SC Borgfeld. From 2009 to 2011, he played for FC Oberneuland for two years before the attacking player moved to VfL Wolfsburg's youth training centre. He became German U19 champion in 2013.

Brandt's breakthrough at Bayer Leverkusen and first steps on the international stage

In January 2014, he joined Bayer Leverkusen, where he made his first Bundesliga appearance a few weeks later (15 February 2014 against Schalke 04) as a 17-year-old. This was followed just three days later by his debut in the UEFA Champions League (as a substitute in the match against Paris St. Germain). Julian Brandt's career continued to soar. At the start of the 2014/15 second half of the season, the technically adept talent with a strong burst of pace became a regular in the Werkself. On 29 May 2016, he played his first senior international match in a friendly against Slovakia just a few weeks after his 20th birthday. In the same year, he won the silver medal with the Olympic team at the Games in Rio de Janeiro.

Praise and recognition for Julian Brandt from the magazine kicker

They dedicated a cover story to him at the end of July 2020. ‘Not too many footballers are blessed with as much talent as Julian Brandt. The Dortmund dribbler wows the crowd,’ wrote the trade magazine, describing a scene from a match against Leipzig in December 2019, which was later named goal of the month by viewers of the ARD sports programme: “Three actions in one fluid movement, South American suppleness paired with ice-cold efficiency, a masterpiece.”

Julian Brandt's commitment to BVB

‘I went to Dortmund because I simply wanted to. I don't just want to sell myself to a club,’ he said after his move in the summer of 2019. Four years later, he extended his contract and emphasised: ’It's well known that I feel very comfortable here. I was never in any talks or listened to other offers. It was clear to me from the outset that I still see myself at BVB, and that's how I approached our talks.’

The private side of Julian Brandt: Down-to-earth despite football fame

The fact that he is a grounded family man who visits his parents in Bremen or his brother Jannis in Cologne as often as possible helps him in his privileged everyday life. He listens to his mum Heike, a former handball player, and his dad Jürgen, who advises his prominent son discreetly and professionally at all times. ‘I always try to remember why we actually play football: because we enjoyed it when we were little,’ he says, describing his motivation. ‘It would be the worst thing for me if you could see that I no longer enjoyed football, because then I would have to admit that I had lost the basis for everything.’

‘This cool blonde with the number 19,’ it says in kicker on 26 July 2020, ‘is considered the man for the special. As a difference player. And as a great kicker. A fun footballer who makes the difficult look so easy and elevates ease to his trademark. You can guess why Diego of all people (‘The Bremen man, not Maradona’, as Brandt wittily remarked on BVB TV) is his role model. The Brazilian had the gift of achieving extraordinary things on the pitch. Just like Julian Brandt today. He not only knows how to pass deep, but also skilfully brings in stationary balls. In the 2021/22 season, seven of his set pieces led to BVB goals in the league, in the following year it was five.

Brandt's performance in numbers

With nine goals (a personal season record), he was BVB's top scorer in the 2022-23 season together with Sébastien Haller and Donyell Malen, while his finishing efficiency was the third best in the league; he needed fewer than five shots per goal. He was also the team's top scorer with 17 goals.