Lukas Podolski, who is one of Germany’s most prolific strikers of all time, has officially retired from professional football aged 40. A FIFA World Cup™ champion at Brazil 2014, Podolski hung up his boots after Gornik Zabrze’s final match of the Polish Ekstraklasa season on Saturday.
Podolski came on as a second-half substitute as Gornik Zabrze defeated Radomiak Radom 6-2 to finish as league runners-up. He is now moving into an ownership role with the club.
It was a full-circle moment for Podolski, who was born in the Polish town of Gliwice before growing up in Germany and beginning his professional career at 1. FC Koln, where he eventually became a club legend. He subsequently enjoyed successful stints at Bayern Munich, Arsenal, Inter Milan, Galatasaray, Vissel Kobe, Antalyaspor, and finally Gornik Zabrze.
With the German national team — for whom he made his debut in 2004 under Rudi Voller — Podolski was one of the defining players for many years and served as one of the faces of the “Summer Fairytale” during the FIFA World Cup 2006™ hosted on home soil, where he was named the tournament’s Best Young Player. With a total of 130 international caps and 49 goals, he ranks fourth and third, respectively, on the DFB’s all-time lists.
In World Cup tournaments, Podolski scored five goals across 15 matches. He also celebrated what was arguably his greatest sporting triumph while wearing the eagle crest on his chest, becoming a world champion at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. In addition, the frontman secured third-place finishes with the German team during his other World Cup appearances in 2006 and 2010, and was a UEFA EURO runner-up in 2008.
Podolski collected numerous titles at the club level, notably the domestic double with Bayern in 2008. At his subsequent clubs, he proved particularly successful in national cup competitions. He won the FA Cup with Arsenal in 2014; with Galatasaray, he secured the Turkish Cup in both 2016 and 2017; with Vissel Kobe, he won the Japanese Cup in 2019; and just a few weeks ago, he achieved cup triumph in Poland.
