€4m market value in May 

Bayern icon comes out of retirement to join 8th-tier German club

©IMAGO

Niklas Süle has announced his shock decision to come out of retirement and play in the eighth tier of German football at the age of 30. The former Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund centre-back, who quit professional football at the end of the 2025/26 season with a €4 million market value, will be playing for SV Tiefenbach in Baden-Württemberg from now on.

Confirming the deal to Sky Germany, he said: “I’m really looking forward to finally experiencing football from a completely different perspective again – where it’s solely about the sport itself and not about business or money. On top of that, two of my best friends play for SV Tiefenbach, one of whom is even the coach there. After 13 years of professional football, it’s an absolute treat for me to be able to take to the pitch with my mates and enjoy this wonderful sport to the full once again.”

Süle’s injury troubles

The decisive factor in Süle’s decision to hang up his boots at professional level arrived on April 18. During the 1–2 defeat at Hoffenheim, he sustained a knee injury and had to come off in the 42nd minute. Initially, there were fears that he had suffered another cruciate ligament tear. In November 2014, Süle suffered his first cruciate ligament tear, was sidelined for 204 days and missed 27 matches. The second cruciate ligament injury occurred in October 2019, where he was sidelined for 183 days and missed 27 matches.

Niklas Sule numbers

“When I went for an MRI scan the next day and received the good news (that it wasn’t a cruciate ligament tear after all), it was one thousand per cent clear to me that it was over. I couldn’t imagine anything worse than actually looking forward to the time afterwards – being independent, going on holiday, spending time with my children – only to then have to come to terms with my third cruciate ligament tear.”

Süle moved from FC Bayern to Dortmund on a free transfer in 2022, with a market value of €35 million. His playing time decreased due to his injuries and lack of fitness. He made a total of 171 appearances for Bayern, 110 for Dortmund and 117 for his youth club TSG Hoffenheim. The towering defender won every major club honour whilst wearing the Bayern shirt. These included five Bundesliga titles, the Champions League in 2020, two DFB-Pokal titles and the Club World Cup in 2021.

Additional reporting from Marie-Theres Schwabe

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