Christian Wörns
Encyclopedia
Christian Wörns is a retired German
footballer who played as a sweeper. Wörns was widely considered one of the finest German defenders of his generation and one of the best sweepers of his era. He started his career with Waldhof Mannheim
but played the majority of his career with Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund
. He also had a short stint with Paris SG.
at the young age of 17 years, 3 months and 30 days for Waldhof Mannheim and at the time, was the fourth youngest debutant ever. He played 18 games in his first season and 34 the next in the 2. Bundesliga
.
The next year, he transferred to Bayer Leverkusen. Wörns quickly established himself as a defensive stalwart and anchored the strong Leverkusen defense for nearly a decade, together with Jens Nowotny and Markus Happe
.
In 1998 he moved abroad to Paris SG in France. He failed to settle in and after one season transferred to Borussia Dortmund
. He continued to play at Borussia Dortmund until he retired in 2008.
|1989–90
|rowspan="2"|Waldhof Mannheim
|Bundesliga
| 18 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 18 || 0
|-
|1990–91
|2. Bundesliga
| 24 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 24 || 3
|-
|1991–92
|rowspan="7"|Bayer Leverkusen
|rowspan="7"|Bundesliga
| 38 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 38 || 0
|-
|1992–93
| 34 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 34 || 2
|-
|1993–94
| 33 || 6 || 0 || 0 || 6 || 1 || 39 || 7
|-
|1994–95
| 19 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 5 || 0 || 24 || 1
|-
|1995–96
| 25 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 25 || 2
|-
|1996–97
| 33 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 33 || 1
|-
|1997–98
| 29 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 7 || 0 || 36 || 1
|-
|1998–99
|Paris Saint-Germain
|Ligue 1
| 28 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 29 || 2
|-
|1999–2000
|rowspan="9"|Borussia Dortmund
|rowspan="9"|Bundesliga
| 26 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 5 || 0 || 31 || 2
|-
|2000–01
| 23 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 23 || 2
|-
|2001–02
| 29 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 15 || 0 || 44 || 2
|-
|2002–03
| 30 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 10 || 0 || 40 || 0
|-
|2003–04
| 31 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 4 || 0 || 35 || 1
|-
|2004–05
| 29 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 29 || 1
|-
|2005–06
| 28 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 28 || 3
|-
|2006–07
| 24 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 24 || 2
|-
|2007–08
| 20 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 20 || 1
28 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 29 || 2
503 || 30 || 0 || 0 || 53 || 1 || 556 || 31
531 || 32 || 0 || 0 || 54 || 1 || 585 || 33
Paris St-Germain FC
Borussia Dortmund
Germany National Team
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
footballer who played as a sweeper. Wörns was widely considered one of the finest German defenders of his generation and one of the best sweepers of his era. He started his career with Waldhof Mannheim
SV Waldhof Mannheim
SV Waldhof Mannheim is a German association football club, located in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg. The club today has a membership of over 2,400.-History:...
but played the majority of his career with Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
. He also had a short stint with Paris SG.
Club career
Wörns made his professional debut in the BundesligaFußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
at the young age of 17 years, 3 months and 30 days for Waldhof Mannheim and at the time, was the fourth youngest debutant ever. He played 18 games in his first season and 34 the next in the 2. Bundesliga
2. Fußball-Bundesliga
- Changes in division set-up :* Number of clubs: currently 18. From 1974 to 1981 there were two conferences, each of 20 teams. In 1981–91 it had 20...
.
The next year, he transferred to Bayer Leverkusen. Wörns quickly established himself as a defensive stalwart and anchored the strong Leverkusen defense for nearly a decade, together with Jens Nowotny and Markus Happe
Markus Happe
Markus Happe is a German former football player.-Honours:* Bundesliga runner-up: 1996–97, 1998–99, 2000–01* DFB-Pokal winner: 1992–93, 2000–01, 2001–02-External links:* at transfermarkt.de...
.
In 1998 he moved abroad to Paris SG in France. He failed to settle in and after one season transferred to Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
. He continued to play at Borussia Dortmund until he retired in 2008.
International career
Wörns represented his country on 66 occasions and did not score.- Euro 1996: after an injury hit season, Wörns fails to get nominated and misses being on the winning squad.
- World Cup 1998: Considered the best player on the German squad, Wörns played a stellar tournament until he fouled Davor ŠukerDavor ŠukerDavor Šuker , is a retired Croatian footballer. He played as a striker for a number of European clubs as well as the Croatian national team, where he is the all-time top goal scorer with 45 goals....
in the 40th minute of the quarter-final match against CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
to stop a possible breakaway run on goal following a lazy back pass by Lothar MatthausLothar MatthäusLothar Herbert Matthäus , is a German football manager and former player.In 1990, he was named European Footballer of the Year and World Soccer Player of the Year after captaining West Germany to victory in the 1990 World Cup...
. Though Wörns, realizing he's late, appeared to pull out of the tackle, contact was made with Šuker who fell theatrically, rolling several times on the ground. The German got a straight red card from Norwegian referee Rune PedersenRune PedersenRune Pedersen is a former football referee, representing SK Sprint-Jeløy. He was regarded as the best match official in Norway during the 1990s, and won the Kniksen award for "Referee of the year" 10 times between 1990 and 2000. Only Roy Helge Olsen stood in the way of Pedersen winning the award...
and three unanswered goals were scored against Germany after his sending off, making him the scapegoat for his country's 0-3 loss. - World Cup 2002: Wörns injures himself at the last moment, nonetheless Germany reached the final.
- Euro Cup 2004: Despite his strong performances against Holland and Latvia, he could not prevent Germany from crashing out in the initial group stage.
- When manager Jürgen KlinsmannJürgen KlinsmannJürgen Klinsmann is a German football manager and former player who is currently the coach of the United States Men's National Team. As a player, Klinsmann played for several prominent clubs in Europe and was part of the West German team that won the 1990 FIFA World Cup and the German one that...
announced the 22 players for the 2006 FIFA World Cup2006 FIFA World CupThe 2006 FIFA World Cup was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which won the right to host the event in July 2000. Teams representing 198 national football associations from all six...
squad, 34-year-old Wörns was only a backup squad member. This promped an outrageous interview by Wörns. Due to the fact that he verbally attacked Klinsmann during the interview, the German Football AssociationGerman Football AssociationThe German Football Association is the governing body of football in Germany. A founding member of both FIFA and UEFA, the DFB organises the German football leagues, including the national league, the Bundesliga, and the men's and women's national teams. The DFB is based in Frankfurt and is...
took disciplinary action against Wörns: he was banned from playing as an international. This was similar to what happened to Uli SteinUli SteinUlrich "Uli" Stein is a former German football player. He was a goalkeeper and between 1978 and 1997, made 512 appearances in the German Bundesliga. He began his career in 1978 with Arminia Bielefeld. After two years, he moved to Hamburger SV where he played from 1980 to 1987...
(during the 1986 FIFA World Cup1986 FIFA World CupThe 1986 FIFA World Cup, the 13th FIFA World Cup, was held in Mexico from 31 May to 29 June. The tournament was the second to feature a 24-team format. Colombia had been originally chosen to host the competition by FIFA but, largely due to economic reasons, was not able to do so and officially...
) and Stefan EffenbergStefan EffenbergStefan Effenberg is a retired German footballer. A central midfielder, he possessed leadership skills, powerful shooting ability, physical strength, but also a fearsome and controversial character....
(during the 1994 FIFA World Cup1994 FIFA World CupThe 1994 FIFA World Cup, the 15th staging of the FIFA World Cup, was held in nine cities across the United States from June 17 to July 17, 1994. The United States was chosen as the host by FIFA on July 4, 1988...
).
Career statistics
|-|1989–90
|rowspan="2"|Waldhof Mannheim
SV Waldhof Mannheim
SV Waldhof Mannheim is a German association football club, located in Mannheim, Baden-Württemberg. The club today has a membership of over 2,400.-History:...
|Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
| 18 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 18 || 0
|-
|1990–91
|2. Bundesliga
2. Fußball-Bundesliga
- Changes in division set-up :* Number of clubs: currently 18. From 1974 to 1981 there were two conferences, each of 20 teams. In 1981–91 it had 20...
| 24 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 24 || 3
|-
|1991–92
|rowspan="7"|Bayer Leverkusen
|rowspan="7"|Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
| 38 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 38 || 0
|-
|1992–93
| 34 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 34 || 2
|-
|1993–94
| 33 || 6 || 0 || 0 || 6 || 1 || 39 || 7
|-
|1994–95
| 19 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 5 || 0 || 24 || 1
|-
|1995–96
| 25 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 25 || 2
|-
|1996–97
| 33 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 33 || 1
|-
|1997–98
| 29 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 7 || 0 || 36 || 1
|-
|1998–99
|Paris Saint-Germain
Paris Saint-Germain FC
Paris Saint-Germain Football Club , also known simply as Paris Saint-Germain and familiarly as Paris SG or PSG , is a professional association football club based in Paris, France. The club was founded on 12 August 1970, thanks to the merger of Paris FC and Stade Saint-Germain...
|Ligue 1
Ligue 1
Ligue 1 , is the French professional league for association football clubs. It is the country's primary football competition and serves as the top division of the French football league system. Ligue 1 is one of two divisions making up the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the other being Ligue 2....
| 28 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 29 || 2
|-
|1999–2000
|rowspan="9"|Borussia Dortmund
Borussia Dortmund
Ballspielverein Borussia Dortmund, commonly BVB, are a German sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Dortmund are one of the most successful clubs in German football history. Borussia Dortmund play in the Bundesliga, the top league of German football...
|rowspan="9"|Bundesliga
Fußball-Bundesliga
The Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
| 26 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 5 || 0 || 31 || 2
|-
|2000–01
| 23 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 23 || 2
|-
|2001–02
| 29 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 15 || 0 || 44 || 2
|-
|2002–03
| 30 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 10 || 0 || 40 || 0
|-
|2003–04
| 31 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 4 || 0 || 35 || 1
|-
|2004–05
| 29 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 29 || 1
|-
|2005–06
| 28 || 3 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 28 || 3
|-
|2006–07
| 24 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 24 || 2
|-
|2007–08
| 20 || 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 20 || 1
28 || 2 || 0 || 0 || 1 || 0 || 29 || 2
503 || 30 || 0 || 0 || 53 || 1 || 556 || 31
531 || 32 || 0 || 0 || 54 || 1 || 585 || 33
Honours
Bayer Leverkusen- German CupDFB-PokalThe DFB-Pokal or DFB Cup is a German knockout football cup competition held annually. 64 teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga. It is considered the second most important national title in German football after the Bundesliga...
- Winner: 1992–93DFB Cup 1992-93The DFB-Pokal 1992–93 was the 50th season of the competition. 83 teams competed in the tournament of seven rounds which began on 18 August 1992 and ended on 12 June 1993. In the final Bayer Leverkusen defeated the second team of Hertha Berlin 1–0...
- Winner: 1992–93
- BundesligaFußball-BundesligaThe Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
- Runners-up: 1996–97
Paris St-Germain FC
- Trophée des championsTrophée des championsThe Trophée des champions , is a French association football trophy contested in an annual match between the champions of Ligue 1 and the winners of the Coupe de France. It is equivalent to the Super Cups found in many countries...
- Winner: 1998
- Coupe de la LigueCoupe de la LigueThe Coupe de la Ligue , known outside of France as the French League Cup, is a knockout cup competition in French football organized by the Ligue de Football Professionnel...
- Winner: 1998
Borussia Dortmund
- BundesligaFußball-BundesligaThe Fußball-Bundesliga is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of Germany's football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. It is contested by 18 teams and operates on a system of promotion and relegation with the 2. Bundesliga...
- Winner: 2001–02
Germany National Team
- Euro 1992
- Runner-up: 1992