Manuel Neuer

Club career

Schalke 04

Neuer played for Schalke 04 II during 2003–04, 2004–05, 2006–07, 2007–08 and 2008–09. Neuer progressed through every age group at his hometown club, Schalke 04, and signed professional terms in 2005. Neuer did not make any first team appearances during the 2005–06 season. However, he was on the bench several times and won the 2005 DFL-Ligapokal as an unused substitute. He made his Bundesliga debut with Schalke when he came on as a substitute for the injured Frank Rost on matchday 2 of the 2006–07 season. The 20-year-old eventually won the starting position when Rost was surprisingly dropped for the clash against Bayern Munich. Neuer managed to secure a 2–2 draw against the defending champions. He made 27 league appearances during the 2006–07 season. Despite his young age, he was widely tipped to be a potential successor to his former idol Jens Lehmann in the future for the Germany national team.

Neuer started the 2007–08 season by playing in three matches in the German League Cup. On 5 March 2008, in the first knockout round of the UEFA Champions League against Porto, he almost single-handedly kept Schalke in the game with several saves, forcing the game into penalties. He then saved penalties from Bruno Alves and Lisandro López to help Schalke advance to the quarter-finals. He was shortlisted for the 2007–08 UEFA Club Goalkeeper of the Year award; he was the youngest as well as the only Bundesliga goalkeeper on the list. He was one of only three Bundesliga players to play every minute in the 2007–08 season. He finished the season by making 50 appearances in all competitions.

In the 2008–09 season, Schalke finished eighth in the league table and missed out on a Europa League spot. However, his showing at the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship sparked interest from Bayern Munich, with Bayern chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge declaring interest in signing the young goalkeeper. Schalke's new manager Felix Magath, however, insisted that Neuer would play for Schalke in the next season. In November, he was the only German goalkeeper in the list of five nominated goalkeepers for the UEFA Team of the Year. Neuer finished the 2009–10 season with 39 appearances.

For the 2010–11 season, Neuer was appointed captain and led the team to its first Champions League semi-final appearance to play against Manchester United. He also won the DFB-Pokal in his final season with the club, as Schalke defeated MSV Duisburg 5–0. On 20 April 2011, he announced that he would not be extending his contract with Schalke, which was set to expire at the end of the 2011–12 season. Neuer finished the season with 53 appearances.

Bayern Munich

On 1 June 2011, Neuer made his move to Bayern Munich and signed a five-year contract that lasted until June 2016. Following initial hostility from Bayern fans towards Neuer, as some fans were unhappy about Bayern buying a Schalke keeper, a round-table discussion between Bayern and group of supporters' representatives took place on 2 July 2011. It was decided that Neuer "would be regarded as a full member of Bayern Munich, who should be treated with due respect. Furthermore, hostility towards him should cease". In the first weeks at Bayern, after a 0–0 draw with 1899 Hoffenheim, Neuer broke the Bayern Munich record for most competitive clean sheets in a row, having gone over 1,000 minutes without conceding, beating the record formerly held by Oliver Kahn.

On 25 April 2012, in the second leg of the 2011–12 Champions League semi-finals against Real Madrid, Neuer saved penalty kicks from both Cristiano Ronaldo and Kaká. Following the match, Neuer revealed that he studied the way Ronaldo took his penalties. Neuer told in a press interview: "I always prepare myself for such situations. Our goalkeeping coach, Toni Tapalović, showed me on his laptop before the match how Ronaldo usually takes his penalties. I learned that Ronaldo prefers to send the ball low to his left. In the penalty shoot-out, I was convinced that he would aim for his favourite spot."

Bayern went on to progress to the 2012 UEFA Champions League Final against Chelsea, which also went to a penalty shoot-out after a 1–1 draw. Neuer took and scored the third penalty for Bayern and also saved the first penalty taken by Juan Mata, but could not save the rest of the penalties as Munich lost the trophy 4–3 on penalties in their home stadium, the Allianz Arena. Neuer finished the season with 53 appearances.

Neuer started the season by winning the 2012 DFL-Supercup. In the 2012–13 UEFA Champions League knockout phase, Neuer posted four clean sheets in a row versus both Juventus and Barcelona. In the 2013 Champions League Final against Borussia Dortmund, Neuer posted eight saves en route to Bayern's fifth Champions League title. The game featured several saves from both keepers, and Neuer won the duel against Roman Weidenfeller having only conceded once to İlkay Gündoğan on a penalty shot. Neuer finished the season with 31 Bundesliga appearances, five German Cup appearances, 13 UEFA Champions League appearances, and a German Super Cup appearance.

International career

Youth

After progressing through the youth teams, Neuer made his Germany under-21 debut on 15 August 2006 against the Netherlands. He won the 2009 UEFA European Under-21 Championship with Germany in Sweden and kept a clean sheet in the 4–0 win in the final against England.

2010 FIFA World Cup

In May 2009, Neuer was called up to the senior German squad for a tour of Asia. After being named on the substitutes bench for a 1–1 draw with China on 29 May, Neuer made his debut in a match against the United Arab Emirates on 2 June, playing the full 90 minutes of a 7–2 win in Dubai.

On 17 November, one week after the suicide of Robert Enke, Neuer made his home debut for the Germany senior team at the Arena AufSchalke in a 2–2 draw with Ivory Coast. Twelve minutes after replacing Tim Wiese as a half-time substitute, Neuer kicked a clearance against Ivorian player Emmanuel Eboué to concede an equalising goal. Although Neuer took responsibility for the goal, manager Joachim Löw called the error "unlucky".

On 4 May 2010, it was announced that René Adler, who was expected to be Germany's starting goalkeeper at the 2010 FIFA World Cup, would be absent from the tournament due to a rib injury. Two days later, Neuer was named as one of the three goalkeepers in the squad for the tournament, alongside Tim Wiese and Hans-Jörg Butt. On 28 May, Löw confirmed that Neuer would be Germany's starting goalkeeper at the World Cup.

Neuer made his competitive debut for Germany in the team's opening match of the tournament, keeping a clean sheet as the team beat Australia 4–0 on 14 June. During the group stage, he only conceded a single goal, a close range shot by Milan Jovanović in the 1–0 loss to Serbia. In the round of 16, he provided the assist for Miroslav Klose's opening goal against England, winning 4–1, becoming the first goalkeeper in World Cup history to be involved in a goal since detailed statistics have been recorded. In the same match, England's Frank Lampard had a goal disallowed after his shot hit the crossbar and bounced past the goal line. Controversially, Neuer admitted that he knew it was a legitimate goal, but acted in a way to make the referee doubt this. He played in all of Germany's World Cup matches apart from the third-place game against Uruguay, when Hans-Jörg Butt was selected to start.

UEFA Euro 2012

Neuer played every minute of every match in the UEFA Euro 2012 qualifying campaign, helping Germany to secure ten wins out of ten games and top their group. After Germany's 3–1 away win against Turkey, he was especially praised for his "sensational" performance. He retained a close range volley shot by Hamit Altıntop, and then he quickly threw the ball to the halfway line into the feet of Thomas Müller, who immediately provided the assist for Mario Gómez's opening goal. Neuer then set up the second goal; under pressure by Turkish attackers, he fired a precise long range kick to Mario Götze deep in the opponent's half, who then found Müller on the edge of the opponent's penalty box to score.

Neuer started all five of Germany's matches at UEFA Euro 2012 and kept a clean sheet against Portugal in their opening Group B match.

2014 FIFA World Cup

Neuer started in all seven of Germany's matches in their 2014 FIFA World Cup winning campaign, winning the Golden Glove for keeping the most clean sheets at the tournament.

After keeping clean sheets in group matches against Portugal and the United States, Neuer had an outstanding performance in a 2–1 win against Algeria after extra time in the round of 16, when he had to play as a sweeper-keeper to defend their counter-attacks. He recorded his third clean sheet of the World Cup in the 1–0 quarter-final defeat of France. This was his 22nd clean sheet overall in his 50th appearance for die Nationalmannschaft. In the semi-finals, Neuer conceded a late goal as his team routed hosts Brazil 7–1.

On 13 July, in the FIFA World Cup Final against Argentina, Neuer was not heavily tested, but he nonetheless commanded his penalty area well, challenging attacking runs by Gonzalo Higuaín and Rodrigo Palacio that caused them to shoot wide of the net. Early in the second half, Neuer punched the ball clear before colliding with Higuaín at the edge of the box. Argentina finished the match without a shot on goal, despite several good chances, including a Higuaín goal disallowed for offside. Germany ultimately defeated Argentina 1–0 thanks to a Mario Götze goal in extra time. Neuer won the Golden Glove award for the tournament's best goalkeeper. Neuer also finished the tournament with 244 completed passes, more than outfield players like Lionel Messi (242), Wesley Sneijder (242), and Thomas Müller (221).

Neuer's playing style was credited with allowing his teammates to press deep in their opponents' half; Neuer's willingness to come out and challenge opposing attackers caused them to miss shots.

UEFA Euro 2016

On 31 May 2016, Neuer was selected for Germany's final 23-man squad for UEFA Euro 2016. He did not concede any goals during Germany's three group games against Ukraine, Poland and Northern Ireland and also kept a clean sheet in the round of 16 against Slovakia. On 2 July 2016, in the quarter-final match against Italy, Neuer broke compatriot Sepp Maier's record of not conceding a goal at a major tournament for 481 minutes. This run ended after 557 minutes, when Leonardo Bonucci scored past him with a penalty kick; A 1–1 draw after extra-time saw the match go to a penalty shoot-out, in which Neuer helped Germany to a 6–5 victory by saving two spot kicks, including one from Bonucci. Neuer was named Man of the Match for his performance.

During this time, Neuer was a part of a collaboration between the German Football Association and The LEGO Group, who in May 2016 released a Europe-exclusive collectible minifigure series, with Neuer featured as the second of sixteen minifigures in the collection.

2018 FIFA World Cup

Prior to the start of qualification, on 1 September 2016, Neuer was named new captain of the national team, following Bastian Schweinsteiger's retirement from international football.

After starting the team's first three 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification matches, Neuer missed the rest of Germany's qualifying campaign and the 2017 FIFA Confederations Cup due to injury and illness.

On 15 May 2018, Neuer was selected in Germany's 27-man preliminary squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup even though he had not played a match since fracturing his foot for a second time in September 2017. Neuer made his first appearance since his injury on 2 June, in a 2–1 friendly defeat to Austria in Klagenfurt. On 4 June, Neuer was selected in the final 23-man squad for the World Cup. On 17 June, Neuer captained his side for the first time in the World Cup in their opening match in which they lost 1–0 to Mexico. On 23 June, Neuer made several saves as his side defeated Sweden with a 2–1 victory in their second group stage match, which kept the Germans from being knocked out of the World Cup. However, in their final Group F match, Germany were knocked out of the tournament as they lost 2–0 to South Korea, with Neuer losing the ball to Ju Se-jong in the opposition half, leading to Son Heung-min's second goal in the 96th minute.

UEFA Euro 2020

On 11 June 2019, in Germany's UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying 8–0 victory over Estonia, Neuer kept the 37th clean sheet of his international career, breaking a record set by Sepp Maier. In a 3–1 win over Ukraine on 14 November 2020, Neuer equalled Maier's record of 95 caps for Germany and, three days later, became the nation's all-time most capped goalkeeper with his 96th appearance, a 6–0 loss to Spain in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League. This was Germany's worst ever defeat in a competitive match and the first time in his professional career that Neuer had conceded six goals in a match. Neuer was selected for the German squad for UEFA Euro 2020. In a pre-tournament friendly against Latvia on 7 June 2021, he achieved his 100th cap with the national team, becoming the first German goalkeeper to reach that milestone. At the Euro 2020 finals, Neuer started all three of Germany's group matches, as well as their round of 16 loss to England at Wembley. UEFA began investigating Neuer for wearing rainbow-coloured captain's armband at the tournament to commemorate Pride month. They later confirmed it did not breach tournament rules against making on-field political statements.

2022 FIFA World Cup

Neuer was called up to Germany's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, becoming the first German goalkeeper to feature in four consecutive World Cups. On 1 December, he made his 19th World Cup appearance, breaking the previous record for goalkeepers, including both Sepp Maier and Brazil's Cláudio Taffarel of 18 appearances. Despite a 4–2 win over Costa Rica in the last group stage match, Germany failed to progress from the group stage for a second consecutive World Cup as they finished third on goal difference after Japan pulled an upset 2–1 win over Spain. However, he was surpassed by Hugo Lloris who reached 20 appearances during the same tournament.

UEFA Euro 2024

On 9 December 2022, eight days after Germany were eliminated from the World Cup, Neuer sustained a broken leg in a skiing accident. During his 18-month absence from the German national team, Neuer was replaced as captain by İlkay Gündoğan, who was retained in the role after the goalkeeper's return to fitness. In June 2024, Neuer was named in Germany's squad for UEFA Euro 2024. He made his first appearance for the national team since the 2022 World Cup in a pre-tournament friendly against Ukraine in Nuremberg, keeping a clean sheet in an 0–0 draw on 3 June.

On 14 June, Neuer started in the opening game of Euro 2024 as the hosts beat Scotland 5–1 in Munich. He played in all five of Germany's matches at the tournament, keeping clean sheets against Hungary in the group stage and Denmark in the round of 16 as the team reached the quarter-final, where they lost 2–1 to Spain. The defeat against Spain, which was his 124th and final cap, was his 39th appearance in an international tournament, allowing him to surpass former teammate Bastian Schweinsteiger as the record appearance making German player in international tournaments. His 20 games at European Championships are also a record amongst German players.

Following the conclusion of the tournament, Neuer announced his retirement from the national team on 21 August 2024. He recorded 51 clean sheets in 124 international appearances.

2026 FIFA World Cup

On 21 May 2026, Neuer came out of international retirement and was selected in Germany’s 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup. On 14 June, he became the oldest Germany player to feature at a major tournament, breaking the record previously held by Lothar Matthäus at 40 years and 79 days beating Curaçao in their opening match with 7–1, marking his first match for Germany in two years. He also tied with Hugo Lloris as the goalkeeper with the most appearances in the tournament with 20, breaking the record six days later in a 2–1 win against Ivory Coast. In the Round of 32 against Paraguay, he saved the fifth penalty in the shootout, but Germany ultimately lost 4–3 on sudden death following a 1–1 draw after extra time, resulting in their elimination from the World Cup. The match also marked his tenth consecutive World Cup game without keeping a clean sheet, a World Cup record shared with Antonio Carbajal, with his last clean sheet occurring in the 2014 World Cup final victory. He announced his second retirement from international football following the World Cup elimination.

Style of play

Considered by some in the media to be the current best goalkeeper in the world, and one of the greatest goalkeepers both of his generation and of all time, Neuer is widely regarded as a "complete" and modern goalkeeper. He is regarded by some pundits to be the best goalkeeper of the modern era, with Peter Staunton of Goal.com labelling him as "the best goalkeeper since Yashin", who is currently the only goalkeeper ever to have won the Ballon d'Or.

A tall, large, athletic, and physically strong player, Neuer has earned critical acclaim from former players and pundits for his speed, stamina, composure, concentration, consistency, and mentality, as well as for being able to adapt to any given situation on the pitch. He is particularly known for his exceptional reflexes, shot-stopping abilities (with both his arms and legs), agility, speed, and footwork, as well as his handling, capacity to read the game, and ability to come out to collect crosses, which enables him to command his area effectively. When the situation demands, he will also often essentially fill the role of a sweeper when opposing players have beaten the offside trap or his team's defensive line by quickly rushing out of goal to anticipate opponents and clear the ball; his skill, speed and decision-making in this area enables his teams to maintain a high defensive line. Because of his unique playing style, Neuer has been described as a "sweeper-keeper", and has been credited with revolutionizing the role of the goalkeeper in modern times. Pundits have also praised him for his positioning between the posts, as well as his ability in one-on-one situations; furthermore, he is effective at stopping penalties and has also been known to take and score them in shoot-outs.

A former outfield player in his youth, in addition to his goalkeeping ability, Neuer has also been praised for his excellent ball control and for his accurate distribution of the ball with both his hands and feet; his long throwing range and ability to kick the ball into deep areas with either foot enables him to play the ball out on the ground or create plays or launch swift counter-attacks from the back. Regarding his technical skills on the ball in comparison to other players in his role, Neuer has stated that he could play in the German third division as a center-back if so desired. Due to his authoritative leadership and vocal presence in goal, he also excels at communicating with his defenders and organising his team's defensive line. In 2015, Gianluigi Buffon described Neuer as the best goalkeeper of his era in the air.

Personal life

Neuer was born in Gelsenkirchen, North Rhine-Westphalia, and attended Gesamtschule Berger Feld. His brother Marcel is currently a football referee in the Verbandsliga. He received his first football when he was two, and he had his first game on 3 March 1991, 24 days before his fifth birthday. Neuer's hero and idol as a child was fellow German and former Schalke goalkeeper Jens Lehmann.

Neuer is Catholic, and lends his support to a Gelsenkirchen-based Catholic social action group which campaigns against child poverty and to a Gelsenkirchen-based youth club run by the Amigonians.

Neuer started a charity foundation for children, named the Manuel Neuer Kids Foundation. In November 2011, he won €500,000 for charity in a celebrity edition of Wer wird Millionär?, the German version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?

Neuer said in 2011 that "it would be good if a professional football player came out because it would help others to do the same". Mexico were fined for their fans' homophobic chants when Neuer had the ball during a World Cup match in 2018.

In November 2022, Neuer revealed that he had to undergo three surgeries on his face in order to treat skin cancer, which later urged him to work with Angelique Kerber to promote sun cream.

Relationships

Neuer was in a relationship with Kathrin Gilch until 2014. In 2015, Neuer started a relationship with Nina Weiss. On 21 May 2017, Neuer and Weiss married in Tannheim, Austria, in a civil ceremony, which was followed by a church wedding in the Cathedral of Santissima della Madia in Monopoli, Italy, on 10 June. The couple separated in early 2020, and Neuer started dating handball player Anika Bissel. In October 2023, reports stated that she would miss the rest of the season with ESV 1927 Regensburg due to pregnancy. On 14 March 2024, their son, Luca, was born. On 19 July 2025, the couple exchanged wedding vows in a ceremony held in Bolzano, South Tyrol, following their civil wedding in 2023.

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 10 September 2026

Honours

Schalke 04

DFB-Pokal: 2010–11

DFL-Ligapokal: 2005

Bayern Munich

Bundesliga: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2024–25, 2025–26

DFB-Pokal: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2015–16, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2025–26

DFL-/Franz Beckenbauer Supercup: 2012, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2025, 2026

UEFA Champions League: 2012–13, 2019–20

UEFA Super Cup: 2013, 2020

FIFA Club World Cup: 2013, 2020

Germany U21

UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2009

Germany

FIFA World Cup: 2014; third place: 2010

UEFA European Championship third place: 2012

Individual

Fritz Walter Medal U19 Silver: 2005

kicker Goalkeeper of the Year: 2006–2007, 2010–11, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22

Footballer of the Year in Germany: 2011, 2014

Germany national team Player of the Year: 2020

Other media

In July 2012, Adidas and 505 Games announced the release of the training video game Adidas miCoach for consoles, featuring Manuel Neuer alongside Kaká and Ana Ivanovic. Using PlayStation Move and the Xbox 360 Kinect sensor, players could train with the athletes through more than 400 exercises, and each athlete presented a class specific to their sport. In 2013, Neuer made his film voiceover debut.