Mario Gómez facts for kids
Gómez with VfB Stuttgart in 2018
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| Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Full name | Mario Gómez García | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Date of birth | 10 July 1985 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Riedlingen, West Germany | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.89 m (6 ft 2 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Striker | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1998 | SV Unlingen | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 1998–2000 | FV Bad Saulgau | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | SSV Ulm 1846 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2001–2003 | VfB Stuttgart | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2005 | VfB Stuttgart II | 43 | (21) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2003–2009 | VfB Stuttgart | 121 | (63) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2009–2013 | Bayern Munich | 115 | (75) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2013–2016 | Fiorentina | 29 | (7) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2015–2016 | → Beşiktaş (loan) | 33 | (26) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2016–2018 | VfL Wolfsburg | 45 | (17) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2018–2020 | VfB Stuttgart | 70 | (22) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 456 | (231) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| International career | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1999 | Germany U15 | 3 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2000–2001 | Germany U17 | 14 | (5) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2002 | Germany U18 | 4 | (0) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2002–2003 | Germany U19 | 19 | (11) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2004 | Germany U20 | 8 | (2) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2005–2006 | Germany U21 | 9 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2005 | Germany B | 2 | (1) | |||||||||||||||||||
| 2007–2018 | Germany | 78 | (31) | |||||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Mario Gómez García (born 10 July 1985) is a German former professional footballer. He played as a striker, which means he was mainly responsible for scoring goals. Mario Gómez played for the German national team for 11 years, from 2007 to 2018.
Gómez started his career with VfB Stuttgart. He helped them win the Bundesliga, Germany's top football league, in the 2006–07 season. He was even named the German Footballer of the Year that season. In 2009, he joined Bayern Munich for a record fee. With Bayern, he became the Bundesliga's top scorer in 2011 and won seven trophies, including the UEFA Champions League in 2013.
After Bayern, Gómez played for Serie A team Fiorentina in Italy. He then went on loan to Beşiktaş in Turkey, where he was the top scorer and helped them win the Süper Lig. He later returned to Germany to play for VfL Wolfsburg and then back to his first club, VfB Stuttgart.
Mario Gómez also played for Germany in three UEFA European Championships and two FIFA World Cups. He was the top scorer at UEFA Euro 2012. He stopped playing for the national team in 2018.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Starting Out at Stuttgart
Mario Gómez began his journey playing for VfB Stuttgart II, which is the reserve team, in the Regionalliga Süd during the 2003–04 and 2004–05 seasons. He scored 6 goals in 19 games in his first season and 15 goals in 24 games in his second.
On 9 March 2004, he made his debut for the main Stuttgart team in the Champions League. He also played his first game in the Bundesliga on 8 May.
In the 2005–06 season, Gómez became a full-time player for the first team. He scored 6 goals in 30 Bundesliga matches. His first goal came on 17 September 2005, helping Stuttgart win 2–1 against Mainz 05.
During the 2006–07 season, Gómez became one of the best scorers in the Bundesliga. Even though he broke his hand and tore a knee ligament, he came back strong. On 12 May 2007, he scored right after coming into a game. Stuttgart won the Bundesliga that season, becoming German champions. They also reached the final of the DFB-Pokal (German Cup). After this amazing season, he was named German Footballer of the Year for 2007.
In the 2007–08 season, Gómez scored 19 goals in 25 games, making him the second-highest scorer in the Bundesliga. He was also the top scorer in the DFB-Pokal with 6 goals. People started calling him "Mr. Reliable" because he was so good at scoring. On 9 May 2009, he scored four goals in a 4–1 win against VfL Wolfsburg. The 2008–09 season was his last with Stuttgart before he moved to Bayern Munich. He scored 24 goals in 32 league games that season.
Success at Bayern Munich
Joining the Bavarian Giants
On 26 May 2009, Mario Gómez moved to Bayern Munich. This was a record transfer fee for the Bundesliga at the time, costing between €30–35 million. In his first season, he scored 10 league goals and 1 Champions League goal.
In the 2010–11 season, Gómez became a regular starter for Bayern. He finished as the top goalscorer in the Bundesliga with 28 goals. He scored his 100th Bundesliga goal on 7 May 2011, as part of a hat-trick in an 8–1 win against FC St. Pauli. He scored 13 hat-tricks in his Bundesliga career. Gómez also scored 8 goals in the Champions League that season. Overall, he scored 39 goals in all competitions in his second season with Bayern.
Champions League Finalist
Gómez continued his strong performance in the 2011–12 season. On 10 September, he scored four goals as Bayern beat SC Freiburg 7–0. On 27 September, his two goals helped Bayern defeat Manchester City 2–0 in the Champions League.
On 2 November 2011, he scored a hat-trick in a Champions League group stage match against Napoli, which Bayern won 3–2. On 13 March 2012, he scored four goals against Basel in the Champions League, helping Bayern win 7–1 on total goals and move to the quarter-finals.
On 4 April, Gómez signed a new contract with Bayern until 2016. He scored the winning goal in Bayern's 2–1 victory over Real Madrid in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final. On 19 May 2012, Gómez played in the Champions League final against Chelsea. He scored in the penalty shootout, but Bayern lost the match. He finished the 2011–12 season with 26 goals in 33 league games and 13 goals in 14 Champions League games.
Treble Winner
Gómez had ankle surgery after UEFA Euro 2012, which meant he started the 2012–13 season late. He returned to action on 20 November 2012 in a Champions League game against Valencia. He scored his first goal of the season on 24 November in a 5–0 win over Hannover 96.
On 16 April, in the DFB-Pokal semi-final against VfL Wolfsburg, Gómez scored a hat-trick in just six minutes after coming on as a substitute. This helped Bayern win 6–1 and reach the final against his former club, Stuttgart. On 23 April, he scored Bayern's second goal in their 4–0 first-leg win against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-finals.
On 25 May, Gómez came on as a substitute in Bayern's 2–1 Champions League final victory over Borussia Dortmund at Wembley Stadium. On 1 June, he scored two goals in the DFB-Pokal final as Bayern defeated Stuttgart 3–2. This win completed a historic "treble" for Bayern, meaning they won the league, the national cup, and the European cup all in one season. Gómez finished the 2012–13 season with 11 goals in 21 league games.
Time in Italy and Turkey
Fiorentina and Injuries
On 8 July 2013, Gómez joined Serie A team Fiorentina in Italy. He scored his first two goals for the club on 1 September in a 5–2 win against Genoa. However, he suffered an injury in the next match that kept him out for a long time. He returned in February 2014 but then damaged ligaments in his left knee in March, ending his season early. He scored 3 goals in 9 league games that season.
In the 2014–15 season, he scored 4 goals in 20 league games and 4 goals in 4 Coppa Italia matches.
Loan to Beşiktaş
On 30 July 2015, Gómez moved to Beşiktaş in Turkey on a one-year loan from Fiorentina. He made his Süper Lig debut on 16 August 2015. He quickly started scoring, including two goals against Medipol Başakşehir on 13 September. On 27 September, he scored two goals in a derby game against Fenerbahçe, helping Beşiktaş win 3–2 and go to the top of the league.
Gómez continued to score regularly throughout the season. By the end of 2015, he was the top scorer in the Süper Lig with 13 goals. He also scored two goals in the UEFA Europa League.
In March 2016, he scored twice against Eskişehirspor, bringing his Süper Lig goal tally to 19. This equaled the club record for most goals by a foreign player in a single Süper Lig season. He scored the first-ever goal in Beşiktaş' new Vodafone Arena on 11 April 2016.
Gómez finished the 2015–16 season as the Süper Lig top scorer with 26 goals. He scored 28 goals in 41 games across all competitions, setting a new club record for a foreign player. On 20 July 2016, Gómez announced he would not continue playing for Beşiktaş, citing political reasons in Turkey at the time. He later said his time at Beşiktaş was "a pure dream."
Return to Germany
VfL Wolfsburg
On 17 August 2016, Gómez returned to the Bundesliga, signing for VfL Wolfsburg. He scored his first goal for the club on 22 October. On 2 April 2017, he scored his first hat-trick for Wolfsburg, netting three times in seven minutes to help them come back from 2–0 down to draw 3–3 with Bayer Leverkusen. His third goal was his 150th in the Bundesliga. He scored 16 league goals that season, helping Wolfsburg avoid relegation. He finished the 2016–17 season with 18 goals in 37 games.
In June 2017, Gómez signed a new contract and was named team captain in August.
Back to VfB Stuttgart
On 22 December 2017, it was announced that Gómez would return to VfB Stuttgart on 1 January 2018. He signed a contract until June 2020. He scored 8 goals in 16 games in the 2017–18 season.
In the 2018–19 season, Gómez was Stuttgart's top scorer with 7 goals. On 28 June 2020, Stuttgart announced that Mario Gómez had ended his professional football career. He scored in his final match for the club, helping them get promoted back to the Bundesliga.
International Career
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Mario Gómez has both German and Spanish citizenship, but he chose to play for Germany. He played for all German youth national teams from the age of 14.
He made his debut for the Germany senior team on 7 February 2007 against Switzerland. Germany won 3–1, and Gómez scored Germany's second goal. He scored twice more in his second game for Germany, a 6–0 win against San Marino.
UEFA Euro 2008
Gómez was part of the German squad for UEFA Euro 2008. However, he struggled to score goals during the tournament and was criticized by the media. Germany reached the final but lost 1–0 to Spain.
2010 FIFA World Cup
On 2 June 2009, Gómez scored four goals in Germany's 7–2 win against the United Arab Emirates. This ended a long period where he hadn't scored for the national team.
He was included in Germany's squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. He played in four matches, all as a substitute, but he did not score any goals in the tournament.
UEFA Euro 2012
Gómez played a key role in Germany's qualification for Euro 2012, scoring goals against every opponent. This included two goals against Austria in a 2–1 away win, in the same stadium where he had struggled to score four years earlier.
Before Euro 2012, Gómez captained Germany for the first time in a 3–3 draw against Ukraine. This was his 50th game for the national team.
At Euro 2012, Gómez scored the only goal against Portugal in their first group match, securing a 1–0 win. He then scored twice against the Netherlands in Germany's second group match. He finished as the second-best scorer of the tournament with three goals and one assist.
UEFA Euro 2016
After missing the 2014 FIFA World Cup due to injury, Gómez was recalled to the national team in November 2015. He scored his first international goal in four years in a 2–3 loss to England on 26 March 2016.
On 21 June 2016, Gómez scored the winning goal in Germany's 1–0 victory over Northern Ireland at Euro 2016. On 26 June, he scored again in Germany's 3–0 win against Slovakia, becoming Germany's all-time leading scorer at the UEFA European Championship with five goals.
2018 FIFA World Cup
Gómez was selected for Germany's squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. He played in Germany's opening match against Mexico, which ended in a 1–0 loss. On 24 June, he provided an assist for Marco Reus's goal in Germany's 2–1 victory over Sweden. On 5 August 2018, he announced his retirement from international football.
Playing Style
Mario Gómez was known for his strong ability to shoot with both feet and his skill in heading the ball. He was also very good at anticipating where the ball would go and positioning himself to score. Arsenal manager Arsène Wenger once described him as "a great finisher who is often in the right place to finish off moves." He was also good at holding the ball against defenders. While he was a fantastic goal-scorer, some people felt he had limited other skills and didn't always work hard enough without the ball.
Personal Life
Mario Gómez was born in Riedlingen, Germany, and grew up in a nearby village called Unlingen. His father is Spanish, and his mother is German. He has dual citizenship but chose to play for Germany.
Mario Gómez married German model Carina Wanzung on 22 July 2016.
Career Statistics
Club
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| VfB Stuttgart II | 2003–04 | Regionalliga Süd | 19 | 6 | — | — | — | 19 | 6 | |||
| 2004–05 | Regionalliga Süd | 24 | 15 | — | — | — | 24 | 15 | ||||
| Total | 43 | 21 | — | — | — | 43 | 21 | |||||
| VfB Stuttgart | 2003–04 | Bundesliga | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |
| 2004–05 | Bundesliga | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | 10 | 0 | ||
| 2005–06 | Bundesliga | 30 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 38 | 8 | |
| 2006–07 | Bundesliga | 25 | 14 | 5 | 2 | — | — | 30 | 16 | |||
| 2007–08 | Bundesliga | 25 | 19 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 28 | |
| 2008–09 | Bundesliga | 32 | 24 | 2 | 3 | 10 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 44 | 35 | |
| Total | 121 | 63 | 11 | 11 | 21 | 13 | 3 | 0 | 156 | 87 | ||
| Bayern Munich | 2009–10 | Bundesliga | 29 | 10 | 4 | 3 | 12 | 1 | — | 45 | 14 | |
| 2010–11 | Bundesliga | 32 | 28 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 45 | 39 | |
| 2011–12 | Bundesliga | 33 | 26 | 5 | 2 | 14 | 13 | — | 52 | 41 | ||
| 2012–13 | Bundesliga | 21 | 11 | 4 | 6 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 32 | 19 | |
| Total | 115 | 75 | 18 | 14 | 41 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 174 | 113 | ||
| Fiorentina | 2013–14 | Serie A | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 1 | — | 15 | 4 | |
| 2014–15 | Serie A | 20 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 2 | — | 32 | 10 | ||
| Total | 29 | 7 | 4 | 4 | 14 | 3 | — | 47 | 14 | |||
| Beşiktaş (loan) | 2015–16 | Süper Lig | 33 | 26 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 2 | — | 41 | 28 | |
| VfL Wolfsburg | 2016–17 | Bundesliga | 33 | 16 | 2 | 1 | — | 2 | 1 | 37 | 18 | |
| 2017–18 | Bundesliga | 12 | 1 | 3 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | ||
| Total | 45 | 17 | 5 | 1 | — | 2 | 1 | 52 | 19 | |||
| VfB Stuttgart | 2017–18 | Bundesliga | 16 | 8 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 16 | 8 | ||
| 2018–19 | Bundesliga | 31 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 | 1 | 34 | 8 | ||
| 2019–20 | 2. Bundesliga | 23 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 24 | 7 | |||
| Total | 70 | 22 | 2 | 0 | — | 2 | 1 | 74 | 23 | |||
| Career total | 456 | 231 | 43 | 30 | 81 | 43 | 6 | 2 | 587 | 305 | ||
International
- Source:
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Germany | |||
| 2007 | 7 | 3 | |
| 2008 | 13 | 3 | |
| 2009 | 11 | 5 | |
| 2010 | 10 | 3 | |
| 2011 | 9 | 7 | |
| 2012 | 7 | 4 | |
| 2013 | 2 | 0 | |
| 2014 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2015 | 1 | 0 | |
| 2016 | 8 | 4 | |
| 2017 | 2 | 2 | |
| 2018 | 7 | 0 | |
| Total | 78 | 31 | |
- Germany score listed first; score column indicates score after each Gómez goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 7 February 2007 | LTU Arena, Düsseldorf, Germany | 1 |  Switzerland |
2–0 | 3–1 | Friendly |
| 2 | 2 June 2007 | Frankenstadion, Nuremberg, Germany | 2 |  San Marino |
4–0 | 6–0 | UEFA Euro 2008 qualification |
| 3 | 5–0 | ||||||
| 4 | 6 February 2008 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria | 8 |  Austria |
3–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 5 | 26 March 2008 | St. Jakob-Park, Basel, Switzerland | 9 | Switzerland |
2–0 | 4–0 | |
| 6 | 3–0 | ||||||
| 7 | 2 June 2009 | Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates | 25 |  United Arab Emirates |
2–0 | 7–2 | |
| 8 | 4–0 | ||||||
| 9 | 5–0 | ||||||
| 10 | 7–2 | ||||||
| 11 | 5 September 2009 | BayArena, Leverkusen, Germany | 27 |  South Africa |
1–0 | 2–0 | |
| 12 | 29 May 2010 | Ferenc Puskás Stadium, Budapest, Hungary | 33 |  Hungary |
2–0 | 3–0 | |
| 13 | 11 August 2010 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 39 |  Denmark |
1–0 | 2–2 | |
| 14 | 12 October 2010 | Astana Arena, Astana, Kazakhstan | 40 |  Kazakhstan |
2–0 | 3–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification |
| 15 | 29 March 2011 | Borussia-Park, Mönchengladbach, Germany | 43 |  Australia |
1–0 | 1–2 | Friendly |
| 16 | 29 May 2011 | Rhein-Neckar-Arena, Sinsheim, Germany | 44 |  Uruguay |
1–0 | 2–1 | |
| 17 | 3 June 2011 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria | 45 | Austria |
1–0 | 2–1 | UEFA Euro 2012 qualification |
| 18 | 2–1 | ||||||
| 19 | 7 June 2011 | Tofiq Bahramov Stadium, Baku, Azerbaijan | 46 |  Azerbaijan |
2–0 | 3–1 | |
| 20 | 7 October 2011 | Turk Telekom Arena, Istanbul, Turkey | 48 |  Turkey |
1–0 | 3–1 | |
| 21 | 11 October 2011 | Esprit Arena, Düsseldorf, Germany | 49 |  Belgium |
3–0 | 3–1 | |
| 22 | 31 May 2012 | Zentralstadion, Leipzig, Germany | 52 |  Israel |
1–0 | 2–0 | Friendly |
| 23 | 9 June 2012 | Arena Lviv, Lviv, Ukraine | 53 |  Portugal |
1–0 | 1–0 | UEFA Euro 2012 |
| 24 | 13 June 2012 | Metalist Stadium, Kharkiv, Ukraine | 54 |  Netherlands |
1–0 | 2–1 | |
| 25 | 2–0 | ||||||
| 26 | 26 March 2016 | Olympiastadion, Berlin, Germany | 62 |  England |
2–0 | 2–3 | Friendly |
| 27 | 29 May 2016 | WWK ARENA, Augsburg, Germany | 63 |  Slovakia |
1–0 | 1–3 | |
| 28 | 21 June 2016 | Parc des Princes, Paris, France | 66 |  Northern Ireland |
1–0 | 1–0 | UEFA Euro 2016 |
| 29 | 26 June 2016 | Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France | 67 | Slovakia |
2–0 | 3–0 | UEFA Euro 2016 |
| 30 | 26 March 2017 | Tofiq Bahramov Republican Stadium, Baku, Azerbaijan | 70 | Azerbaijan |
2–1 | 4–1 | 2018 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 31 | 4 September 2017 | Mercedes-Benz Arena, Stuttgart, Germany | 71 |  Norway |
6–0 | 6–0 |
Honours and Awards
Mario Gómez won many trophies and awards during his career:
VfB Stuttgart
- Bundesliga: 2006–07
Bayern Munich
- Bundesliga: 2009–10, 2012–13
- DFB-Pokal (German Cup): 2009–10, 2012–13
- UEFA Champions League: 2012–13 (and was a runner-up in 2009–10, 2011–12)
Beşiktaş
- Süper Lig (Turkish League): 2015–16
Germany National Team
- UEFA European Championship runner-up: 2008; third place: 2012
- FIFA World Cup third place: 2010
Individual Awards
- Silbernes Lorbeerblatt (Silver Laurel Leaf): 2010 (Germany's highest sports award)
- German Footballer of the Year: 2007
- UEFA European Championship top scorer: 2012
- Bundesliga top scorer: 2011
- DFB-Pokal top scorer: 2008, 2013
- Coppa Italia top scorer: 2015
- Süper Lig top scorer: 2016
- kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2007–08, 2010–11, 2011–12
See also
In Spanish: Mario Gómez García para niños
