Thomas Helmer facts for kids
Helmer in 2010
|
|||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 21 April 1965 | ||||||||||||||||||
| Place of birth | Herford, West Germany | ||||||||||||||||||
| Height | 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in) | ||||||||||||||||||
| Position(s) | Centre-back, sweeper | ||||||||||||||||||
| Youth career | |||||||||||||||||||
| –1984 | SC Bad Salzuflen | ||||||||||||||||||
| Senior career* | |||||||||||||||||||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) | ||||||||||||||||
| 1984–1986 | Arminia Bielefeld | 39 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||
| 1986–1992 | Borussia Dortmund | 190 | (16) | ||||||||||||||||
| 1992–1999 | Bayern Munich | 191 | (24) | ||||||||||||||||
| 1999–2000 | Sunderland | 2 | (0) | ||||||||||||||||
| 1999 | → Hertha BSC (loan) | 5 | (1) | ||||||||||||||||
| Total | 427 | (46) | |||||||||||||||||
| International career | |||||||||||||||||||
| 1990–1998 | Germany | 68 | (5) | ||||||||||||||||
|
Medal record
|
|||||||||||||||||||
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals | |||||||||||||||||||
Thomas Helmer (born 21 April 1965) is a German former footballer. He mostly played as a centre-back or sweeper. A sweeper is a defender who "sweeps up" any loose balls or opponents who get past the main defenders.
Helmer played most of his club career for Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich. He played almost 400 games in the top German league, the Bundesliga. He also helped the German national team win the UEFA European Championship in 1996.
Contents
Club Career Highlights
Thomas Helmer started his professional football journey with Arminia Bielefeld. He played a few games in the 1984–85 season. His team was relegated that year.
Joining Borussia Dortmund
In the next season, Helmer scored five goals in 35 matches in the second division. This caught the eye of Borussia Dortmund, a big club that signed him in 1986. He quickly became an important player for Dortmund. He scored 16 goals during his six years with the team.
Moving to Bayern Munich
In 1992, Helmer joined FC Bayern Munich in a transfer that caused a lot of talk. Borussia Dortmund did not want to sell one of their best players to a rival team in Germany. So, they sold him to a French club called Olympique Lyonnais instead.
However, just three months later, Lyon sold Helmer to Bayern Munich. This transfer cost Bayern 7.5 million German marks, which was a record fee for the club at the time. The situation caused such a stir that the German national team coach even thought about not picking Helmer for the UEFA Euro 92 squad.
Success at Bayern Munich
Helmer became a key player and later the captain for Bayern Munich. He scored seven goals in his first season with the team. During his time there, Bayern won three league titles, one German Cup (DFB-Pokal), and three League Cups (Premiere Ligapokal).
He also helped Bayern win the 1995–96 UEFA Cup (now called the UEFA Europa League). He scored one goal in the final against FC Girondins de Bordeaux. Helmer played alongside other famous defenders like Olaf Thon, Lothar Matthäus, and Markus Babbel at Bayern.
Time in England and Retirement
After leaving Bayern in 1999, Helmer decided to play in the Premier League in England. He joined Sunderland on a free transfer. However, he only played two league games for Sunderland.
He then went back to Germany on loan to Hertha BSC. After returning to Sunderland, his manager felt he was no longer able to play at the top level. Helmer's contract was ended, and he retired from football soon after.
International Career
Thomas Helmer first played for the German national team on 10 October 1990. This was a friendly match against Sweden, which Germany won 3–1.
European Championships
Helmer had great success in the UEFA European Football Championships. He played in two finals in a row. In 1992, Germany surprisingly lost to Denmark. Denmark had been called to play in the tournament at the last minute.
However, four years later, Germany won the tournament. They beat the Czech Republic in extra-time at Wembley.
World Cup Appearances
Helmer also played in two FIFA World Cup tournaments. His last international game was in the second round of the 1998 World Cup against Mexico. He was replaced before half-time in that match.
Life After Football
.jpg)
After retiring from playing, Thomas Helmer became a sports journalist and a television presenter. He worked for a German sports TV channel called DSF.
He also became an ambassador for a children's charity called "FIFA for SOS Children's Villages." He started this role in 1997. From 2011 to 2015, Helmer was also a member of the Supervisory Board for his first club, Arminia Bielefeld.
Honours and Achievements
Thomas Helmer won many titles during his football career.
Borussia Dortmund
- DFB-Pokal: 1988–89 (German Cup)
- DFL-Supercup: 1989 (German Supercup)
Bayern Munich
- Bundesliga: 1993–94, 1996–97, 1998–99 (German League Champion)
- DFB-Pokal: 1997–98 (German Cup); runner-up 1998–99
- DFB-Ligapokal: 1997, 1998 (German League Cup)
- UEFA Cup: 1995–96
- UEFA Champions League: runner-up 1998–99
Germany
- UEFA European Championship: 1996 (European Champion); runner-up 1992
- US Cup: 1993
See also
In Spanish: Thomas Helmer para niños
