Lennart Karl

Lennart Karl
Personal information
Full name Lennart Karl[1]
Date of birth (2008-02-22) 22 February 2008
Place of birth Frammersbach, Germany
Height 1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)[2]
Positions
Team information
Current team
 Bayern Munich
Number 42
Youth career
2015–2017 Viktoria Aschaffenburg
2017–2021 Eintracht Frankfurt
2022 Viktoria Aschaffenburg
2022–2025 Bayern Munich
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2025– Bayern Munich 27 (5)
2025 Bayern Munich II 1 (0)
International career‡
2023 Germany U15 2 (1)
2023–2024 Germany U16 9 (5)
2024–2025 Germany U17 13 (7)
2025 Germany U21 2 (3)
2026– Germany 3 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 20:25, 28 August 2026 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 16:39, 1 June 2026 (UTC)

Lennart Karl (German pronunciation: [ˈlɛnart kaʁl]; born 22 February 2008) is a German professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for Bundesliga club Bayern Munich and the Germany national team.

Club career

2015–2022: Early years

Karl joined the academy of Viktoria Aschaffenburg in 2015, and he moved to the academy of Eintracht Frankfurt in 2017. In June 2018, at 10 years of age, Karl took part at a scouting tournament in Aschaffenburg, progressing to the next round and being invited to audition in the Bernabéu by Real Madrid.[3] However, his family prevented a move as they felt that it wasn't really about their son at all – but rather about negotiating contracts for large football agencies.[4]

In 2022, Frankfurt wanted to extend Karl's academy contract, but since Bayern Munich showed strong interest, Karl expressed his willingness to join Bayern's academy in the summer, which led to his exemption at Frankfurt at the beginning of the year. Bridging his time until summer, he immediately rejoined Viktoria Aschaffenburg for the remainder of the season, before he joined Bayern Munich's academy.[5][6]

2022–2025: Bayern academy

During the 2024–25 season he started with the U17 Nachwuchsliga Group F for Bayern Munich with 17 goals and 8 assists in just 9 appearances.[5] In October 2024 top-flight clubs, like Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid and Dutch Eredivisie club Ajax, showed interest in recruiting him.[7] At only 16 years of age, Karl already represented both the under-17 and under-19 squads during the 2024–25 season, featuring at the UEFA Youth League.

2025: First team debut

On 4 April 2025, he received his first call-up to the senior team of Bayern Munich, for a 3–1 away victory Bundesliga match against FC Augsburg, as an unused substitute and would also feature in Bayern Munich's Champions League quarter-final squads against Inter Milan.[8][9] Two months later, on 15 June, Karl made his professional debut during a 10–0 victory over Auckland City in the FIFA Club World Cup, playing the full second half.[10] With Bayern, he would reach the quarter-final, being knocked out by PSG.[11]

2025–26: Breakthrough season

Karl was one of the players that were called up by Bayern Munich head coach Vincent Kompany, for the 2025 pre-season matches against Ligue 1 club Lyon, Premier League club Tottenham Hotspur, and Swiss Super League club Grasshopper.[12][13] Against the latter two he'd score his first two senior goals.[14] On 8 August, Karl extended his contract with the club and chose to wear the shirt number 42, which was previously worn by Jamal Musiala, after having worn 46 in the previous months.[15] After having won the Franz-Beckenbauer-Supercup on 16 August[16], he'd score his first professional goal later that year, on 22 October, in a 4–0 victory over Belgian Pro League club Club Brugge in the Champions League, becoming the club's youngest-ever scorer in the competition at 17 years and 242 days of age, surpassing the previous record held by Jamal Musiala.[17][18] Three days later, he netted his first Bundesliga goal in a 3–0 away win over Borussia Mönchengladbach.[19] On 22 November, he recorded a goal and an assist in a 6–2 victory over SC Freiburg, becoming the youngest Bayern Munich player to achieve this feat in a single Bundesliga match.[20] Four days later, he'd become the first player in the 2025–26 Champions League season to score a goal against Arsenal.[21] On 9 December, he netted a goal in a 3–1 victory over Portuguese Primeira Liga club Sporting CP, becoming the youngest player ever to score in three consecutive Champions League matches, breaking the previous record set by Kylian Mbappé.[22][23] On 18 March 2026, Karl scored his fourth Champions League goal in the round of 16 second leg, a 4–1 home victory over Atalanta.[24] On 4 April 2026, Karl scored a late extra-time winner in the 98th minute against SC Freiburg and assisted a previous goal, to help Bayern go 9 points clear of Dortmund in the Bundesliga title race, scoring his 5th league goal of the season.[25] On 10 April, Karl suffered a torn muscle fibre, being sidelined for at least 3 weeks, missing Bayern's 4–3 win over Real Madrid in the quarter-final of the Champions League.[26][27][28] He returned on 6 May in a 1–1 draw to PSG in the Champions League semi-final.[29] On the final matchday he'd assist a goal for teammate Tom Bischof in a 5–1 victory over Cologne, as Bayern became league champions.[30] On 23 May, he'd feature in the final of the DFB-Pokal in a 3–0 win over Stuttgart in Olympiastadion, Berlin.[31] He would end his first professional season at Bayern with nine goals and eight assists across all competitions, having won a domestic treble and earning a spot in Germany's 2026 FIFA World Cup squad.[32]

International career

Karl has represented the Germany national U15, U16 and U17, for whom he featured in the 2025 Under-17 Euros, as well as the U21 team.[33][34] For the latter, he gave his debut at the under-21 Euro qualifiers in November 2025, scoring a brace on his debut against Malta, thus becoming the second youngest goalscorer in German under-21 history behind Youssoufa Moukoko.[35] Since it is not confirmed whether Moukoko's age is real or not, the possibility for Karl to be the youngest goalscorer yet remains.[36]

On 19 March 2026, Karl received his first senior Germany national team call-up by head coach Julian Nagelsmann, for the pre-World Cup friendlies against Switzerland and Ghana.[37] He would make his debut against the former eight days later in a 4–3 away victory.[38] On 21 May, he was called up to Germany's final squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[39] He registered his first goal contribution on 31 May in a 4–0 victory over Finland, by assisting Deniz Undav.[40] However, a muscle bundle tear in his left thigh sustained during training ruled Karl out of the World Cup, with Assan Ouédraogo called up as his replacement.[41]

Personal life

Born in Frammersbach, Bavaria, Karl is the son of Steffen Aloe and Caroline Karl. His father is a football coach.[42] His younger brother Vincent also plays football for Eintracht Frankfurt's youth academy.[43] He is in a relationship with German model and TikTok influencer Zoe Käpelle.[44][45]

On 4 January 2026, at a Bayern Munich fan event, Karl, after being asked his dream club by a young Bayern supporter, stated that he dreams of playing for LaLiga club Real Madrid, causing a large amount of backlash from Bayern Fans.[46]Karl was quick to apologise to club officials for his words. Shortly after, in an interview, Bayern manager Vincent Kompany described the incident as ‘an error’, saying that he will only have a problem with Karl if he ‘doesn’t give me 100%.’[47] Since the incident, Bayern fans have forgiven Karl for his words.

Style of play

Karl is a left-footed attacking midfielder, acting as a number 10, sitting behind the striker and dictating play in the final third. With his intelligence on the ball and considerable goal contributions he has drawn comparisons with Thomas Müller, Mesut Özil and Bastian Schweinsteiger.[48][5] He's also used as a winger, predominantly on the right side, often switching positions with fellow attacking midfielders mid-play.[49] His cutting inside from the right wing, left-footed long-range goal scoring ability as well as dribbling has also, especially due to his short and slight physique, led to further comparisons with club legends Arjen Robben and Franck Ribéry, as well as comparisons to Lionel Messi.[50][51][52]

Career statistics

As of match played 28 August 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League DFB-Pokal Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Bayern Munich II 2025–26[53] Regionalliga Bayern 10——0010
Bayern Munich 2024–25[54] Bundesliga 0000001[a]010
2025–26[53] 265408[b]41[c]0399
2026–27 1000000010
Total 275408420419
Career total 285408420429

International

As of match played 31 May 2026[55]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Germany 202630
Total30

Honours

Bayern Munich

Individual

References

  1. ↑ "FIFA Club World Cup 2025 – Squad List: FC Bayern München (GER)" (PDF). FIFA. 11 June 2025. p. 15. Retrieved 11 June 2025.
  2. ↑ "Lennart Karl FC Bayern".
  3. ↑ "FC Bayern: Erstaunliche Enthüllung um Lennart Karl". SPORT1 (in German). 2025-12-16. Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  4. ↑ "Bayerns Lennart Karl machte Probetraining bei Real, Familie wollte Wechsel nicht" (in German). Archived from the original on 2026-01-05. Retrieved 2026-04-17.
  5. 1 2 3 "Remember the Name: Lennart Karl – Bayern Munich's 17-Year-Old Prodigy". Yahoo Sports. 15 October 2024. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  6. ↑ "Lennart Karl: Aufstieg von Eintracht Frankfurt zum FC Bayern München". FAZ.NET (in German). 2026-02-21. Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  7. ↑ "Real Madrid ready to engage in transfer battle with Ajax for Bayern Munich prodigy Lennart Karl". Goal.com. 30 October 2024. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  8. ↑ "Bayern come from behind to beat Augsburg". FC Bayern Munich. 4 April 2025. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  9. ↑ fcbayern.com. "Lennart Karl: „Möchte mich beim FC Bayern durchsetzen"". FC Bayern. Retrieved 2026-04-16.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  10. ↑ "Schützenfest zum Auftakt: FC Bayern demontiert Auckland City" (in German). Sport1. 15 June 2025. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  11. ↑ "PSG 2-0 Bayern (Jul 5, 2025) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 2026-04-17.
  12. ↑ "Match report FC Bayern - Olympique Lyon (Friendly)". FC Bayern Munich. 2 August 2025. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  13. ↑ "FC Bayern vs. Hotspur - Telekom Cup 25/26". FC Bayern Munich. 7 August 2025. Retrieved 7 August 2025.
  14. ↑ "Zaubershow von Bayern-Juwel Karl im letzten Härtetest". SPORT1 (in German). 2025-08-12. Retrieved 2026-04-24.
  15. ↑ "FC Bayern verlängert mit Lennart Karl und Wisdom Mike" (in German). FC Bayern Munich. 8 August 2025. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  16. ↑ "Stuttgart 1-2 Bayern (Aug 16, 2025) Final Score". www.espn.com. Retrieved 2026-05-29.
  17. ↑ Overhoff, Philipp (22 October 2025). "🚨 Er liegt noch vor Musiala! Bayern-Juwel sichert sich irren Klubrekord" [🚨 Still ahead of Musiala, Bayern starlet claims incredible club record] (in German). OneFootball. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  18. ↑ "Bayern breeze past Brugge to stay perfect". FC Bayern Munich. 22 October 2025. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  19. ↑ "Bayern Munich starlet Lennart Karl adds to steadily growing tally with dream goal against Borussia Mönchengladbach". Get German Football News. 25 October 2025.
  20. ↑ "Lennart Karl becomes youngest Bayern Munich player to score and assist a goal in a Bundesliga game". Bundesliga. 22 November 2025.
  21. ↑ "Arsenal 3-1 Bayern (Nov 26, 2025) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 2026-04-24.
  22. ↑ "Achtelfinale im Blick: Bayern feiern Comeback-Sieg gegen Sporting" (in German). FC Bayern Munich. 9 December 2025.
  23. ↑ "Lennart Karl surpasses Kylian Mbappé with Champions League streak record". OneFootball. 10 December 2025.
  24. ↑ Tillenburg, Robin. "FC Bayern zerlegt Atalanta erneut - jetzt wartet Real Madrid". sportschau.de (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  25. ↑ Hochrainer, Sebastian. "Bischof und Karl sorgen für unglaubliche Bayern-Wende in Freiburg". sportschau.de (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-04.
  26. ↑ BR24Sport. "Youngster fällt aus: Muskelfaserriss bei Lennart Karl: FC-Bayern-Schock vor Real". sportschau.de (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-11.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  27. ↑ "FC Bayern: Neue Details nach Karl-Ausfall". SPORT1 (in German). 2026-04-10. Retrieved 2026-04-11.
  28. ↑ "Bayern 4-3 Real Madrid (Apr 15, 2026) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
  29. ↑ "Bayern 1-1 PSG (May 6, 2026) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 2026-05-07.
  30. ↑ "Bayern 5-1 Cologne (May 16, 2026) Final Score". www.espn.com. Retrieved 2026-05-29.
  31. ↑ "Bayern 3-0 Stuttgart (May 23, 2026) Final Score". www.espn.com. Retrieved 2026-05-29.
  32. ↑ "Lennart Karl | Statistiken | Bundesliga 2025/26". kicker (in German). Retrieved 2026-05-29.
  33. ↑ "Lennart Karl - Spielerprofil - DFB Datencenter". Deutscher Fußball-Bund (in German).
  34. ↑ "Lennart Karl Internationals". Worldfootball.
  35. ↑ "Lennart Karl trägt sich in die Geschichtsbücher ein". SPORT1 (in German). 2025-11-14. Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  36. ↑ "Youssoufa Moukoko: Muss der vermeintlichem Vater ins Gefängnis? OGC Nizza bezieht erstmals Stellung". ran (in German). 2024-12-18. Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  37. ↑ "Nagelsmann nominiert erstmals Urbig und Karl - Musiala fehlt". kicker (in German). Retrieved 2026-03-19.
  38. ↑ Hornung, Christian. "Deutschland gegen Schweiz: Wirtz weltklasse - nur die DFB-Abwehr macht Sorgen". sportschau.de (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  39. ↑ "Neuer drin, El Mala raus: Das ist der deutsche Kader für die WM". stern.de (in German). 2026-05-22. Retrieved 2026-05-23.
  40. ↑ "Germany 4-0 Finland (Live Commentary) Eurosport May 31, 2026". www.eurosport.de. Retrieved 2026-05-31.
  41. ↑ "Im WM-Kader: Ouédraogo ersetzt verletzten Karl!" (in German). Bundesliga. 5 June 2026.
  42. ↑ Haider, Thomas (2025-11-30). "Das ist Lennart Karl: Herkunft, Karriere & Bayern-Gehalt". wettfreunde.net (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-14.
  43. ↑ "Vincent Karl". Eintracht Frankfurt (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-14.
  44. ↑ "FC Bayern: Vor Real-Kracher: Lennart Karl zeigt erstmals seine Freundin Zoe Kappele!". bild.de (in German). 2026-04-15. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
  45. ↑ "Bayern-Juwel: Liebt DFB-Debütant Karl diese Frau im BVB-Trikot?". EXPRESS (in German). 2026-03-27. Retrieved 2026-04-15.
  46. ↑ "Bayern star makes shock statement saying he 'definitely' wants to sign for Real Madrid | Flashscore.com". www.flashscore.com. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
  47. ↑ "Bayern's Kompany on Lennart Karl's Real Madrid comments: 'An error' | ESPN.co.uk". www.espn.co.uk. Retrieved 2026-08-05.
  48. ↑ "Legende berät offenbar Mega-Talent". Sport1.de (in German). 28 October 2024. Retrieved 23 October 2025.
  49. ↑ Neuhauss, Florian. "Bayerns Teenager Karl übertrumpft sogar Musiala: Die Daten verraten, warum er jetzt schon herausragt". ndr.de (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  50. ↑ "„Hat was von Arjen Robben": Wird dieses Top-Talent der nächste Star beim FC Bayern?". www.tz.de (in German). 2025-04-01. Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  51. ↑ ""Kompany kann ihn in Zukunft nicht mehr verstecken": Bayern Münchens Supertalent Lennart Karl mit Franck Ribery verglichen | SPOX". www.spox.com (in German). Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  52. ↑ "FC Bayern: Wie viel Messi steckt in Lennart Karl?". SPORT1 (in German). 2025-11-22. Retrieved 2026-04-05.
  53. 1 2 "Spiele von Lennart Karl – 2025/26" [Games played by Lennart Karl – 2025/26]. kicker (in German). Olympia-Verlag. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  54. ↑ "Spiele von Lennart Karl – 2024/25" [Games played by Lennart Karl – 2024/25]. kicker (in German). Olympia-Verlag. Retrieved 26 March 2026.
  55. ↑ "Lennart Karl". eu-football.info. 28 March 2026. Retrieved 28 March 2026.
  56. ↑ "Bayern dreht nach Rückstand auf und kürt sich vorzeitig zum Deutschen Meister". kicker.de (in German). 19 April 2026. Retrieved 19 April 2026.
  57. ↑ "Hattrick Kane: Bayern gewinnt nach sechs Jahren Wartezeit den DFB-Pokal". kicker.de (in German). 23 May 2026. Retrieved 23 May 2026.
  58. ↑ "Bayern München ist der erste Gewinner des Franz-Beckenbauer-Supercups". Spiegel (in German). 16 August 2025. Retrieved 16 August 2025.
  59. ↑ "Lennart Karl wins Bundesliga Goal of the Month for October!". Bundesliga. 11 November 2025. Retrieved 11 November 2025.
  60. ↑ "Lennart Karl wins silver Fritz Walter Medal". FC Bayern Munich. 17 October 2025. Retrieved 16 December 2025.
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