Background and career
Mats Julian Hummels (German pronunciation: [ˈmats ˈhʊml̩s]; born 16 December 1988) is a German former professional footballer who played as a centre-back. Considered one of the best defenders of his generation, he was known for his tackling, anticipation, goal scoring ability and deadly crosses. Hummels came through the Bayern Munich youth academy before joining Borussia Dortmund on loan in January 2008, and officially signing for Dortmund in February 2009 for €4 million. He rejoined Bayern in 2016 for an undisclosed fee, and was sold back to Dortmund three years later, having won the Bundesliga in all his seasons in Munich. Hummels made over 500 total appearances for Dortmund, winning the Bundesliga and the DFB-Pokal twice, as well as finishing runner-up in the UEFA Champions League in 2013 and 2024. After a season in Italy with Roma, he announced his retirement from football in 2025. Hummels was part of the Germany national team from 2010 to 2023, earning over 70 caps. He represented the nation at the FIFA World Cup in 2014 and 2018, winning the former edition, and at the UEFA European Championship in 2012, 2016 and 2020.
Hummels is a product of Bayern Munich's youth academy, first entering the club as a six-year-old. He signed his first professional contract on 19 December 2006, until 2010. On 19 May 2007, in the season's final match, he played his first Bundesliga match with the first team in a 5–2 home routing of 1. FSV Mainz 05. He also played for the reserve team. In 42 Regionalliga matches Hummels scored five goals for FC Bayern II.
In January 2008, Hummels joined Borussia Dortmund, initially on loan. He finished the 2007–08 season with 16 matches played. During his first full season, he quickly established himself as first-choice, as he often partnered newly signed Neven Subotić, but also missed a great part of its final months due to injury. By the end of the 2007–08 season he would lose his first final with Dortmund in a 1–2 loss against his lender club Bayern Munich in the DFB-Pokal final. In February 2009, he was fully signed to the club for a fee of €4 million. In the summer of 2008, he would win his first trophy with Borussia Dortmund in a German supercup match between Dortmund and Bayern Munich, which Dortmund won by 2–1.
The 2010–11 season brought increased success for Hummels. He was the regular first-choice centre-back, again paired with Subotić. The duo helped Dortmund to the best defensive record in the Bundesliga, as the team won the league title. Hummels' performances that season displayed great quality in tackling, positioning, passing and composure. In the 2011–12 season Hummels lost the DFL-Supercup against rivals FC Schalke 04 after penalties. Nonetheless, Hummels won the Bundesliga for a second time in 2011–12 as Dortmund set a Bundesliga record with the most points in a Bundesliga season with 81 points. Hummels scored a goal in Dortmund's 5–2 win against Bayern in the 2012 DFB-Pokal Final as the team completed the league and cup double. On 3 June 2012, Hummels signed a new contract to remain at Dortmund. In that season he would score his first goal in the UEFA Champions League, a penalty against Olympique Marseille in a group stage match to make it 2–0. In 2012, he would lose the DFL-Supercup final once more with 2–1 against Bayern Munich. Hummels scored his second Champions League goal in the first leg of the round of 16 in the 2012–13 edition of the competition, equalizing late by header against Shakhtar Donetsk. On 25 May 2013, Hummels was in the Borussia Dortmund line-up that was defeated 2–1 by Bayern Munich last-minute at Wembley Stadium, London, in the 2013 UEFA Champions League Final. On 27 July 2013, Hummels was in the Borussia Dortmund line-up that won 4–2 against Bayern Munich to win his first official DFL-Supercup. A year later, on 13 August 2014 he went on to win his second DFL-Supercup in a 2–0 victory over Bayern Munich after losing the DFB-Pokal final with 2–0 against Bayern Munich three months prior. By the end of the season Hummels reached the 2015 DFB-Pokal final after a win against Bayern Munich by penalties in the semifinal. Borussia Dortmund would go on to lose the final 1–3 against Bundesliga runners-up VfL Wolfsburg. Hummels finished his Borussia Dortmund season with two goals in 32 matches played in the 2014–15 season and three goals in 50 matches played during the 2015–16 season. With Borussia Dortmund he would reach the UEFA Europa League quarterfinals that season - almost reaching the semis after a last-minute 3–4 defeat at Anfield road after leading the second leg match twice by two goals. He'd score in the first leg against Liverpool and register an assist in the second leg. He played for Dortmund in the 2016 DFB-Pokal final against Bayern Munich shortly after having confirmed that he would join Bayern for the following season. After the game, which Dortmund lost on penalties, coach Thomas Tuchel publicly criticised the player. Hummels had asked to be substituted during the game, due to a torn calf muscle.
On 10 May 2016, it was confirmed that Hummels would re-join Bayern Munich from 1 July, signing a five-year contract. The fee was undisclosed, with the BBC citing reports that it was £30 million. He made his debut for Bayern on 14 August 2016 in the DFL-Supercup against his old team Dortmund which his team won with 2–0. On 20 August, Hummels scored his first goal for the club in a 5–0 victory over Carl Zeiss Jena during the first round of the DFB-Pokal. On 26 November, Hummels scored his first league goal for the club in a 2–1 win over Bayer Leverkusen. On 24 September, Hummels suffered a knee injury in his right knee just before half time and was subbed off in a 1–0 victory over Hamburger SV. He made his comeback as a substitute in the second half in a 1–0 defeat to Atlético Madrid on 29 September. On 9 April 2017, Hummels missed the Champions League quarter-final first leg against Real Madrid after sustaining an ankle injury in training. He did not fully recover from the injury and had to play the second leg against Real Madrid as defender. Javi Martínez was shown a red card in the first leg and there was no more backup player in centre-back position; the match ended 4–2 defeat for his side as they got knocked out from the competition. On 26 April, Hummels scored a goal against his former club Borussia Dortmund in a 2–3 loss in the DFB-Pokal semi-final. Hummels would play alongside Germany teammate Jérôme Boateng throughout the season. Hummels finished the 2016–17 season with three goals in 42 matches played. During this time, Hummels 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 Hummels featured as the fourth of sixteen minifigures in the collection.
On 5 August 2017, Hummels started the season in fashion by defeating Borussia Dortmund to win the DFL-Supercup in the penalty-shootout as the match ended 2–2 after extra time. He scored his first goal of the season in a 5–0 victory over Chemnitzer FC in the DFB-Pokal first-round on 12 August. On 1 October, Hummels scored a goal in a 2–2 draw over Hertha BSC. On 18 October, he scored his first Champions League goal for the club and his third goal in the competition in a 3–0 victory over Celtic. Hummels sustained an adductor injury at Bayern's training camp in Doha during the winter break which forced him to miss the league match against Bayer 04 Leverkusen. On 2 February, Hummels played his first match of the year after recovering from the injury in a 2–0 victory over Mainz 05. On 31 March, he made his 50th league appearance for Bayern Munich in a 6–0 victory over Borussia Dortmund. On 28 April, Hummels captained his side for the first time in a 4–1 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt. Hummels finished the 2017–18 season with three goals in 41 matches played.
Sources
Net-worth figure: Celebrity Net Worth (October 2026), in USD. Biography and career facts: the person's Wikipedia article and linked reporting. Snapshot date for all StarWorth figures: 28 October 2026.
