Even though Borussia Dortmund has been losing Robert Lewandowski to their rivals for free, fans of German football recognize that Die Schwarzgelben are a formidable team in their own right, despite the fact that to many in the mainstream, they are the team that simply cannot seem to stop losing to Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga. Dortmund produces some of the best football players in the world. Jude Bellingham and Erling Haaland, are now regarded as the top two players on the planet. But rather than relying on young stars, Dortmund’s best teams have valued teamwork above individual talent. The teams from the late 1990s and early 2010s stand out as some of the most exceptional teams. Find the list of the Top 10 Borussia Dortmund Players of All Time below.
The Top 10 Borussia Dortmund Players of All Time
Stéphane Chapuisat
Stéphane Chapuisat is one of the greatest Swiss players of all time. He was the main goal scorer for that unique Borussia Dortmund team that defeated a star-studded Juventus. Over the years, Chapuisat led Dortmund with 123 goals and 64 assists. He twice placed in the top 10 of the Ballon d’Or voting. That’s quite the feat, and given his goal-scoring, reliability, and professionalism, Chapuisat merits special recognition on the list of the Top 10 Borussia Dortmund Players of All Time.
Andreas Möller
Andreas Möller was a brilliant midfielder for Dortmund. He was one of the greatest players in the club’s history to deliver goals and assists from this position. He was a creative genius. Möller was a vital member of Dortmund’s squad that defeated Juventus to win the Champions League in 1996–1997. Möller played for Dortmund for two periods. First from 1988 to 1990 as a member of the Schwarzgelben and then again from 1994 to 2000.
In his prime, he scored some incredible goals because of his two-footed ability to sneak the finishing pass from any angle or score from any circumstance. Throughout his illustrious career, which included stints at Eintracht Frankfurt and Schalke, he would lead the league in assists twice and be named to the Bundesliga Team of the Season six times. Möller is still regarded as one of the greatest players in Die Schwarzgelben’s history. He left BVB in 2000 to play for the Royal Blues.
Mats Hummels
Mats Hummels similarly switched teams, initially coming from Bayern Munich’s youth to play for Dortmund. He returned to Bavaria at the height of his career. It was a move that contributed to BVB’s loss of dominance in the Bundesliga. Later, before the 2019–20 season, Hummels made a comeback. Dortmund attempted to challenge Die Roten for the championship, but they were unable to win. Hummels is still among the greatest center-backs in the Bundesliga at 34 years old. Although he has lost some physical ground, mentally, he is stronger than ever.
Of course, nothing comes close to the talent Hummels showed in his formative years. During his first spell with Dortmund from 2009 to 2016, he emerged as one of the world’s top players at any position. The world-class center-back duo Hummels and Neven Subotić, dubbed Kinder-Riegel after the chocolate bar, laid the groundwork for Dortmund to reclaim the Bundesliga title under Jürgen Klopp. Hummels is regarded as a pivotal player in the contemporary history of German football due to his agility, passing, skill with the ball, and defensive awareness. Without him, they would not have become the 2014 World Cup winners.
Sebastian Kehl
As Dortmund’s holding midfielder, Sebastian Kehl, the sports director at the moment, was crucial in guiding the team through a challenging period and securing a Champions League Final berth. From 2002 to 2015, Kehl made 362 appearances with Die Schwarzgelben, winning the Bundesliga three times and earning a spot on the league’s Team of the Season thrice. Kehl’s leadership is what has made Dortmund’s history so significant. Before Klopp took over, Kehl was a willing defensive presence and a top professional who helped to cement the team. Had he not persevered through one of BVB’s worst seasons in the 2000s, Kehl would have received more recognition.
Dedê
Dedê is without a doubt one of the most reliable and accomplished players to wear the Black and Yellow uniform for Dortmund, ranking among the best left-backs in Bundesliga history. He played over 400 games for Dortmund between 1998 and 2011, emerging as a vital figurehead for the team. Dedê was a member of two Bundesliga-winning teams and did everything in his power to ensure that Dortmund’s standards never dropped, even though his tenure fell between the Champions League Final appearances.
Although he was predominantly a left-back, Dedê had 55 assists. He was a formidable one-on-one defender and a tireless ball handler. Even in the 2007–08 season, when BVB finished in 13th place in the Bundesliga, he recorded a career-high nine assists.
Roman Weidenfeller
Roman Weidenfeller is one of the top goalkeepers in Germany over the past 20 years. He is the greatest goalkeeper in Dortmund’s history. He was another pillar of the team and a part of a challenging but extremely successful period. Weidenfeller joined Dortmund in 2002 from another illustrious Bundesliga team—Kaiserslautern. He never left the team even after experiencing financial difficulties.
During his 16 seasons with Die Schwarzgelben, the elite goalie stopped 74.4 percent of the shots he faced. That illustrates how consistent Weidenfeller is. In 2010–11, he even achieved a save rate of over 82 percent. In both the 2010–11 and 2011–12 seasons, he allowed less than 0.70 goals per 90. Weidenfeller, a fantastic keeper and captain, helped bring an actual end to an era for the Black and Yellows by relinquishing his starting position following the arrival of Roman Bürki.
Lars Ricken
That legendary Champions League victory over the Bianconeri in 1997 was made possible in large part by the adored Lars Ricken. Over his more than 400 games for Die Schwarzgelben, Ricken almost scored 70 goals and provided 70 assists. From 1993 until 2007, he was a fixture at Dortmund, offering an indisputable degree of talent and stability from midfield. For the team, Ricken was a workhorse and a playmaker in the middle of the field.
Matthias Sammer
The only player in Dortmund’s history to win the Ballon d’Or is Matthias Sammer. Though he only played for Dortmund for a few seasons (1993–1998), the defensive midfielder and sweeper sure made the most of those years. Without the renowned German defender, BVB would not have been the Champions League winners. If injuries hadn’t been the sole thing preventing Sammer from having an even better career, you have to wonder where the player would stand in the annals of the greatest defenders in history. With his presence and sense of the game, Sammer elevated Dortmund and truly made an impression as a leader.
Michael Zorc
Borussia Dortmund is made up of Michael Zorc and Marco Reus. Both as a player and as the sports director who assisted Jürgen Klopp in assembling the team that propelled BVB back to the pinnacle of German and European football, the man is the greatest legend in Dortmund history. Zorc has more appearances and goals than any other player in Dortmund’s history, with over 150.He was a member of the squad that won the Champions League in 1996–1997 and is a two-time winner of the Bundesliga. Zorc, another adored one-club man like Lars Ricken, led the way for Die Schwarzgelben from 1981 to 1998.
Marco Reus
Marco Reus, another outstanding player and leader in Dortmund’s history, has sadly never taken home the Bundesliga or Champions League title, despite his best efforts. As a leader, playmaker, and goal scorer, he has done everything in his power to lead Dortmund to victory, but ultimately, he has been let down by the circumstances surrounding him. Prior to injury, Reus was Germany’s most accomplished No. 10, surpassing Mesut Özil following the latter’s fall as the team’s most explosive winger. Even at 34 years old, Reus remains one of the finest players in the Bundesliga when he’s on the field despite his numerous injuries.
For Die Schwarzgelben, the German international has double-digit goals in five separate seasons and double-digit assists twice. Dortmund has always relied on his vision and superb technical skill, and without his ability to create opportunities and recycle possessions, BVB has frequently suffered in previous years. Reus, who is adored by all and served as the FIFA 17 cover star to break up the monotony between Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, should be remembered for his accomplishments rather than his heartbreaks.
He witnessed the departure of numerous celebrities from the club, including his close buddy Robert Lewandowski, and their subsequent reunions (Mario Götze and Mats Hummels). Reus never left the club of his youth, though, even though Barcelona and even Bayern Munich made advances toward him and rejected him in his academy days due to his diminutive size. Marco Reus tops our list of the Top 10 Borussia Dortmund Players of All Time.
For the list of the Top 10 Bayern Munich Players of all time, click here
