1860 Munich Academy Dream XI Some of today's biggest German stars came through the ranks at 1860 - where are they now? vor 2 Stunden

Published on: 05 December 2017

The capital of Bavaria may be synonymous the world over as the home city of the all-conquering Bayern Munich, but in 1860, the Bundesliga giants face a rival that has been tough to beat in terms of producing footballing talent par excellence.

Having passed through the ranks of Munich's other team, many well-known names and current protagonists on the German top-flight stage continue to shine brightly in our favourite league. bundesliga.com recaps the journey of several famous faces after they graduated from the side nicknamed The Lions in our 1860 academy XI ....

Goalkeeper

Gerhard Tremmel

Tremmel's move to Unterhaching in 1998 would later earn him a Bundesliga debut against the very team he had spent three years with as a youth player, 1860. A much-admired and respected journeyman, the 39-year-old recently hung up his gloves following spells at Hannover, Hertha Berlin, Energie Cottbus and FC Salzburg. A string of impressive UEFA Champions League performances for the latter club against the likes of Juventus and Manchester City earned the Bavarian a move to English Premier League side Swansea, where he lifted the League Cup at Wembley in 2013.

Much-loved goalkeeper Gerhard Tremmel was with 1860's youth set-up in 1991/92. Defenders

Philipp Max

With his famous footballing father Martin Max starring as a Bundesliga top scorer on two occasions for 1860, it was no surprise that Philipp ended up on the books of the Munich club in his junior years. The current Augsburg star switched to Bayern Munich's youth academy before later turning up at Schalke, where he made his Bundesliga debut in a goalless Revierderby against Borussia Dortmund. Via Karlsruher, Max made his way to Augsburg and impressed sufficiently there to form part of Germany's silver-medal-winning side at the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio.

Philipp Max has shone in 2017/18 with Augsburg as one of the Bundesliga's leading assist-providers. © imago / Eibner

Tobias Strobl

Versatile defender Strobl could have chosen another sporting path - the youth golf champion showed plenty of promise with a putter in his hand early on. However, having embarked on a footballing career from as early as six, Strobl's immense determination to succeed in the world of football began to bear fruit when he joined 1860 in 2000. Later making his Bundesliga debut as a Hoffenheim player, the 27-year-old joined Cologne on loan before returning to Sinsheim where he racked up 86 league appearances. Strobl suffered an untimely ACL and meniscus injury prior to the start of his second season at latest club Borussia Mönchengladbach.

Tobias Strobl enjoyed 18 starts for Gladbach in 2016/17 before succumbing to a serious injury in the summer. © gettyimages / Marc Eich

Sven Bender

Bender was Under-19 European champion with Germany while on the books at 1860, a tribute to his development at the Munich club from a young age. The twin brother of Lars Bender, Sven went on to feature prominently under Jürgen Klopp in Borussia Dortmund's back-to-back Bundesliga title-winning years of 2011 and 2012, the latter forming part of a league and DFB Cup double. A losing finalist in the 2013 UEFA Champions League final, Bender also claimed silver for Germany - for whom he won seven senior caps - at the 2016 Olympics. 

Watch: An early Christmas treat - the Bender twins' top five goals in the Bundesliga...

Christian Träsch

Another versatile defender/midfielder schooled at 1860, Träsch rose to feature for the club's second string team when Stuttgart came calling in 2007. A top-flight debut against Schalke arrived the following year and preceded UEFA Cup and UEFA Champions League experience. The interest of Wolfsburg was duly piqued and Träsch went on to complete six seasons in Lower Saxony, even captaining the Wolves - with whom he reached the Champions League quarter-finals in 2016 - on several occasions. Currently plies his trade at hometown side Ingolstadt.

A post shared by Christian Träsch (@christiantraesch) on Aug 20, 2017 at 10:23pm PDT

Midfielders 

Fabian Johnson

Now in his fourth season at Gladbach, full-back Johnson has enjoyed a varied career on the domestic and international fronts since taking his formative steps at 1860, passing through every youth category at the club. Remaining at the Bavarian side until 2009, the Munich-born Johnson opted for Wolfsburg but it was at subsequent club Hoffenheim that the USMNT star flourished, scoring five times in 87 Bundesliga appearances. A European U-21 champion with Germany, Johnson switched allegiances following a call from former U.S. coach Jürgen Klinsmann and later played at the 2014 FIFA World Cup for the Stars and Stripes.

Watch: Johnson's goal of the season contender from 2016/17

Lars Bender

Bayer Leverkusen captain Lars Bender was once an 1860 fledging just like his twin Sven. Already featuring with the 1860 pros as a 17-year-old, Lars would go on to become the Munich side's youngest-ever captain two years later. Shortly before reaching the 2010 FIFA U-20 World Cup final, the defensive midfielder joined Leverkusen, where he has remained ever since, scoring 17 times in 192 top-flight games and finishing as a Bundesliga runner-up in 2011. Lars was also part of Germany's successful squad at the 2008 European U-19 Championship, scoring twice en route to glory. He featured at UEFA EURO 2012 but suffered an injury that prevented him from travelling to the 2014 World Cup.

Lars Bender (r.) is now in his ninth season and captain of Bayer Leverkusen, where he was joined by twin Sven (l.) in the summer. © imago

Julian Weigl

A native of Bavaria, Weigl's rapid progress at 1860 led to him captaining the U-19 side. A senior debut in the second division soon followed and it was unsurprising that a team of Borussia Dortmund's standing moved for a player of such immense midfield promise in 2015. In fact, such was Weigl's immediate impact with the Black-and-Yellows, he made over 50 appearances in his first season, reaching the DFB Cup final just days before making his senior debut with Germany in 2016. Dortmund's midfield metronome, Weigl holds the Bundesliga record for most touches of the ball in a single game (214).

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