8. Toni Kroos

Toni Kroos: Complete Player History, Teams, and Trophies

Toni Kroos History and Highlights

One of the most complete midfielders to ever step foot onto a football pitch, Toni Kroos was already a legend at Bayern Munich before he moved to Real Madrid and played an integral role in one of the most successful spells in the club’s history.

Champions League 2023 – 24 Predictions

Madrid is currently competing for the 2023 Champions League Title! Read our Braga vs Real Madrid prediction and win big!

Want to see how Toni Kroos and the Germany National Football Team will do in the Qatar 2022 World Cup? Click the links below to bet on your favourite World Cup matches!

Wednesday November 23 – Germany vs Japan (Khalifa International Stadium, Al Rayyan; kick-off 2pm).

Sunday November 27 –  Spain vs Germany (Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor; kick-off 8pm).

Thursday December 1 –  Costa Rica vs Germany (Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor; kick-off 8pm).

Kicking off locally

Kroos first began playing football for his local side, Greifswalder SC. His talent there was clear from a young age and he quickly moved on to Hansa Rostock’s youth team before Bayern Munich scouted the prodigy and moved him along again.

Becoming a pro

Toni Kroos would finish his youth development at Bayern, often being allowed time off school to ensure he fulfilled his potential. He was still only 17 when he got promoted to the senior squad and, even at that age, managed to make a mark, providing two assists on his debut.

While he was getting an impressive number of minutes under his belt considering his age, Bayern recognized that they could accelerate his development with more time on the pitch. So, in January 2009, he was sent out to Bayer Leverkusen.

Development at Bayer Leverkusen

The prodigy fit right into the Leverkusen team, regularly starting for the duration of his 18-month stay. He particularly impressed midway through the 2009-10 season, where a handful of goals and assists in quick succession helped him win consecutive Player of the Month awards from the German magazine Kicker.

Ready for Munich

When Kroos returned to Munich, it was clear he was more than ready to hold his own in the Bundesliga, and finished the 2010-11 season with 37 appearances.

He played an important role as the team reached the Champions League final the following year and then won a famous treble the year after that, although he was ultimately injured for the tail end of the latter.

Considering options

In the summer of 2014, newspapers were awash with rumors of suitors for the German maestro. At one point, it looked certain that he would sign for Manchester United, but in the end, he signed for Real Madrid for a relative bargain of $30 million.

Unprecedented success

Kroos had no problems transitioning to life in Spain and lined up for Real alongside Casemiro and Luka Modric in what is widely considered one of the best midfielders of all time. The three were the engine of one of Real Madrid’s greatest-ever teams as they dominated domestic and European football. Managers chopped and changed, but the success kept coming with Kroos’s blend of finesse and physicality, providing classy balance as Real consistently swept aside the great teams of Europe.

They won the Champions League in 2016, 2017, 2018, and 2022 in what is easily the most dominant period any team has had in the competition.

Alongside the club, success has been a consistently brilliant international career. Kroos played a crucial role in Germany’s midfield as the side won the 2014 World Cup and has gone on to win an impressive 106 caps for his country, scoring 17 goals. Will he make it to the Final in Qatar’s World Cup this 2022? 

Toni Kroos Trivia

• Toni’s younger brother Felix is also a professional footballer. He plays for Union Berlin in Germany.
• Until Toni, every German to have won the World Cup has been from West Germany. He became the first from the country’s East to win it when they lifted the trophy in 2014. (The two sides played separately until 1990)