The road to becoming a World Champion: Jérôme Boateng tells his story

In year 10, I graduated from school. I used the footballing elite school system to my advantage, for others, this is the case even more so. A fair few of my DFB teammates actually managed to do their Abitur (German A-levels) alongside football. Julian Draxler and Ilkay Gündogan are two examples. They had the necessary determination, and for that they have my utmost respect.

Football began to dominate my life more and more. With me, as with many other talents who invest more and more time into football, problems at school began to arise as a result. So for me, the introduction of elite football schools was a godsend. At the Poelchau high school, there was a heavy focus on sport, we trained three mornings a week, and we were practically able to set our own deadlines for academic work. Lots of compromises were made for the footballers. And so, by attending Poelchau, I got better and better at football.

Back then I was still a midfielder-cum-striker. The fact that I am so at home in the centre of defence now, I also owe to an experience with the Berlin DFB selection. When we were at a tournament in Sweden, almost our entire defence were suddenly ruled out with injuries. I had to help out. If I’m honest: I wasn’t immediately mad on the idea. I was a striker, after all. And I wanted what everyone wants: to score goals. But I quickly recognised the appeal of having the game in front of me. At that tournament I played in the centre of a three-man defence, and I think, I can safely say I played quite well.

An early highlight of mine is being called up to the DFB trial base and in the Berlin shortlist. I was incredibly proud of this achievement. The base training took place every Wednesday and I could hardly ever wait for the next Wednesday to come about. I was able to compare myself against the best players in Berlin - that in itself was a huge benefit. In terms of my development, I benefited hugely from these sessions, the standard of my teammates was higher, and training was more focused, more specialised than it was possible to do at club level.

My first stop on the journey of organised football was Tennis Borussia Berlin. The youth academy of TeBe already had an excellent reputation back then, the youth teams were well above average. I, however, was unaware of this at the time. I ended up at TeBe through sheer coincidence: a friend brought me along. For me, the training in a football club was at first a little unusual. Warming up, passing exercises - I’d never heard of or seen such things. I liked training straight away, though. Our coach did it really well, he developed a strong bond to us kids. He also let us do almost everything with the ball. I noticed straight away how I training improved me as a footballer. My passing game especially, but also my understanding of the game. On the small pitch at kick-abouts, you’re more of an individual; you do a lot on your own. As part of the club I learnt to consider my teammates and serve the team.

When I think back to my first few steps as a young footballer, I think of a little boy with big dreams. I wanted to be a Bundesliga player, a Germany player, a World Cup winner. Just like millions of other children in Germany as well. In the back yard with my father was the first time I kicked a ball, then I took to the small pitch. It was football in its purest form, we just went at it - no warm ups, no tactics, no referees.

Of course, these scenes are very vivid in my mind, and they probably always will be. The magic of Rio, the triumph in the Maracana, the euphoria, the experience, the realisation: I am a World Cup winner. Lots of the moments are engraved in my memory. The night in Brazil, the flight back to Berlin, and then the parade through the capital. “My” town is alive, we’re driving through the crowds of Berlin in an open-top bus - absolute madness. And among the noise of joy and celebration: brief moments of gratitude. I know this success is not just my success, not just the success of the team. Behind every player are several people in various teams: the managers, supervisors, kit men. Mothers and fathers as well of course. They all played a part in getting that fourth star.

Poland: strong players, strong team. Germany vs. Poland on Thursday at 21:00 CEST is more than Germany vs. Robert Lewandowski. Several players are to be reckoned with, the Bayern München forward especially. The threat posed by Lewandowski will have to be dealt with by the whole team, every player, the defenders, the centre backs, and above all: Jérôme Boateng. The clash of these Bayern München teammates sees world class take on world class: one of the best strikers in the world against one of the world’s best defenders. In his guest article on DFB.de , the 27-year-old Boateng writes about how he has matured in both a sporting and personal sense, from the little Berlin street-kicker to the world-class footballer he is today.

Poland: strong players, strong team. Germany vs. Poland on Thursday at 21:00 CEST is more than Germany vs. Robert Lewandowski. Several players are to be reckoned with, the Bayern München forward especially. The threat posed by Lewandowski will have to be dealt with by the whole team, every player, the defenders, the centre backs, and above all: Jérôme Boateng. The clash of these Bayern München teammates sees world class take on world class: one of the best strikers in the world against one of the world’s best defenders. In his guest article on DFB.de, the 27-year-old Boateng writes about how he has matured in both a sporting and personal sense, from the little Berlin street-kicker to the world-class footballer he is today.

By Jérôme Boateng

Of course, these scenes are very vivid in my mind, and they probably always will be. The magic of Rio, the triumph in the Maracana, the euphoria, the experience, the realisation: I am a World Cup winner. Lots of the moments are engraved in my memory. The night in Brazil, the flight back to Berlin, and then the parade through the capital. “My” town is alive, we’re driving through the crowds of Berlin in an open-top bus - absolute madness. And among the noise of joy and celebration: brief moments of gratitude. I know this success is not just my success, not just the success of the team. Behind every player are several people in various teams: the managers, supervisors, kit men. Mothers and fathers as well of course. They all played a part in getting that fourth star.

When I think back to my first few steps as a young footballer, I think of a little boy with big dreams. I wanted to be a Bundesliga player, a Germany player, a World Cup winner. Just like millions of other children in Germany as well. In the back yard with my father was the first time I kicked a ball, then I took to the small pitch. It was football in its purest form, we just went at it - no warm ups, no tactics, no referees.

"Early highlight: Being called up to the DFB camp"

My first stop on the journey of organised football was Tennis Borussia Berlin. The youth academy of TeBe already had an excellent reputation back then, the youth teams were well above average. I, however, was unaware of this at the time. I ended up at TeBe through sheer coincidence: a friend brought me along. For me, the training in a football club was at first a little unusual. Warming up, passing exercises - I’d never heard of or seen such things. I liked training straight away, though. Our coach did it really well, he developed a strong bond to us kids. He also let us do almost everything with the ball. I noticed straight away how I training improved me as a footballer. My passing game especially, but also my understanding of the game. On the small pitch at kick-abouts, you’re more of an individual; you do a lot on your own. As part of the club I learnt to consider my teammates and serve the team.

An early highlight of mine is being called up to the DFB trial base and in the Berlin shortlist. I was incredibly proud of this achievement. The base training took place every Wednesday and I could hardly ever wait for the next Wednesday to come about. I was able to compare myself against the best players in Berlin - that in itself was a huge benefit. In terms of my development, I benefited hugely from these sessions, the standard of my teammates was higher, and training was more focused, more specialised than it was possible to do at club level.

"I wanted what everyone wants: to score goals"

Back then I was still a midfielder-cum-striker. The fact that I am so at home in the centre of defence now, I also owe to an experience with the Berlin DFB selection. When we were at a tournament in Sweden, almost our entire defence were suddenly ruled out with injuries. I had to help out. If I’m honest: I wasn’t immediately mad on the idea. I was a striker, after all. And I wanted what everyone wants: to score goals. But I quickly recognised the appeal of having the game in front of me. At that tournament I played in the centre of a three-man defence, and I think, I can safely say I played quite well.

Football began to dominate my life more and more. With me, as with many other talents who invest more and more time into football, problems at school began to arise as a result. So for me, the introduction of elite football schools was a godsend. At the Poelchau high school, there was a heavy focus on sport, we trained three mornings a week, and we were practically able to set our own deadlines for academic work. Lots of compromises were made for the footballers. And so, by attending Poelchau, I got better and better at football.

In year 10, I graduated from school. I used the footballing elite school system to my advantage, for others, this is the case even more so. A fair few of my DFB teammates actually managed to do their Abitur (German A-levels) alongside football. Julian Draxler and Ilkay Gündogan are two examples. They had the necessary determination, and for that they have my utmost respect.

"Better players, better coaches, better training"

By the age of 16 I relied completely on football. Even before then I had taken the next big step with my move to Hertha BSC. It was an obvious move. Everything was a notch bigger and better. The best players in Berlin united in the academy, the comparisons were blatant: better players, better coaches, better training, even better players. In the Hertha academy they worked really specifically on us players in training. For example, with me it began with working on my left foot. Time and time and time again I would play passes and take shots with my left, until the difference between that and my right was almost unnoticeable.

Several significant steps and milestones in my journey as a footballer fall into my period in the Hertha BSC academy. I will never forget my first DFB call up, in March 2005 I was nominated for the U17 round of elites. After that I was a regular part of the setup, played for the U19s and eventually the U21s, where I won my first international title: the U21 European Championship 2009 in Sweden.

Personally, I can say that I benefited from every age group in the DFB youth teams. To play for Germany is the next step. And it’s a big one. It’s an honour, an award. It helps mentally, but also in fact in a sporting sense, a footballing sense. New managers and coaches give you a new input, training with the best in the country is different from with the best at Hertha. Every DFB age group was a valuable experience for me, there were always things I could take from DFB training and bring to my club.

"Oops, I can keep up"

We won a lot back then with Hertha, especially in the U17s we had a really strong team. The highlight was the German U17s Championship win in 2005. With every success, the belief that I was good enough, that I could really manage it grew. To become a professional, this dream was becoming ever more realistic. Shortly before the 2006 World Cup, I had an experience which turned this belief into a certainty. Back then, the national team trained on the Hertha complex, and we U19s played against them in a practice match. Then I noticed: oops, I can keep up! And those were not ordinary footballers; those were the best players in Germany. Of course I was aware that it was just a friendly and that everyone was holding back a little. Nevertheless, it was clear that I was up to pace and that my passing game was not far off.

This was confirmed when I played in the Bundesliga for the first time. That was on the 31st January 2007 in Hanover. We lost the game, but now I had become what I’d always wanted to become: a Bundesliga player. But this was not the end of my training and development - that’s not over yet either. Even today I am eager, want to develop, want to improve. The training under Joachim Löw with the national team helps me with this, as does the daily training at Säbener Street with FC Bayern, naturally.

"My brother George did not have the opportunities that I had"

I know that I benefited tremendously from the talent development system in Germany. And I know that my path would probably not have led to professional football, had I not had these opportunities. I know this because in my family, there is a strong example of such fate: my brother George. It’s quite obvious, that of the three of us he had the most talent. But in his time, the promotion and development did not exist as it does today. He had no coaches who worked with him individually, nor did he have anyone to praise him and boost his ego where necessary. He had no local DFB base training, no academy centres. He didn’t have the opportunities that I had. And so, he didn’t make it as a professional - despite having had better assets than I.

Today I am a World Champion, I play for one of the best clubs in the world. All my dreams have been fulfilled. And as I said: I’m grateful for that. I have had to make several sacrifices, have lost a few real friends and sometimes put my trust in the wrong people. The road was not always smooth, especially as a young player. I had to stay at home when other went out, often had to deprive myself of certain things. But it was all worth it. Everything I invested I got back, double, triple, and even more than that.