Nico Schlotterbeck

Nico Cedric Schlotterbeck (born 1 December 1999) is a German professional footballer who plays primarily as a centre-back for Bundesliga club Borussia Dortmund and the Germany national team.

SC Freiburg
Schlotterbeck debuted for SC Freiburg on 9 March 2019, coming on as a half-time substitute for Philipp Lienhart in the 2–1 home win against Hertha BSC. In his final match for Freiburg, the club lost the DFB-Pokal Final on penalties but Schlotterbeck was awarded the man of the match.

Loan to Union Berlin
On 31 July 2020, Schlotterbeck joined Union Berlin on a one-year loan.

Borussia Dortmund
On 2 May 2022, Borussia Dortmund announced the signing of Schlotterbeck on a five-year deal, starting from the 2022–23 season. He joined for a reported €25 million transfer fee. In the 2023–24 season, he achieved the highest tackling success rate in the Bundesliga at 71%, in addition to winning possession over 240 times, he also played a crucial role in his club's qualification to the Champions League final.

International career
Schlotterbeck got his debut call-up to the Germany national team under coach Hansi Flick for FIFA World Cup qualification in September 2021. He made his debut against Israel in a friendly on 27 March 2022. Later that year, on 10 November, he was named in the 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar.

Schlotterbeck was named in Germany's squad for UEFA Euro 2024.

Personal life
Schlotterbeck is the nephew of former professional footballer Niels Schlotterbeck, who played for Freiburg. His older brother, Keven, is a professional footballer who played the 2019–20 season at Union Berlin on loan from SC Freiburg, to which he returned for the 2020–21 season. Schlotterbeck's cousin, Sandrine, appeared on the seventh series of the German edition of Love Island in 2022.

Honours
SC Freiburg
 * DFB-Pokal runner-up: 2021–22

Borussia Dortmund
 * UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2023–24

Germany U21
 * UEFA European Under-21 Championship: 2021

Individual
 * UEFA European Under-21 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2021
 * Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2021–22, 2022–23
 * kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2021–22