By every metric Borussia Dortmund have been Germany’s second most successful club in the modern era.
They are the only club since 1990 to have beaten Bayern Munich to a Bundesliga title on multiple occasions, doing so five times. In the last 15 years they have only failed to finish outside of the top four once.
In Europe meanwhile their pedigree is impressive, reaching a third Champions League final in 2023/24.
With the overall player wage-bill of the Bundesliga being the fourth highest in the world we can therefore expect their second best club to pay out handsomely for talent. And indeed they do...
Biggest Earners at Borussia Dortmund (2025/26):
- Niklas Süle - £169,410 per week
- Serhou Guirassy - £159,754 per week
- Gregor Kobel - £153,486 per week
- Emre Can - £135,528 per week
- Marcel Sabitzer - £127,227 per week
All told, Die Schwarzgelben shell out £109m a year in player salaries, the 15th highest across Europe’s big five leagues.
It is a figure that reflects their ambition, financial capacity and standing in German football as they once again this term seek to break Bayern’s domestic stranglehold.
Niklas Süle
The 30-year-old centre-back has endured two ACLs in his career and regrettably injury problems persist in Dortmund after joining them on a free from Bayern in the summer of 2022.
In 2024/25 the player rushed back from an ankle issue only to worsen it considerably, leaving him on the sidelines for several months. Even when fit the German international struggled to nail down a starting role, benched until near the season’s end.
This time out, a muscle complaint and a toe injury has restricted Süle to just 45 minutes of action ten league games in.
His signing was viewed as something of a coup three years ago, the defender having made 114 appearances for Bayern and winning five Bundesliga titles. It perhaps mattered too that players tended to go the other way.
All of which explains his high salary.
But with mixed displays, and so many injuries, it feels very unlikely his contract will be extended next May, the player destined to leave for nothing.
His time in Dortmund will be looked back on as a big disappointment.
Serhou Guirassy
Twenty-eight league goals in 28 appearances for Stuttgart in 2023/24 convinced Die Schwarzgelben to sign the Guinean, that and a bargain £14.7m buy-out clause that many other clubs sought to activate.
It was Dortmund though who won his signature and to date the striker has rewarded them many times over.
There was his sensational hat-trick at home to Barcelona in the Champions League, Guirassy ultimately firing 13 in the competition and finishing joint-top goalscorer.
In the league meanwhile his 21 strikes compensated for a porous back-line and ensured the club can again participate in the most prestigious – and lucrative - tournament this time around.
Gregor Kobel
The Swiss keeper excelled for two seasons at Stuttgart, first playing a key part in Die Roten securing promotion and then helping them stay up. In his early twenties, clearly he was a stopper with genuine potential. One to watch.
Yet, even so, his transfer in the summer of 2021, for a cut-price £13.2m, barely made any headlines beyond official media. The football betting never altered. No-one really noticed.
Perhaps this was because Dortmund already had two Swiss goalkeepers in their charge, vying for a starting spot.
Seemingly, they were collecting them.
Four seasons on and 125 appearances later and everyone knows his name now. They know of his athleticism and razor reflexes.
In 2023/24 Kobel was included in the Champions League Team of the Season after bolstering Dortmund’s run to the final. He kept six clean sheets along the way.
Emre Can
The versatile former Bayern, Liverpool and Juventus star first joined Dortmund on loan, with an obligation to buy.
That was in January 2020 and it’s interesting to note that in Turin the player was on marginally higher wages. A return to Germany though offered Can a chance to prove himself all over again.
Which, to a great extent, he has successfully done, his impressive showings leading to a contract bump in 2023, a deal that also saw him made team captain.
That was then however and this is now, and with his deal set to expire at the end of this term all the talk centres on an ongoing groin problem that has come at the worst possible time.
A one-year extension is reportedly on the table for the player to sign but includes a clause based on minutes played. Watch this space.
Marcel Sabitzer
After missing out on a league title on goal difference in 2022/23, Dortmund meant business in the subsequent transfer window.
Niclas Fullkrug and Felix Nmecha were purchased to fire a greater number of goals while Jadon Sancho returned to the club on loan. Their midfield options were improved by the capture of Sabitzer for £16.7m.
These refurbishments shortened Dortmund’s odds in the sports betting that summer but alas – domestically at least - Edin Terzic’s side only went backwards, eventually finishing a distant fifth.
In the Champions League however it was a very different story, with the Austrian in particular standing out and shining.
Sabitzer’s displays on the continent in his opening campaign established him as a key component for Dortmund, while his ability to play just about anywhere on the pitch has proven to be a valuable asset.
