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Alexandra Popp: The End of an Era at Wolfsburg
- Sophie Hurst
- 2 days ago
- 3 min read
Alex Popp will go down as one of the most legendary players in the game, an era defining baller. After 14 seasons, 20 trophies, and nearly 400 appearances, the 35-year-old has announced she will leave VfL Wolfsburg this summer, bringing a close to one of the most iconic player-club relationships in the history of the women’s game.
To put her impact into perspective, when Popp arrived in 2012, Wolfsburg had never won a major trophy. By the time she leaves, she’ll do so as a two-time Champions League winner, a seven-time Bundesliga champion, and an 11-time DFB-Pokal winner.
Built Into Wolfsburg’s DNA
Popp’s first season in Lower Saxony was an insight into how the following seasons would follow. She scored 16 goals as Wolfsburg pulled off a historic treble, winning the league, the cup, and dethroning Lyon in their fourth consecutive final, to claim their first European title. She played that final through injury, thus missing out on the 2013 UEFA Women’s Euro, setting the tone for the warrior reputation that would follow her for the rest of her career.
Alex Popp played an integral role in Wolfsburg successes, whether it was scoring the last-minute winner that decided the Bundesliga on the final day of 2013/14 or her goal that sparked the chaotic 4-3 Champions League comeback against Tyresö in Lisbon to secure their back-to-back win. Popp has always been the engine of Wolfsburg, eventually becoming the second player ever to reach 100 appearances in UEFA women’s club competition, proving just how much she is in the driving seat of this team.
More Than a Striker
What makes Popp truly unique is her versatility. While she’s a world-class striker, she’s spent her career being whatever her club needed her to be. We’ve seen her play - most prominently - as a number nine, a fullback, and even a midfielder, proving she can fit into any squad. She is also a key leader, evident by her club and national captaincy since 2019.
Even a career-threatening knee injury in 2021 couldn't slow her down, and Popp returned in 2022 to secure another domestic double and finished as the Bundesliga top scorer for the first time in 2023 with 16 goals. To be at the top of your game 14 years after your first trophy is a level of longevity most players can only dream of.
The International Shadow
It’s impossible to talk about Popp’s career without mentioning her impact on her national team, Germany. Popp has been playing for the seniors since 2010, racking up 145 appearances up until her international retirement following the 2024 Olympics.
It seemed as fate was against Alex competing in the UEFA Women’s Euro, as she missed out on both the 2013 and 2017 competition due to injury. The bittersweet narrative of Euro 2022, where Popp was finally available, playing - and scoring - every game in Germany’s run to the final. Then, the cruelest blow: a last-minute injury in the warm-up at Wembley ruled her out of the final against England.
Germany lost 2-1, and the ‘what if’ narrative has lingered ever since, as the runners-up were left without their captain and key player. When she retired from international duty in late 2024 with 145 caps and 67 goals, she left as Germany’s first true female football superstar.
A Romantic Homecoming
Her next chapter is the most full circle of them all. Whilst a top player like Popp could be chasing a massive contract in the NWSL or the WSL, she is heading home to join Borussia Dortmund Women in the German third tier. Born and raised in a town called Witten, just outside central Dortmund, Popp is making her homecoming.
On paper, it’s a shock, one of the world’s most legendary players dropping down to the third tier football, but Popp has never hidden the fact that she is a lifelong BVB fan. She’s signed a three-year deal with the goal of bringing her childhood club into the Frauen-Bundesliga. The ambition between Popp and Dortmund is promising, and incredibly aspirational; it’s about building a legacy that goes beyond her own trophy cabinet.
The Shape She Leaves Behind
Alex Popp leaves Wolfsburg with an astonishing:
390+ Appearances
193 Goals
7x Bundesliga Titles
11x DFB-Pokal Titles
2x Champions League Titles
3x German Footballer of the Year
Photo Credit: Getty Images
The stats are one thing, but they don’t explain her legacy and impact she has created over her 14 years at the club. The She-Wolves are losing their leader, but the German game is proud to have her for one final hurrah in her hometown.
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