Lukas Podolski was the face of an entire generation of German footballers. At the age of 37 he plays for Gornik Zabrze in his home country. There he experienced a mild fall in his career – and still rose from prince to king.
Lukas Podolski was a prince all his adult life. When he caused a sensation in the Bundesliga for the first time in 2003, in 1. FC Köln, the nickname was quickly found – because of the Cologne carnival. “Prince Poldi” is how the media affectionately apostrophized the then 18-year-old; at some point he promoted the “prince role”.
