Former Germany international Lewis Holtby has reversed his retirement decision to join his brother Joshua at German lower-league side Sportfreunde Uevekoven in the Landesliga, the Aachener Zeitung reported. The 36-year-old midfielder, who announced his professional retirement in August following a stint with Dutch club NAC Breda, has agreed to pull on the green-and-white shirt for the remainder of the season.
From Professional Stints to the Landesliga
Holtby’s return to the pitch comes just months after he concluded a nearly 20-year professional career that included stops in the English Premier League, the Bundesliga, and the Eredivisie. The Erkelenz-born midfielder earned three caps for the German national team and developed through the youth ranks at Alemannia Aachen after an early departure from Borussia Mönchengladbach’s academy. Most recently, he played in the Netherlands for NAC Breda before hanging up his boots over the summer, stating on social media that football would always remain a part of his life.
Reuniting with Brother Joshua at Uevekoven
The move fulfills a long-standing wish shared by the Holtby brothers to play alongside each other in an official fixture. Joshua Holtby serves as a player-coach at Sportfreunde Uevekoven alongside Sven Jansen. Speaking to reporters in late June, Joshua Holtby admitted that convincing his older brother to join him on the pitch would require some persuasion. That persuasion proved successful three months after the elder Holtby sibling initially stepped away from the professional game.
Upcoming Fixture Against SC Fliesteden
Sportfreunde Uevekoven currently sits 11th in Landesliga-Staffel 2, having accumulated six points from their opening eight matches. Lewis Holtby has been assigned the squad number 51 for his new club. The team faces SC Fliesteden — coached by former Alemannia Aachen manager Helge Hohl — with kickoff scheduled for Friday at 8:00 p.m. local time (CET) / 19:00 UTC.
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