German captain Ilkay Gundogan has announced his retirement from international football at the age of 33.
Gundogan will turn 34 in October. He made his decision by announcing it on social media, just over a month after being eliminated by Spain in the quarter-finals of EURO 2024 with Germany.
Gundogan, born in Gelsenkirchen to Turkish parents, has represented German football at U18 and U21 levels, before making his first international appearance in the EURO 2012 qualifiers against Belgium in October 2011.
To date, he has won a total of 82 national team caps, including 19 caps. On that journey, he contributed 19 goals - the last goal in the 2-0 win over Hungary in the group stage at EURO 2024, and 9 assists.
Gundogan missed Germany's successful 2014 World Cup campaign due to a back injury. But with his participation, the "German tang" were disappointingly eliminated twice in the group stage at the 2018 and 2022 World Cups.
Announcing his departure, Gundogan said he would "certainly continue" to support the national team as a fan.
On his Instagram page, Gundogan wrote: "After a few weeks of consideration, I came to the conclusion that it was time to end my national team career.
I am extremely proud to look back at 82 matches for the country - a number I could never dream of when I debuted for the national team in 2011.
My peak is certainly a great honor to lead the team as captain at the European Championship at home last summer! After so many years, we finally made the whole country proud again - I am very happy that I have been able to contribute to that.
But before the tournament, I felt a little tired in my body and mind, which made me think. And the number of matches at club and national level will not decrease.
I will definitely continue to be a fan of the national team and I really hope that we can continue to rise together - and then there is nothing to prevent us from becoming one of the top candidates for the title at the 2026 World Cup. We have a great manager, a really strong squad and a great team spirit."
Reacting to Gundogan's decision, German coach Julian Nagelsmann said: "I am extremely proud that Ilkay is our captain, he played great at the recent EURO.
I was always attracted and impressed by his intelligence, his sense of safety when holding the ball, his smart and accurate passes.
He rarely sought attention for himself, often letting his teammates shine. We will remember his skillful playing style as well as his vision.
Ilkay is a great captain, and I want to continue working with him. The door will never be completely closed to anyone in the national team, but we respect his decision and wish him all the best for the future, both on and off the pitch."
