Professional History Bastian Schweinsteiger has been a fixture of German soccer since he joined Bayern Munich's youth team in 1998. By 2002, he had signed a contract with the professional Bundesliga team, and from that time forward was an important and popular player for the Bavarian side. Between 2002 and 2012, Bayern Munich were champions of the Bundesliga five times, in part due to Schweinsteiger's strategic play. In addition, Bayern Munich won five German Cups during the first decade of Schweinsteiger's tenure. The player has also been an important part of Germany's international team since he began. Born in 1984, Schweinsteiger was known as a rebel when he was young, but by 2011 he had become vice-captain of Bayern Munich. His fame skyrocketed after the 2006 World Cup, when he scored several goals against Portugal and helped the German team take third place in the competition. Schweinsteiger plays as a midfielder, but is also an important goal-scorer for Bayern Munich. He frequently finds openings and scores from midfield, and also takes important penalty kicks. As of 2013, he had scored over 50 goals for Bayern Munich during his career, with an extra 23 goals scored for the German international team. Bayern Munich Role Schweinsteiger has been nicknamed the 'midfield motor' by fans and teammates due to the effect he has on his team's strategy and play. Even when he's not scoring goals, Schweinsteiger has a talent for setting his teammates up to score. Although he began his career as a winger, he has frequently played center midfield for the past several years. Recently, a number of injuries, including injuries to the ankle and a broken collarbone, have forced Schweinsteiger to miss several games per season. Career Highlights There is no end to the career highlights one could discuss with regard to Bastian Schweinsteiger, but there are a few that stand out from the rest. At 22, he had played the most games ever for the German national team by a player so young. He had played 41 games at the time, which was more than any previous player of his age. The record has since been broken by another player. In 2012, Bayern Munich came in second in the UEFA Champions league, after narrowly defeating Real Madrid in the semi-final. During that game, Schweinsteiger's penalty goal was the decisive factor that allowed Bayern to go through to the final against Chelsea. Two years earlier, in 2010, he was selected for the FIFA World Cup All-Star Team. The All-Star Team represents the best players from all the World Cup qualifying countries. Personal Life Schweinsteiger was born in Kolbermoor, a small town just west of Rosenheim in Bavaria, Germany. He has an older brother, Tobias, who is also a professional soccer player. Tobias has not achieved the same level of success as his younger brother, however. At the time of this writing, Tobias was on loan at a team in the 3rd Bundesliga (a lower league than the professional 1st Bundesliga). In 2007, Schweinsteiger began dating model Sarah Brander. The Legend The impressive resume that Bastian Schweinsteiger boasts, even before the age of 30, seems to solidify his place in the German soccer pantheon. In the history of Bayern Munich in particular, Schweinsteiger is certain to be remembered. As a talented player who has remained loyal to the team throughout his entire career, Schweinsteiger has almost become synonymous with Bayern Munich, and when he's gone the team will not be the same.