Breaking: Bastian Schweinsteiger announces retirement

Chicago Fire defender Bastian Schweinsteiger has officially called curtains on his illustrious football career after making his debut over 18 years ago. The former Germany international part of his country's historic World Cup campaign in 2014 and has represented Die Mannschaft 121 times, scoring 24 goals in the process.

Having come through the ranks of FC Bayern Munich, the midfielder broke through into the main team. He earned his debut for FC Bayern under Ottmar Hitzfield in the Champions League, assisting Markus Feulner just minutes after coming on. Basti, as he is more fondly referred to as, went on to represent Die Roten for 13 trophy-laden seasons.

Schweinsteiger went on to win 8 Bundesliga titles, 7 DFB-Pokals, 1 DFL-Supercup, and a Champions League title with the Bavarian giants. Their European crown came as part of an iconic treble-winning season under Jupp Heynckes in 2013, claiming the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal and beating Jurgen Klopp’s Borussia Dortmund in an all-German affair in the Champions League final in Wembley.

Borussia Dortmund v FC Bayern Muenchen - UEFA Champions League Final

The 35-year-old was a core member of the German National Team for a number of years, having won the World Cup in 2014 and has reached the semi-finals in both 2006 and 2010. Joachim Lowe even went on to refer to Schweinsteiger as ‘the brain’ of the German team, further reiterating the significance of the midfield general to Die Mannschaft.

The midfielder went on to represent Manchester United, winning the FA Cup in the 2015/16 season. But, due to him being only a squad member and a bit-part player in terms of United’s long-term plans at the time, he moved to the cash-rich shores of the MLS for one final swansong.

The Chicago Fire defender took to social media to announce his retirement from professional football, thanking Bayern Munich, Manchester United, Chicago Fire, and the German National Team.

Nun ist die Zeit gekommen: ich danke Euch und meinen Mannschaften @FCBayern, @ManUtd, @ChicagoFire und @DFB_Team. Natürlich danke ich auch meiner Frau @AnaIvanovic und meiner Familie für Ihre Unterstützung. pic.twitter.com/SrCdP8m6ia

— Basti Schweinsteiger (@BSchweinsteiger) October 8, 2019

The legendary German joins the likes of Robin van Persie, Xavi, Arjen Robben and a number of iconic footballers to have announced their retirement from football this calendar year.