Former Gunner buys boyhood club | OneFootball

Former Arsenal forward Lukas Podolski completed a staged takeover in May and has set out a steady plan for his boyhood club.

Photo via The Sunday Guardian

Lukas Podolski has become the majority owner of Górnik Zabrze, the Polish club where the former Arsenal forward chose to bring his playing career to an end.

Podolski, who played for Arsenal between 2012 and 2015, remains a popular figure in north London for his banging goals and outgoing character.

His connection with Górnik runs deeper still. Born just 11km away, he has described the Polish side as his boyhood club and, after making a final appearance shortly before the takeover was confirmed, has now stepped directly into the role of majority owner.

The takeover was completed in stages. In December 2025, Podolski’s company, LP Holding GmbH, bought around 8.3 per cent of Górnik’s shares from Allianz Polska Services, making him the club’s second largest shareholder behind the city of Zabrze.

That deal formed part of a wider privatisation process, with the city signalling that it was ready to hand control to a private investor.

Photo credit PATRIK STOLLARZ/AFP via Getty Images

In May 2026, the Zabrze City Council approved the sale of an 86 per cent stake in the club to LP Holding GmbH. The agreement, worth just under 4 million złoty (approx £795,800) for more than one million shares, includes a commitment from Podolski to invest further funds over the next three years to stabilise Górnik’s finances and support its sporting plans.

The city has retained a minority holding and a “golden share” to protect the club’s name, crest and location.

Now 41, the former Germany international has retired from playing and is adjusting to life away from the pitch.

“I’m currently still in the holiday phase – just like the players are right now,” he said in an interview with Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger. “During this phase, it’s still somewhat normal not to train, not to be on the pitch.

“We’ve all experienced that during the summer breaks of recent years. I think it’ll come back when I’m not there for the first time at the start of training. When the others go onto the pitch and you’re standing next to them – or not even there at all.

“I think that will be emotional and difficult for me. Because football has been my whole life. For as long as I can remember. And of course, I’ll always miss it. I’ve always said that, and that won’t change. Football is a part of me – you can’t just switch it off.”

Photo by Markus Gilliar – Pool /Getty Images

Podolski also admitted the decision to stop was not easy, even if he believes the timing was right.

“It’s really tough,” he said. “The [Netflix] documentary [Poldi] gives you a little insight into what it does to you. Maybe this time it was a bit easier than the year before – but still extremely difficult.

“You ask yourself: Can I still do this? Do I still want to? And at the same time, you know that at some point you have to draw the line. I’m proud and happy that I continued. Winning the cup with Gornik Zabrze, with all the emotions that went with it – that was something really special.

“So I’m glad that my family convinced me to stay on for another year. But now the time has come to end it. And that feels – even though it’s hard – right.”

There has also been renewed discussion about his relationship with 1. FC Köln, another club closely tied to his career, but Podolski says his focus is not there for now.

“No, FC Köln isn’t on my radar right now,” he said. “There were so many opportunities to get closer to the club. But with all the changes at the club – in management, in the surrounding environment – things always get a bit blurry.

Arsenal’s English striker Theo Walcott (L) celebrates scoring Arsenal’s fourth goal with Arsenal’s Polish-born German striker Lukas Podolski (R) by…

“Nothing concrete ever came of it, nothing serious. I never got the feeling that FC Köln genuinely wanted me. That’s why I’ve taken a different path these past few years.

“And as things stand today, I’m happy with that path. I’ve proven to myself that I can make a difference as an entrepreneur, as a club owner. I could have done the same at FC Köln – with just as much passion, maybe even more.

“But the people and the club didn’t really want it. That’s a shame, but that’s how it is. However, I’m not closing the door on FC Köln just yet. Because there are different people at the Geißbockheim training ground now, and the circumstances are different; the connection is definitely there now.”

Podolski has said his aim at Górnik is to build steadily and make the team competitive in European competitions again, rather than chase immediate, widespread change that could backfire.

Photo credit OZAN KOSE/AFP via Getty Images