Marco Reus announces departure from Borussia Dortmund

In an emotional video to fans, Marco Reus has announced that he will be leaving Borussia Dortmund at the end of the current season, after deciding not to renew his contract.

“I’ve got to play in this wonderful stadium for 12 years. I’ve dedicated half of my life to this club, been through a lot of highs and lows – more highs, in my opinion,” Reus started saying in a video addressed to Borussia supporters, before officially breaking the news: “The club and I have come to the decision not to sign a contract extension.”

Born in Dortmund and previously a part of the club’s youth setup, Reus returned to BVB from Borussia Mönchengladbach in 2012 and has since played 424 times for Die Schwarzgelben, scoring 168 goals and providing 128 assists in 12 years.

Watch: Marco Reus announces decision to leave Borussia Dortmund

“Marco is one of this club’s greatest players,” said CEO Hans-Joachim Watzke. “Born in Dortmund, he spent 10 years in our academy, 12 years with the first team. His connection to Borussia Dortmund is extraordinary. We wish Marco all the best for the future from the bottom of our hearts. We also hope he’ll return to Dortmund when he retires, because there’s plenty of exciting roles for him here.”

The 34-year-old has twice lifted the DFB Cup with the club and was captain from 2018 until passing on the armband ahead of the 2023/24 season. In 2019, the attacking midfielder was voted Germany’s Footballer of the Year.

“It’s made me so proud,” Reus continued. “I’m so incredibly grateful to have got to play for this club for so many years. It was important for me to share this first with you, the fans.”

In a further statement on the club’s website, the 48-time Germany international also added: “I know the farewell at the end of the season will be tough, but I’m glad there’s now clarity and we can now focus fully on the so important final games. We have a big goal ahead of us that we want to achieve together. We want to get to Wembley. We want to bring the Champions League trophy back to Dortmund.”

Watch: The best of Marco Reus

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Reus played and won the penalty that Dortmund scored when they last made it to the UEFA Champions League final in 2013 against Bayern Munich, which was also played at Wembley. With a 1-0 first-leg advantage over Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-final, it means his final game in black and yellow could be the final, where he could depart in style.

At the very least, Reus has two more home games in front of his long-time fans, starting on Saturday against Augsburg. Dortmund’s final game of the season at the Signal Iduna Park is against Darmstadt on Matchday 34.