Malik Tillman

Malik Tillman

Tillman with the U.S. national team in 2025
Personal information
Full name	Malik Leon Tillman [1]
Date of birth	(2002-05-28) May 28, 2002 (age 23)
Place of birth	Nuremberg, Germany
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) [2]
Position(s)	Attacking midfielder
Team information
Current team	Bayer Leverkusen
Number	10
Youth career
0000–2015	Greuther Fürth
2015–2020	Bayern Munich
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2020–2022	Bayern Munich II	25	(9)
2021–2024	Bayern Munich	4	(0)
2022–2023	→ Rangers (loan)	28	(10)
2023	→ Jong PSV (loan)	1	(0)
2023–2024	→ PSV (loan)	28	(9)
2024–2025	PSV	26	(12)
2025–	Bayer Leverkusen	1	(1)
International career‡
2016	United States U15	2	(0)
2017	Germany U15	1	(0)
2018	Germany U16	3	(0)
2018–2019	Germany U17	11	(2)
2021	Germany U20	2	(1)
2021–2022	Germany U21	4	(3)
2022–	United States	25	(3)
Medal record Representing   United States Men's soccer CONCACAF Gold Cup Runner-up 2025 Canada–United States CONCACAF Nations League Winner 2024
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of August 30, 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals as of July 6, 2025

Malik Leon Tillman (born May 28, 2002) is a professional soccer player who plays as an attacking midfielder for Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen. Born in Germany, he represents the United States national team.

Tillman is a graduate of Bayern Munich's youth system, which he joined in 2015 from Greuther Fürth. He made his debut for Bayern's first-team in August 2021, having previously featured for Bayern Munich II. In July 2022, he signed for Scottish Premiership club Rangers on loan, where he won the PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year award for the 2022–23 season. In August 2023, he went on loan to Eredivisie club PSV Eindhoven and won the league in 2023–24, with the club permanently signing him in May 2024, winning the league again in 2024–25. In July 2025, Tillman signed a five-year contract to Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen for $41 million.

Tillman represented both his country of birth, Germany, and the United States at youth international level. He made his senior international debut for the United States in June 2022.

Club career

Bayern Munich

Born in Nuremberg, Tillman was part of the youth squad at Greuther Fürth before joining Bayern Munich along with his brother Timothy Tillman in 2015. ^[3] He was quickly promoted to the under-19 squad after putting in good performances for the under-17s. ^[3]

Tillman made his professional debut on June 9, 2020, when he came on as a substitute for Bayern Munich II, the club's reserve side, against Zwickau. He started and played 57 minutes as Bayern Munich II won 2–0. ^[4]

He was promoted to Bayern Munich's senior team during the first round of the 2021–22 DFB-Pokal against Bremer SV on August 25, 2021. He came on as a substitute at the start of the second half and scored a goal in the 12–0 victory. ^[5]

He made his Champions League debut on December 8, 2021, coming on as a substitute late in the second half against Barcelona. ^[6]

Loan to Rangers

Tillman with Rangers in 2022

On July 15, 2022, Tillman joined Scottish club Rangers on a season long loan, with the club having an exclusive option to buy. ^[7] He made his debut for the club against Scottish Premiership side Livingston, as a second-half substitute, during a 2–1 win on July 30. ^[8] He scored his first goal for Rangers in a Champions League qualifier against Belgian side Union Saint-Gilloise on August 9, ^[9] and followed this by netting the opening goal in a 4–0 league victory at home over St Johnstone three days later. ^[10]

PSV

On August 10, 2023, Tillman extended his contract with Bayern Munich until 2026. ^[11] On the same day, he joined Eredivisie club PSV on loan with an option to buy. ^[12] On September 2, he scored his first goal on his Eredivisie debut in a 4–0 away win over Waalwijk. ^[13] On October 3, he provided his first Champions League assist in a 2–2 draw with Sevilla. ^[14]

On May 10, 2024, PSV opted to activate the buy option, securing Tillman's transfer permanently by finalizing a contract extending until 2028. ^[15] The transfer fee was reportedly €12 million, with a buyback clause to Bayern of approximately €35 million. ^[16]

Bayer Leverkusen

On July 12, 2025, Tillman joined Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen on a five-year deal after the club activated his release clause, which is reported to be €35 million, representing a club record fee for Leverkusen alongside Jarell Quansah's move to the German club, as well as the second-highest American soccer transfer of all-time. ^{[17] [18]} On August 30, Tillman scored on his debut with the club, a 3–3 league draw to Werder Bremen. ^[19]

International career

Tillman playing for the United States at the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup

Tillman was initially eligible to represent both Germany, his birth nation, and the United States, through his father. ^[3] He played youth international soccer for the United States at under-15 level ^[20] and Germany at under-15, under-16, under-17, under-20 and under-21 levels. ^[21]

In May 2022, Tillman applied for a one-time switch to play for the United States national team. ^[22] On May 31, the switch was approved by FIFA. ^[23] The next day, he made his senior debut for the United States in a 3–0 win in a friendly match against Morocco. ^[24]

Personal life

Tillman is a dual national of the United States and Germany due to his father being American and his mother German. He has an older brother, Timothy, who currently plays professionally with Major League Soccer club Los Angeles FC. Both brothers played for the Greuther Fürth and Bayern Munich academies. ^[3]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played August 30, 2025 ^[25]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup [a]		League cup [b]		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Bayern Munich II	2019–20	3. Liga	8	5	—		—		—		—		8	5
	2020–21	3. Liga	2	0	—		—		—		—		2	0
	2021–22	Regionalliga Bayern	15	4	—		—		—		—		15	4
	Total		25	9	—		—		—		—		25	9
Bayern Munich	2021–22	Bundesliga	4	0	1	1	—		2 [c]	0	0	0	7	1
Rangers (loan)	2022–23	Scottish Premiership	28	10	3	1	3	0	9 [c]	1	—		43	12
Jong PSV (loan)	2023–24	Eerste Divisie	1	0	—		—		—		—		1	0
PSV (loan)	2023–24	Eredivisie	28	9	2	0	—		9 [c]	0	—		39	9
PSV	2024–25	Eredivisie	26	12	1	1	—		6 [c]	3	1 [d]	0	34	16
Bayer Leverkusen	2025–26	Bundesliga	1	1	0	0	—		0	0	—		1	1
Career total			113	41	7	3	3	0	26	4	1	0	149	48

1. Includes DFB-Pokal, Scottish Cup and KNVB Cup
2. Includes Scottish League Cup
3. Appearance(s) in UEFA Champions League
4. Appearance in Johan Cruyff Shield

International

As of match played July 6, 2025 ^[26]

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
United States	2022	4	0
	2023	4	0
	2024	9	0
	2025	8	3
Total		25	3

Scores and results list the United States' goal tally first.

List of international goals scored by Malik Tillman

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	June 15, 2025	PayPal Park, San Jose, United States	Trinidad and Tobago	1–0	5–0	2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup
2				2–0
3	June 22, 2025	AT&T Stadium, Arlington, United States	Haiti	1–0	2–1	2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup

Honors

Bayern Munich

• Bundesliga: 2021–22 ^[27]
• DFL-Supercup: 2020 ^[28]
• UEFA Super Cup: 2020 ^[29]

Rangers

• Scottish League Cup runner-up: 2022–23 ^[30]

PSV

• Eredivisie: 2023–24, 2024–25 ^[31]

United States

• CONCACAF Nations League: 2023–24 ^[32]

Individual

• PFA Scotland Team of the Year (Premiership): 2022–23 ^[33]
• PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year: 2022–23 ^[34]
• Eredivisie Team of the Season: 2024–25 ^[35]
• CONCACAF Gold Cup Best XI: 2025 ^[36]

References

1. "Malik Leon Tillman". Bavarian Football Association (in German). Retrieved January 7, 2022.
2. "Malik Tillman". ussoccer.com. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
3. "Justin Butler, Chris Richards, and the nascent US stars earning their stripes at Bayern Munich". Bundesliga. Retrieved June 10, 2020.
4. "Bayern Munich 2-0 Zwickau". Soccerway.
5. "Bayern Munich win 12-0 in German Cup rout". 7news.com.au. August 25, 2021. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
6. "Blistering Reds down Barca". FC Bayern Munich. December 8, 2021.
7. "Rangers Sign Malik Tillman From Bayern Munich". rangers.co.uk. Retrieved July 15, 2022.
8. "Livingston 1-2 Rangers". BBC Sport. July 30, 2022.
9. "Rangers 3-0 Union Saint-Gilloise". BBC Sport. August 10, 2022.
10. "Rangers 4-0 St Johnstone". BBC Sport. August 13, 2022.
11. "FC Bayern verlängert Vertrag mit Malik Tillman" (in German). FC Bayern Munich. August 10, 2023.
12. "Transfer | PSV versterkt middenveld met Malik Tillman" (in Dutch). PSV. August 10, 2023.
13. "Malik Tillman scores off bench for PSV as USMNT stars Sergino Dest and Ricardo Pepi feature in lopsided win over RKC Waalwijk". Goal.com. September 2, 2023.
14. "Malik Tillman makes impact in PSV's UCL draw with Sevilla". SBI Soccer. October 3, 2023.
15. "Transfer | Malik Tillman tekent tot medio 2028 bij PSV" (in Dutch). PSV. May 10, 2024.
16. "So viel Geld müsste FC Bayern zahlen, um Malik Tillman zurückzuholen - Top-Quelle" [That's how much money FC Bayern would have to pay to bring Malik Tillman back - top source] (in German). Tribuna.com. May 11, 2024.
17. "USA international Malik Tillman joins Bayer 04 from PSV". Bayer 04 Leverkusen. July 12, 2025.
18. "Bayer Leverkusen complete deal to sign USMNT's Malik Tillman from PSV Eindhoven". The Athletic. July 12, 2025.
19. Stafford-Bloor, Sebastian (August 30, 2025). "USMNT's Malik Tillman scores in a Leverkusen debut marred by blown lead". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved August 31, 2025.
20. "Bayern Munich prospect Malik Tillman to play for the USMNT". sbisoccer.com. May 19, 2022. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
21. "Malik Tillman Spielerprofil". dfb.de. Retrieved December 17, 2022.
22. "Bayern Munich youngster Malik Tillman to play for the USA".
23. "Bayern's Tillman cleared to represent USMNT". May 31, 2022.
24. "Joe Scally and Malik Tillman make USMNT debuts in Morocco friendly". Bundesliga. June 1, 2022.
25. Malik Tillman at Soccerway . Retrieved May 21, 2024.
26. "Malik Tillman » Internationals". WorldFootball.net. Retrieved April 27, 2024.
27. "Gnabry eröffnet sehenswert: FC Bayern zum zehnten Mal in Folge Meister". Kicker (in German). April 23, 2022. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
28. "Supercup 2020, Finale: Bayern München 3:2 Borussia Dortmund: Analyse" [Supercup 2020, Final: Bayern Munich 3:2 Borussia Dortmund: Analysis]. kicker (in German). Olympia-Verlag. Retrieved April 19, 2023.
29. "Joker Javi Martinez köpft Bayern zum Supercup". Kicker (in German). September 24, 2020. Retrieved September 24, 2020.
30. Moffat, Colin (February 26, 2023). "Kyogo strikes twice as Celtic beat Rangers in final". BBC Sport. Retrieved February 26, 2023.
31. "PSV crowned Eredivisie champions for 26th time after historic Ajax collapse". Flashscore. May 18, 2025. Retrieved May 18, 2025.
32. "Adams Reyna on target as United States complete three peat". CONCACAF. March 25, 2024. Retrieved March 25, 2024.
33. Henry Jr, Larry (May 9, 2023). "Carter-Vickers, Tillman voted to PFA Scottish Premiership Team of Year". SBI Soccer. Retrieved May 9, 2023.
34. Henry Jr, Larry (May 14, 2023). "Malik Tillman named PFA Scottish Premiership Young Player of the Year". SBI Soccer. Retrieved May 20, 2023.
35. "Eredivisie Team of the Season (TOTS)". Electronic Arts Inc. April 25, 2025. Retrieved July 4, 2025.
36. "Díaz, Jiménez, Richards headline Gold Cup Best XI". CONCACAF. July 9, 2025. Retrieved July 9, 2025.

External links

• Malik Tillman at Major League Soccer
• Malik Tillman at U.S. Soccer
• Malik Tillman – UEFA competition record ( archive )