At present, he is a member of the team realizing their dreams by competing in the Champions League group stage. At the age of 32, Kevin Berens is living out his aspirations with Union Berlin. A footballer who didn’t enter professional football until the age of 27, he now plays in one of the world’s top four leagues and represents the 4-time world champion, Germany.
Kevin Berens’ narrative serves as a testament that in football and life, nothing is insurmountable, and fortune can smile upon an individual even in the most unexpected moments. What remains indisputable is that success is attainable when pursued with sufficient diligence and determination.
Kevin Berens is fortunate to hail from Bremen, the home of one of Germany’s football giants – Werder. In his family, sports hold high esteem, with Berens’ sister, Kim van de Velde, being a national beach volleyball player for Germany.
Berens embarked on his football journey relatively late, at 17, a factor that significantly influenced his gradual development. In 2008, he joined Werder Bremen’s youth academy.
Progressing through Werder’s youth ranks, the striker eventually found a place in Werder’s third team, competing in Germany’s 5th division. In the 2010/2011 season, he netted 10 goals in 24 matches for Werder Bremen III. Despite this, the team opted not to extend his contract.
This marked the commencement of Berens’ odyssey through the lower echelons of German football. He traversed the Regional Leagues, Germany’s fourth football tier, between 2011 and 2018, playing consecutively for Wilhelmshaven, Hannover II, Rot-Weiss Essen, and Saarbrücken.
Former Saarbrücken assistant coach Robert Rölofs reminisces about Berens’ tenure with the team, noting that the player’s caliber surpassed that of the Regional Leagues. Rölofs also reflected on Berens’ subsequent development, underscoring the hunger required to advance in football.
Saarbrücken bid farewell to Berens after losing the promotion battle to the Third Bundesliga against Munich 1860 with an aggregate score of 4:5. In the first match, Berens was red-carded and didn’t participate in the return fixture.
Assessing Berens’ time in Saarbrücken, Rölofs remarked, “Certainly, the fourth division was too low for him. I definitely saw his potential to reach the second division. Did I predict the Champions League? No, I didn’t predict that,” conceding that Berens’ journey was an unconventional one.
Berens’ Saarbrücken stint concluded with 41 goals and 31 assists in 85 matches, with an impressive tally of 21 goals and 18 assists in the 2017/2018 season. A pivotal moment occurred during this period when his team faced Union Berlin in the DFB-Pokal’s first round, losing 1:2 after extra time, with Berens scoring for Saarbrücken in the 40th minute.
This pivotal juncture prompted Berens to make a leap, joining Sandhausen in the Second Bundesliga, securing a forward in his prime without a transfer fee.
After a season acclimating to professional football, Berens commenced regular goal-scoring for the Baden-Württemberg team in the 2019/2020 season. By the end of the 2020/2021 season, he boasted 27 goals and 9 assists in 66 matches for the team.
His emergence as a force in the Second Bundesliga attracted attention, prompting Union Berlin, in need of squad depth after participating in the UEFA Europa Conference League, to sign Berens from Saarbrücken, once again on a free transfer.
Thus, the lad from Bremen, now a 30-year-old man, found himself in the Bundesliga, a league he hadn’t even dreamed of. “Honestly, I didn’t think I would make it to the Bundesliga anymore. I am very, very proud that I never gave up and always worked on myself. The path I took made me who I am today,” expresses the elated footballer.
In his personal life, he achieved success, with a wife and three children, viewing his family as the primary support on his upward journey. “She has always supported me, even in difficult moments. She went through everything, from Wilhelmshaven to Berlin.”
Already in the upper echelon of German football, Berens has no time to spare, entering a league where competition is fierce, and there’s no waiting for adjustment, as seen in the Second Bundesliga.
However, hard work and dedication to training and matches don’t daunt the footballer; on the contrary, he relishes them. “Certainly, I still have to work on myself. The guys are really strong. I’m not used to training and playing at this level, but I will continue to work on myself and give it my all,” says the striker.
His inaugural season with the East Berlin team concluded with 6 goals and 4 assists in 34 matches. Gradually, he began scoring more frequently, evident in his statistics from the 2022/2023 season – 10 goals and 3 assists in 46 matches across all competitions.
Despite being 32, Berens shows no sign of slowing down, progressing simultaneously with Union’s trajectory. After participating in the Europa Conference League, the team also played in the UEFA Europa League and secured a historic qualification for the group stage of the Champions League this season.
“Looking back over the last few years, I have actually always improved. I became faster in understanding the game. My first touch is better. I believe I can assess situations better and faster. As a result, I am often in a better position than I was a year or two ago,” declares the striker, now significantly distancing himself from the 30-year-old boundary.
The player’s development does not escape the notice of Union Berlin coach Urs Fischer, who describes Berens as “a great person, both on the field and in the locker room, always ready for a little fun. Our first goal is still to survive in the Bundesliga. We will not change or do things differently to maintain our identity.”
Berens’ third season with Union started impressively—with a headed hat-trick in the German’s victory over Mainz with a score of 4:1 at the “Old Forestry.” In the next round, he also scored against Darmstadt for the same result, but away.
This season’s start directs the spotlight towards Berens, who receives a call-up to the German national team from Julian Nagelsmann and makes his debut on October 18 in a friendly against Mexico, which ended in a 2-2 draw.
After the match, Berens couldn’t hide his joy, stating: “It was really exciting, really cool to get into such a wild game, in this atmosphere. It’s just awesome to play my first match.”
The player’s form has declined in the last few weeks, corresponding with Union Berlin’s poor performances. After the loss to Napoli in the Champions League group stage, the team is in a streak of 9 consecutive losses. Despite this, the club is not overly concerned about its current state, as the goals are not necessarily to advance from the group in Europe and finish in the top 7 in Germany.
Union is enjoying the moment and the European matches, even though they are not played at the “Old Forestry” but at the “Olympiastadion,” causing fans of the “Iron Ones” to shiver.
The same happens with the players on the field, especially one—Kevin Berens, whose football journey started at the age of 17. Ten years later, he becomes a professional footballer, and at 30, he debuts in the elite of Germany, leading up to the moment when he is 32 and makes his debut in the strongest European club tournament and the German national team. So, Kevin Berens’ journey is far from over, and the striker is ready once again to delight the fans of the “Iron Ones,” and who knows—maybe even those of Germany in the upcoming Euro 2024 at home!
