| Intro | German footballer |
| Is |
Athlete Football player Association football player |
| From |
Germany Russia |
| Type | Sports |
| Gender | male |
| Birth | 15 March 1990, Kozhevnikovo, Tomsk Oblast |
| Age: | 30 years |
Konstantin Rausch (Russian: Константин Викторович Рауш; born 15 March 1990) is a Russian-born German footballer. He is a left back who has also played left midfielder. He plays for 1. FC Köln.
Personal life
Rausch was born in Kozhevnikovo, Tomsk Oblast, Russian SFSR. His family emigrated to Germany from the Soviet Union when he was five years old. His first friend in Germany couldn’t pronounce “Konstantin” and instead called him “Kocka”, a nickname still used by his teammates and coaches.
Career
Early years
Shortly after moving to Germany, Rausch started playing football at the local club, TuS Lachendorf. At the age of twelve he received an offer to join the youth team of Bundesliga side Hannover 96. He decided, he was not mature enough for such a big club and instead joined another local side, SV Nienhagen. He finally joined Hannover two years later, rejecting offers from Werder Bremen and Feyenoord Rotterdam.
Hannover 96
When 96 first choice left full back Michael Tarnat and his replacement Christian Schulz were injured, Rausch debuted against VfB Stuttgart on 30 March 2008. He was aged 18, which made him the youngest player ever, to appear in Hannover’s first squad. Rausch had a good game, but had to be substituted at half time after straining a muscle. Two days later, he signed his first professional contract, running until 2010. While Hannover favoured a longer contract, Rausch did not want to tie himself for too long.
VfB Stuttgart
After the end of his contract with Hannover on 1 July 2013, Rausch moved to VfB Stuttgart on a free transfer. On 5 May 2013, Konstantin Rausch signed a contract until June 2016 with VfB Stuttgart.
SV Darmstadt 98
On 6 July 2015 Rausch signed a one year contract with SV Darmstadt 98.
International career
International youth teams
Rausch played for various German youth teams as a left full back or wing back, accumulating more than 30 appearances. His biggest success was a bronze medal at the 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup, where he started in every game except for one, which he missed following a red card. After the tournament, he was awarded a Fritz Walter Medal in silver as the second most promising German football player of his age.
Senior team
In March 2011, Russian media quoted Rausch to be interested in playing for the Russia national football team, but that nobody from Russian Football Union has talked to him about it.
Honours
- FIFA U-17 World Cup: Third place 2007
Individual
- Fritz Walter Medal 2007 in Silver (Category U17)
- Fritz Walter Medal 2009 in Silver (Category U19)