Former German footballer Max Kruse took TV viewers on Celebrity Big Brother to 2013 when current FC Barcelona coach Hansi Flick and Oliver Bierhoff caught him in a hotel with an escort lady.
Former offensive midfielder Max Kruse is 36 years old today and hasn’t played football for almost a year. He completed a total of 14 matches in the German national team, in which he scored four times.
His name is not unknown even to fans outside Germany, although during his career he was mainly active in the Bundesliga. Since Max Kruse regularly filled the headlines due to scandals, he is most likely known even to people who are not that interested in football itself.
Poker, gambling, night life, expensive cars and luxurious women’s company are only a fraction of what characterizes his lifestyle.
Now he has again “pulled out” the old story from 2013 and the former footballer has revealed more details. “Poker was played in the hotel, the atmosphere was exuberant,” recalls Max Kruse, who at the time was playing for Borussia Mönchengladbach and was fighting for a place in Germany’s World Cup team. “In that someone said, ‘Max, why don’t you just order one for the room.'”
Max Krus liked the idea. “I entered the room and immediately had a bad feeling. Then we talked and 5 minutes later someone knocked on the door.”
Max Kruse in the shirt of VfL Wolfsburg in 2022. Source: SITA/AP
Assistant coach Hansi Flick, whom Max Kruse had previously met in the hotel corridor, and team manager Oliver Bierhoff learned about the ladies’ visit and ordered him: “Send her home. We’ll talk about the rest tomorrow.’
So Max Kruse was caught in the act. Because he wasn’t careful enough and wasn’t paying attention. “I simply told her to go to my room,” as he himself revealed on television. “I’ve always been smart enough to do it in an extra room on another floor under normal circumstances.”
For example, if the national team stayed on the sixth floor, the escort lady stayed in a room on the second floor and waited there.
The others were a little smarter
Later, members of the German implementation team gave Max Kruse a choice: “We are satisfied with your performance. But if it gets out, it will look really bad. You can’t do such things. Either you focus on football or there will simply be no World Cup for you this summer.”
In the Bundesliga season, he scored 12 goals and assisted on 11 as an offensive player. In the match on 19 November 2013 at Wembley against England, he was in the starting line-up, Germany won 1–0. “I think I behaved well after that,” Max Kruse expressed his opinion. “But I was more or less weaned.”
Head coach Joachim Löw did not take him to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. “I was completely shocked by it.”
In the end, it was Germany that took home the championship title. “It would be really cool. A lot of other players did it too, but maybe they were just a bit smarter than me.” laments Max Kruse.
Max Kruse: The Scandalous Side of Football Nobody Saw Coming!
Ah, the life of a professional footballer! Glorious goals, fancy cars, and, evidently, a touch of scandalous mischief. In a plot twist worthy of a soap opera, former German midfielder Max Kruse reminded us all recently of a little incident from 2013 that involved some not-so-innocent hotel fun, an escort, and, quite fittingly, the presence of his then-coach, Hansi Flick. If you’ve ever wondered what happens when a footballer lets loose, you’re in for a treat!
The Great Escape… or Not
So, there’s Mr. Kruse, now 36 years old and retired from the pitch for almost a year, reminiscing about his “ill-fated” rendezvous during his days playing for Borussia Mönchengladbach. While Kruse scored a modest four goals in 14 appearances for the German national team, he seems to have scored much bigger in headlines. I mean, when was the last time your average weekend poker game ended with the team management knocking at your door?
Picture this: a few lads gathered around in a hotel room, the poker chips spread like dreams of glory, and then someone innocently quips, “Why don’t you just order one for the room?” Talk about opening Pandora’s box! Kruse connected the dots and thought, “What could possibly go wrong?” Well, evidently, quite a bit. Five minutes after the lady of the hour enters, there’s a knock at the door that probably sounded like the world’s loudest alarm bell. It’s like a real-life game of hide and seek, but without the ‘hide’ part!
Caught Red-Handed: A Cautionary Tale
Now, when Hansi Flick and Oliver Bierhoff come knocking, it’s usually for one of two reasons: either you’ve just won the match—or, as in Kruse’s case, you’ve won the award for being the least discreet players on the planet. “Send her home,” they said. Ah, the sweet, serenading words of a man who clearly doesn’t want to see his World Cup dreams go up in smoke. You know football is serious business when the coach can make you choose between a good time and a shot at glory!
Kruse would later reflect with a humor only we could expect from a footballer bitten by the nightlife bug: “I’ve always been smart enough to do it in an extra room on another floor.” Well, Max, here’s a tip: maybe keep a map handy next time, just to avoid impromptu visits from the coaching staff? And perhaps some discretion wouldn’t hurt!
A Double Whammy: Talent Meets Trouble
Despite scoring 12 goals that Bundesliga season and donning the national team kit against England, tragedy struck as Kruse found himself not going to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. “I was completely shocked,” he lamented. “But hey, at least I didn’t make it easy for the tabloid reporters!”
Germany went on to clinch the championship title—with Kruse watching from the sidelines. It’s the ultimate irony, really. Max, my dear boy, many other players ‘did it too,’ but it seems it’s the smart ones who went on to bask in the limelight (and pick up a winners’ medal) while you were left with just the fame of being a bad boy gone… well, too bad.
Conclusion: Lessons Learned or Just Another Page Turned?
So, what’s the takeaway from the Max Kruse saga? Perhaps it’s a cautionary tale of keeping business and pleasure separate, especially when your career hangs in the balance. Or maybe it’s just good entertainment fodder for football fans and the curious alike. Either way, we’re left with a hilarious yet gripping reminder that behind every footballer’s elegant dribble and dividing pass, there’s often a mischievous spirit craving a little bit of scandal. Cheers to you, Max! May your poker nights stay scandal-free!
