Mario Leitgeb (born 30 June 1988) is an Austrian professional
footballer
A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...
who plays as a
midfielder
In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...
for
Austrian Regionalliga Central
The Austrian Regional League Central (''Regionalliga Mitte'') is the third tier of Austrian football, established in the 1994–95 season. It serves as one of three regional leagues at this level in Austria and encompasses the states of Carinthia ...
club
DSV Leoben
DSV Leoben is an Football in Austria, Austrian association football club based in Leoben. It was founded in 1928. The club currently play in Austrian Regionalliga Central, Regionalliga Central, one of the third tiers of Austrian Football. They ...
Styria
Styria ( ; ; ; ) is an Austrian Federal states of Austria, state in the southeast of the country. With an area of approximately , Styria is Austria's second largest state, after Lower Austria. It is bordered to the south by Slovenia, and cloc ...
n capital, playing for
Sturm Graz
Sportklub Sturm Graz is an Austrian professional association football club, based in Graz, playing in the Austrian Football Bundesliga. The club was founded in 1909. Its colours are black and white.
In its history, Sturm Graz has won the Austr ...
. He played in the club's academy until 2006, where he was promoted to the reserve team. Between 2006 and 2008, Leitgeb played 25 matches for the reserves, scoring one goal. In 2008, he was picked up by
SC Austria Lustenau
Sportclub Austria Lustenau is a professional association football club based in the town of Lustenau, Vorarlberg, Austria, that competes in the 2. Liga (Austria), 2. Liga, the second tier of the Austrian football league system. Founded in 1914, ...
from the
second division
In sport, the Second Division, also called Division 2 or Division II is usually the second highest division of a league, and will often have promotion and relegation with divisions above and below. Following the rise of Premier League style compet ...
. Leitgeb made his debut in the second division on 11 July 2008, in a 2–0 away loss to
SV Grödig
Sportverein Grödig is an Austrian association football club from Grödig. The team currently competes in the Regionalliga Salzburg, the third tier of Austrian football.
Grödig were relegated from the Austrian Bundesliga at the end of the ...
. In the second round of the regular season he made an own goal. During his time in Lustenau, he picked up 89 league appearances and made 10 additional appearances in the
Austrian Cup
The Austrian Cup (), known as UNIQA ÖFB Cup for sponsorship purposes, is an annual football competition held by the Austrian Football Association, the ÖFB. During the 2008–09 season, Austria Wien won the tournament for a record 27th time. Wo ...
. In the 36th minute of his first cup appearance, a match against
FC Wels
FC Wels is an Austrian association football club founded in 2003 by the merger of the traditional clubs ''SK Eintracht Wels'' and ''FC Union Wels''.2011–12 season, Leitgeb was signed by
Grazer AK
Grazer Athletiksport Klub (; abbreviated as GAK), better known simply as Grazer AK, is an Austrian sports club based in the city of Graz in the federal state of Styria. The football section was once among Austria's most popular clubs, enjoying s ...
, but left by mutual consent after only six months after the club failed to reach promomotion to the
Austrian Bundesliga
The Bundesliga ( , "Federal League"), also known as Admiral Bundesliga for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Austria and the highest level of the Austrian football league system. The competition decides the A ...
. Instead, he continued his career with
SV Grödig
Sportverein Grödig is an Austrian association football club from Grödig. The team currently competes in the Regionalliga Salzburg, the third tier of Austrian football.
Grödig were relegated from the Austrian Bundesliga at the end of the ...
, where he played 63 league matches in two seasons. On 12 June 2014, Leitgeb signed a three-year contract with
Austria Wien
Fußballklub Austria Wien AG (), known in English as Austria Vienna, and Austria Wien in German-speaking countries, is an Austrian professional association football club from the capital city of Vienna. It has won the most trophies of any Aust ...
for an undisclosed fee.
After initially having signed a precontract with former club Sturm Graz in January 2016, Leitgeb joined Swiss club
FC St. Gallen
Fussballclub St. Gallen 1879, commonly known as St. Gallen, is a Swiss professional football club based in the city of St. Gallen, Canton of St. Gallen. It is the oldest football club in continental Europe after Kjøbenhavns Boldklub. The tea ...
on a six-month contract.
Wolfsberger AC
In January 2017 Leitgeb returned to Austria, signing with Bundesliga-side
Wolfsberger AC
Wolfsberger AC, commonly referred to as Wolfsberg or simply WAC, is an Austrian association football club from Wolfsberg, Carinthia, who currently play in the Austrian Bundesliga. Between the 2007–08 and 2011–12 seasons, Wolfsberger AC enter ...
on a one-and-a-half-year deal. He signed a two-year contract extension with the club on 29 March 2019. On 19 September 2019, Leitgeb made his European debut in a UEFA Europa League group stage away match against German club
Borussia Mönchengladbach
Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e.V. Mönchengladbach, better known as Borussia Mönchengladbach () and colloquially known as just Gladbach, is a professional Association football, football club based in Mönchengladbach, North Rhine-W ...
. In what was described as a "miracle", he scored two headers against a passive Mönchengladbach-defense and thereby became a vital part in Wolfsberger's 4–0 thrashing.
DSV Leoben
On 18 June 2024, Leitgeb signed with a third-tier club
DSV Leoben
DSV Leoben is an Football in Austria, Austrian association football club based in Leoben. It was founded in 1928. The club currently play in Austrian Regionalliga Central, Regionalliga Central, one of the third tiers of Austrian Football. They ...