Stephan Markus Cabizares Schröck (; born 21 August 1986) is a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

coach Coach may refer to: Guidance/instruction * Coach (sport), a director of Athletes' training and activities * Coaching, the practice of guiding an individual through a process ** Acting coach, a teacher who trains performers Transportation * Coac ...

and professional player who plays as an

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

or winger. Born in Germany to a German father and Filipino mother, Schröck was a youth international for

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

but switched to the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

at the senior level. He began his professional career in Germany with Greuther Fürth and was part of the squad that won the 2011–12 2. Bundesliga. He then played in the

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany and the highest level of the German football league system. The Bundesliga comprises 18 teams ...

with 1899 Hoffenheim and

Eintracht Frankfurt Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a German professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The club currently plays in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the German footb ...

before returning to Greuther Fürth in 2014. He joined Filipino club Ceres (later United City) on

loan In finance, a loan is the tender of money by one party to another with an agreement to pay it back. The recipient, or borrower, incurs a debt and is usually required to pay interest for the use of the money. The document evidencing the deb ...

in 2016, with a permanent transfer taking place the following season. Schröck helped Ceres/United City win four consecutive

Philippines Football League The Philippines Football League (PFL) is a men's professional association football, football league in the Philippines. Sanctioned by the Philippine Football Federation (PFF) and organized by Liga Futbol Inc., it is the country's Football in t ...

titles from 2017 to 2020, and received the Golden Ball award in the last two seasons. Schröck made his debut for the Philippines in 2011 and captained the team from 2019 until 2023.

Early life

Schröck was born on 21 August 1986 in

Schweinfurt Schweinfurt ( , ; ) is a town#Germany, city in the district of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the surrounding Schweinfurt (district), district (''Landkreis'') of Schweinfurt and a major industrial, cultur ...

West Germany West Germany was the common English name for the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) from its formation on 23 May 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with East Germany on 3 October 1990. It is sometimes known as the Bonn Republi ...

to a German father and a Filipina mother. His mother is from

Parang Parang is a popular folk music originating from Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago that was brought to Trinidad and Tobago by Venezuelan migrants who were primarily of Amerindian, Spanish, Mestizo, Pardo, and African heritage, something whic ...

Maguindanao Maguindanao (; Maguindanaon: ''Dairat nu Magindanaw''; Iranun: ''Perobinsia a Magindanao''; ) was a province of the Philippines located in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM). From 2014 to 2022, its provincial capital ...

but grew up in

Cebu Cebu ( ; ), officially the Province of Cebu (; ), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 167 surrounding islands and islets. The coastal zone of Cebu is identified as a ...

. Schröck's parents separated when he was six years old, leaving him and sister with his mother. His mother had to simultaneously do two to three jobs in order to support their family. Growing up in Schweinfurt, Schröck turned to football as a means to cope with their difficult situation. Prior to taking up football, Schröck tried boxing since his father was a boxer.

Club career

Greuther Fürth

Schröck started at Greuther Fürth in 2001, going through the junior teams and made the leap into the professional squad in the 2004–05 season. In April 2008, Schröck signed a two-year contract extension with Greuther Fürth. Two years later, in March 2010, Schröck again extended his contract for another two years. Although he revealed that he could have gone to five other clubs with better financial benefits, he chose to stay to repay the backing that the club has always shown him. He also wanted to reach the

with the club and believed it would be an achievable target before his contract expired. In the 2011–12 season, his final year at the club, he helped the team win the league title and gain promotion to the Bundesliga.

1899 Hoffenheim

In late March 2012, Schröck signed a three-year deal with Bundesliga side

TSG 1899 Hoffenheim Turn- und Sportgemeinschaft 1899 Hoffenheim e.V. (), commonly known as TSG Hoffenheim (), are a German professional association football, football club based in Sinsheim. Originally founded in 1899 as a gymnastics club, Hoffenheim came into bei ...

. He made his debut in a 4–0 home defeat to

but was sent off after 74 minutes. Schröck started and put up a great performance against league leaders

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), commonly known as Bayern Munich (), FC Bayern () or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. They are most known for their men's professional football team, ...

on 3 March 2013. He came as close as anyone to scoring for Hoffenheim with a lovely shot which Starke saved well.

Eintracht Frankfurt

On 27 June 2013, Bundesliga club

announced that they had signed Schröck on a two-year deal. He made his debut against champions

and received a yellow card after a foul on

Franck Ribéry Franck Henry Pierre Ribéry (; born 7 April 1983) is a French former professional footballer who primarily played as a winger, preferably on the left side, and was known for his pace, energy, skill, and precise passing. He is regarded as one ...

. Schröck scored his first goal for Frankfurt in a

Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

match against

APOEL Nicosia APOEL (; short for Αθλητικός Ποδοσφαιρικός Όμιλος Ελλήνων Λευκωσίας, ''Athletikos Podosferikos Omilos Ellinon Lefkosias'', "Athletic Football Club of Greeks of Nicosia") is a major Cypriot multi-spo ...

Return to Greuther Fürth

After only a season with Frankfurt, Schröck returned to Greuther Fürth. However, in January 2016, it was reported that Fürth allowed Schröck to look for a new club, excusing him from two weeks of training. He was set to leave the club and prematurely end his contract. Schröck wanted to play as an attacking midfielder instead of a right back; however, the position was contested among other players of the club such as Sebastian Freis. On 15 April 2017, Greuther Fürth and Schröck reported having mutually agreed to release Schröck, as confirmed by an official post by the club on its website and Schröck himself through a

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post.

Loan to Ceres

On 13 January 2016, United Football League side Ceres announced that they signed Schröck to play for the club on a loan basis at least until August. Ceres' rival,

Global Global may refer to: General *Globe, a spherical model of celestial bodies *Earth, the third planet from the Sun Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 198 ...

reportedly tried to get Schröck to play for them. Schröck made his UFL debut for Ceres at the 2016 UFL Cup in a 2–1 win over Loyola Meralco Sparks Schröck was played as a winger in the front but did not score a single goal despite numerous attempts. Prior to his Ceres stint, he was often played as a midfielder or defender while playing in Germany. Ceres coach Ali Go remarked that the club was still exploring what position is the best for Schröck adding that with a few more games, the footballer would get used to the Philippine and Asian-style of play. Schröck's loan agreement to Ceres, originally to be ended in August, was extended until January 2017.

United City

Schröck returned to Ceres, who renamed themselves as Ceres–Negros when they joined the

(PFL). The move was announced by the club on 27 April 2017, and Schröck went on to become a key player of the club, helping them clinch three straight PFL titles and one trophy in the Copa Paulino Alcantara. Ceres–Negros underwent a change in management and was reorganized as United City when MMC Sportz Asia took over the club. The new management had to secure Schröck's continued service with the club. Schröck also received offers from clubs outside the Philippines which reportedly include Bundesliga side

and sides from

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

. On 28 July 2020, it was announced that Schröck would remain in the newly renamed club and was also designated captain and playing assistant coach. Due to logistical issues caused by the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

in mid-2020, Schröck was left stranded in Germany where he joined TV Königsberg, a lower division club, as a guest player in order to maintain his fitness. He was able to return to the Philippines by October 2020. On 26 June 2021, he scored his and the club's first-ever

AFC Champions League The AFC Champions League Elite (abbreviated as the ACL Elite) is an annual continental club association football, football competition organised by the Asian Football Confederation, and contested by Asia's List of top-division football clubs i ...

goal in their first-ever match in the tournament, a 1–1 draw against

Beijing Guoan Beijing Guoan Football Club (), known in AFC competitions as Beijing FC, is a Chinese professional football club based in Beijing, that competes in . Beijing Guoan plays its home matches at the Workers' Stadium, located within Chaoyang Distr ...

. In March 2022, after a 5-year stint with the club, Schröck and United City mutually agreed on the termination his contract.

ADT

Schröck moved to the

Azkals Development Team The Azkals Development Team, commonly referred to as ADT, is a Philippine developmental football club that last competed in Philippines Football League, before officially withdrawing from the competition in May 2023. Founded in 2020, the team ...

for the 2022–23 PFL season which kicked off in August 2022. A veteran among the roster filled with prospect national team players, Schröck was named captain of the club. He was also made part of ADT's coaching staff led by coach Norman Fegidero. He set up the Azkals Development Academy (ADA), which is affiliated with the club. ADT would leave the PFL after withdrawing in the middle of the 2022–23 season.

CF Manila

Schröck would form CF Manila from players from ADA. The club entered the 2023 Copa Paulino Alcantara. Schröck himself would feature for the club as a player.

Retirement

On 21 August 2024, his 38th birthday, Schröck announced his retirement from playing.

International career

Schröck was born to a German father and a Filipina mother, making him eligible to represent Germany or the Philippines at the international level. He initially chose Germany, as he has represented the country at U-18, U-19 and U-20 levels. Under previous

FIFA The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (), more commonly known by its acronym FIFA ( ), is the international self-regulatory governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal. It was founded on 21 May 1904 to o ...

statutes, Schröck could have switched to the Philippines until his 21st birthday but he did not take that option, neither was he called up during this time. In early October 2008, the

Philippine Football Federation The Philippine Football Federation (PFF) is the governing body of association football in the Philippines. Established as the Philippine Amateur Football Association (PAFA) in 1907, the PFF is one of the oldest national football associations in ...

wanted to get him to play for the Philippines in 2008 AFF Championship qualification tournament. However, he was not able to as he was already over the age of 21. FIFA eventually removed the age limit on players switching nations in early June 2009, making him eligible again to switch to the Philippines. In July 2010, Schröck announced his intention to play for the

in the 2010 AFF Championship qualification tournament in

Laos Laos, officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic (LPDR), is the only landlocked country in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by Myanmar and China to the northwest, Vietnam to the east, Cambodia to the southeast, and Thailand to the west and ...

, but was ultimately left out of the squad as his documents had not been processed in time.

2014 FIFA World Cup qualifiers

It was only in March 2011 when he went to the Philippines to finalize his documents and was tipped to be ready for the 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification first round. He eventually made his full international debut for the Philippines in the first leg of the first round of the World Cup qualifiers on 29 June 2011 against

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka, officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, also known historically as Ceylon, is an island country in South Asia. It lies in the Indian Ocean, southwest of the Bay of Bengal, separated from the Indian subcontinent, ...

, playing the full 90 minutes in a 1–1 draw and also receiving a yellow card. In the second leg on 3 July 2011, he again played the full 90 minutes in a 4–0 win. However, he received another yellow card and was suspended along with team captain Alexander Borromeo for the first leg of the second round qualifiers against

Kuwait Kuwait, officially the State of Kuwait, is a country in West Asia and the geopolitical region known as the Middle East. It is situated in the northern edge of the Arabian Peninsula at the head of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to Iraq–Kuwait ...

. The Philippine Football Federation appealed to FIFA to rescind his suspension, but was unsuccessful. Without Schröck, the Philippines lost 3–0 to Kuwait in the first-leg. Believing the deficit could be overturned, he came back for the second leg against the wishes of his club. He would score the opening goal from 25 yards deep into the first half

injury time Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who almost exclusively use their feet to propel a ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the ga ...

, but it was not enough to help the Philippines make a comeback as they eventually lost 2–1.

2014 AFC Challenge Cup

Schröck scored his second international goal less than a minute into the second half of the 2014 AFC Challenge Cup qualifier against Cambodia. The Philippines would go on to win 8–0. Two days later, he was awarded by the

Asian Football Confederation The Asian Football Confederation (AFC) is the governing body of association football, beach soccer, and futsal in most countries and territories in Asia. The AFC was formed in 1954. It has 47 members. The Asian Ladies Football Confederation ( ...

(AFC) as the MVP in the 1–0 win over

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan is a landlocked country in Central Asia bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the south and southwest and the Caspian Sea to the west. Ash ...

, helping the Philippines qualify for the

2014 AFC Challenge Cup The 2014 AFC Challenge Cup was the fifth and the final edition of the AFC Challenge Cup, an international Association football, football competition for Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member nations that are mainly categorized as "emerging co ...

. On 4 August 2014, Schröck announced he was "resigning" from the Philippines national team, effectively announcing his international retirement to "pursue new challenges". He then revealed that he resigned as a protest against coach

Thomas Dooley Thomas Dooley (born May 12, 1961) is a former association football, soccer player and coach. He played as a Defender (association football), defender and defensive midfielder and was a long-time member and former captain of the United States me ...

and was effectively giving an ultimatum, saying he would no longer play for the country while Dooley remained coach. Schröck went on to criticize the team management, claiming there were internal problems in the Philippine Football Federation and labelled the team a "chicken farm", a German expression meaning highly disorganized, before saying he felt the veteran players were not being respected. The dispute seemed to have been finally settled on 10 March 2015, when reports indicated that Schröck had apologized to Dooley. This was later confirmed by the player on his official Facebook page. On 12 November 2015, he played his first game for the team as captain against

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

. Schröck's relationship with Dooley worsened after the

2016 AFF Championship The 2016 AFF Championship, sponsored by Suzuki and officially known as the AFF Suzuki Cup 2016, was the 11th edition of the AFF Championship, the Association football, football championship of nations affiliated to the ASEAN Football Federation ...

, and he never received a call up to the national team for the rest of Dooley's tenure as coach which lasted until 2018.

2019 AFC Asian Cup

Schröck received a call up to the Philippine national team for a training camp in Bahrain under new head coach Scott Cooper, and was part of the squad that played in the

2018 AFF Championship The 2018 AFF Championship was the 12th edition of the AFF Championship, the Association football, football championship of nations affiliated to the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF), and the 6th under the name AFF Suzuki Cup. This was the first t ...

where the Philippines, mentored by

Sven-Göran Eriksson Sven-Göran Eriksson (; 5 February 1948 – 26 August 2024) was a Swedish association football, football player and Coach (sport), manager. After a playing career as a right-back, Eriksson went on to experience major success in club management ...

, finished as semifinalists for the fourth time. He also played in the 2019 AFC Asian Cup as captain of the team. The Philippines lost all three of their matches. The Philippines' lone goal at the tournament was scored by Schröck in the last match against Kyrgyzstan. It was scored from a far away free kick; the ball was meant to be head-butted in but no player reached it—and to the goalie's surprise—it bounced and made it into the back of the net. After the AFC Asian Cup, Schröck expressed his intention to retire from the national team, citing his age and plans to focus on his family and club career. Schröck would continue to play for the national team, featuring for the Philippines at the

2020 AFF Championship The 2020 AFF Championship (officially AFF Suzuki Cup 2020 for sponsorship reasons) was the 13th edition of the AFF Championship, the football championship of nations affiliated to the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF), the 7th and the last edition ...

in December 2021.

2019 Southeast Asian Games

In late November 2019, Schröck was one of the two over-age players to be included in the Philippines U-22 squad for the

2019 Southeast Asian Games The 2019 Southeast Asian Games, officially known as the 30th Southeast Asian Games, or the 30th SEA Games, and commonly known as Philippines 2019, were the 30th edition of the SEA Games, Southeast Asian Games, a biennial regional multi-sport ...

, hosted by the Philippines.

2021 Southeast Asian Games

Schröck was named as one of the over-aged players for the Philippines under-23 team at the 31st Southeast Asian Games, which was held in

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

2022 AFF Championship

Schröck was called up to the national team for the

2022 AFF Championship The 2022 AFF Championship (officially AFF Mitsubishi Electric Cup 2022 due to sponsorship reasons) was the 14th edition of the AFF Championship, the football championship of nations affiliated to the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) and was the 1 ...

tournament. He was the oldest outfield player in the tournament at the age of 36. With his team eliminated early from the group stage, Schröck announced the tournament would be his last appearance for the national team. His final match was against

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

on 2 January 2023, where he provided an assist for

Sebastian Rasmussen Jens Sebastian Beraque Rasmussen (born 17 June 2002) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for Danish 1st Division club Hobro. Born in Denmark, he plays for the Philippines national team. Club career A former youth academy pla ...

in a 2–1 defeat.

Return from retirement

Schröck came out of retirement and featured in 15 June 2023 friendly match against

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

. He came in as a substitute in the game which ended with 1–0 win. He was urged to play by returning coach Michael Weiß. He was once again called up to play against Vietnam and Indonesia in the November 2023 window of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Personal life

On 28 May 2011, Schröck married Pina in Germany, whom he knew since childhood.

Career statistics

: ''Scores and results list the Philippine's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Schröck goal.''

Honours

Club

Greuther Fürth * 2. Bundesliga: 2011–12 United City *

2017 2017 was designated as the International Year of Sustainable Tourism for Development by the United Nations General Assembly. Events January * January 1 – Istanbul nightclub shooting: A gunman dressed as Santa Claus opens fire at the ...

2018 Events January * January 1 – Bulgaria takes over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, after the Estonian presidency. * January 4 – SPLM-IO rebels loyal to Chan Garang Lual start a raid against Juba, capital of ...

2019 This was the year in which the first known human case of COVID-19 was documented, preceding COVID-19 pandemic, the pandemic which was declared by the World Health Organization the following year. Up to that point, 2019 had been described as ...

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

* Copa Paulino Alcantara:

* United Football League Cup runner-up:

2016 2016 was designated as: * International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly. * International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...

International

Philippines *

AFC Challenge Cup The AFC Challenge Cup was an international football competition for Asian Football Confederation (AFC) member countries that were categorised as "emerging countries" in the "Vision Asia" programme. It was created by former AFC president Mohammed ...

runner-up:

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

Individual

* PSA Annual Awards Mr. Football: 2013, 2019 *

Golden Ball:

ASEAN Football Federation The ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) is an organisation within the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) and is an international governing body of association football, futsal, and beach soccer in Southeast Asia. It consists of the federations of Fo ...

Best XI: 2019 *

Singapore Cup The Singapore Cup is an annual knockout football competition in men's domestic Singaporean football. Established in 1998, it is the foremost prestigious cup competition in the country. It is open to clubs in the Singapore Premier League. Since ...

top scorer:

(7 goals)

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schrock, Stephan Living people 1986 births Footballers from Schweinfurt German sportspeople of Filipino descent German men's footballers Germany men's youth international footballers Filipino men's footballers Filipino expatriate men's footballers Philippines men's international footballers Men's association football fullbacks Men's association football midfielders Bundesliga players 2. Bundesliga players SpVgg Greuther Fürth players TSG 1899 Hoffenheim players Eintracht Frankfurt players Azkals Development Team players United City F.C. players 2019 AFC Asian Cup players Competitors at the 2019 SEA Games Competitors at the 2021 SEA Games SEA Games competitors for the Philippines Philippines Football League players One Taguig F.C. players 21st-century German sportsmen 21st-century Filipino sportsmen