Jérôme Agyenim Boateng (; born 3 September 1988) is a German former professional footballer who played as a centre-back.
Boateng started his career at Hertha BSC where he developed from the youth ranks to the first team. After his debut season at Hertha, he soon signed for Hamburger SV and established himself as an integral part of the team, helping the club reach two consecutive UEFA Europa League semi-finals.
After a season playing for Manchester City, he joined Bayern Munich in 2011 and won many domestic and European honours with the club, most notably the continental treble in the 2012–13 and 2019–20 seasons. His contract ran out on 30 June 2021 and he subsequently became a free agent before opting to sign for Lyon. Afterwards, he joined Italian side Salernitana.
Boateng played in the Germany U21 side which won the 2009 Euro U-21 Championship and was soon promoted to the national side. Boateng has since accumulated over 70 caps and represented Germany at UEFA Euro 2012, Euro 2016, 2010 World Cup, 2014 World Cup, and 2018 World Cup. He was a key member of his country's victory in the 2014 World Cup. Early life Jérôme Agyenim Boateng was born on 3 September 1988in West Berlin, West Germany. He is a Ghanaian German, born to a German mother named Martina and a Ghanaian father.
He is the younger half-brother of fellow footballer Kevin-Prince Boateng. He also another elder half-brother, George, who played for the youth sides at Hertha BSC but not professionally.
Club career Early career Boateng started his career with the youth team of Tennis Borussia Berlin, before joining Hertha BSC in 2002.
Hertha BSC After emerging from the youth team set-up, he played for the reserves for two seasons. He scored one goal in nine appearances in the 2005–06 season and made 15 appearances in the 2006–07 season. He won a call-up to the first-team squad on 31 January 2007. He made his debut against Hannover 96 in the AWD-Arena, during week 19 of the 2006–07 Bundesliga season. He then became a first-team regular, despite being barely 18 years of age. He finished the 2006–07 season with 11 appearances for the first team.
Boateng was linked with a move to Hamburger SV in the summer of 2007. Because of this, according to the German media, Boateng did not want to sign a five-year professional contract with Hertha.
Hamburger SV
Boateng moved to Hamburg on 22 August 2007 for a fee said to be around €1.1 million. Boateng spent two successful years at Hamburg, where he would go on to become an important part of the side's defence in the 2008–09 season which saw Hamburg in the race for the Bundesliga title, as well as reaching the semi-finals of the UEFA Europa League in both his years at the club. He had made 37 appearances during the 2007–08 season. and 35 appearances during the 2008–09 season. In the 2009–10 season, he broke into the Germany national side after impressing for Hamburg, earning himself a place in the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. He finished the 2009–10 season with a goal in 41 appearances.
Manchester City On 5 June 2010, Premier League club Manchester City confirmed the transfer of Boateng to the English club for £10.4 million on a five-year deal, where he wore his favoured number 17 shirt. He made his City debut in a pre-season friendly against Valencia for the first half, alternating between centre-back and right-back with Micah Richards. After an impressive run, down the right flank, he provided the assisting cross for Gareth Barry to score.
During the week prior to the start of the 2010–11 Premier League season, Boateng suffered an injury setback on international duty with Germany during a friendly against Denmark. He tore a tendon in his left knee, which was then aggravated on the plane home after a collision with a drinks trolley.
He made his debut for Manchester City with a substitute appearance during a 1–0 victory against Chelsea on 25 September 2010. He followed this with a first competitive start in a 1–1 Europa League draw with Juventus, playing at right-back. In his one season with City, Boateng made 24 appearances. He also won the 2010–11 FA Cup despite not being a member of the matchday squad for the final.
Bayern Munich 2011–12 season
In June 2011, Boateng expressed his desire to leave Manchester City for Bayern Munich, stating that playing for Bayern would help his chances of playing regularly for the Germany national team and that he was frustrated at having to play almost exclusively at right-back.
On 14 July 2011, Bayern confirmed the transfer of Boateng to the German club for a fee of €13.5 million on a four-year deal. He was given the same number 17 shirt he wore at Manchester City and for most of his time with Hamburg. He made his debut on 27 July 2011 as a second-half substitute for Rafinha during the 2011 Audi Cup in a match against Milan. His Bundesliga debut for Bayern came in a 0–1 home defeat against Borussia Mönchengladbach, on 6 August; an error between himself and fellow new signing goalkeeper Manuel Neuer allowed Igor de Camargo to score the only goal. The team finished the season as runners-up in the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and Champions League, with Boateng playing the finals of the latter two tournaments in their entirety. He made 48 appearances during the 2011–12 season.
2012–13 season
During the 2012–13 season, Boateng was a regular member of the Bayern team that won a treble of the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and Champions League, in addition to the DFL-Supercup at the start of the season. On 5 December 2012, Boateng picked up a red card against BATE Borisov which resulted in a two-match ban. He scored his first Bundesliga goal with a header from Phillip Lahm's cross on 9 March 2013, the winner as Bayern came from behind for a 3–2 home win against Fortuna Düsseldorf. He netted a second on 13 April, an acrobatic half-volley to open a 5–0 home win over 1. FC Nürnberg, after Bayern had already won the league title. He scored two goals in 40 appearances during the 2012–13 season.
2013–14 season On 2 October 2013, Boateng picked up a red card against former club Manchester City which resulted in a one-match ban in the Champions League. His only league goal of the season was on 9 November, finishing a corner after four minutes of a 3–0 home win over FC Augsburg. He extended his contract with Bayern on 11 December, which will keep him at the club until 2018. On 3 May 2014, Boateng picked up a red card which resulted in a two-match ban. Bayern ended the season as winners of a domestic double of the Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal. He scored a goal in 43 appearances during the 2013–14 season.
2014–15 season On 17 September 2014, Boateng scored his first European goal for Bayern in the 2014–15 Champions League season with a strike which was the only goal in the opening group stage match against his former club Manchester City. Boateng picked up a red card against Schalke 04 on 3 February 2015 which resulted in a three-match ban in the Bundesliga.
Boateng scored in a 7–0 Champions League round of 16 win against Shakhtar Donetsk on 11 March 2015, and in a 6–1 quarter-final win over Porto on 21 April. He finished the 2014–15 season three goals in 44 appearances.
2015–16 season Boateng started the 2015–16 season by playing in the German Super Cup. He picked up a red card against 1899 Hoffenheim on 22 August 2015. On 18 December, Boateng signed a new contract with Bayern, keeping him at the club until 2021. He finished the 2015–16 season with 31 appearances.
2016–17 season On 20 December 2016, Boateng suffered pectoral muscle tendon and was out for almost three months. On 11 March 2017, Boateng made his return after 108 days as a substitute by replacing Javi Martínez in the 64th minute in a 3–0 victory over Eintracht Frankfurt. On 14 April 2017, head coach Carlo Ancelotti confirmed that Boateng was ruled out of the away match in the league against Bayer Leverkusen due to adductor problem. He made his return on 20 May 2017, Boateng sustained muscle injury and was subbed off just after 11 minutes in the last match of the season where Bayern won 4–1 against SC Freiburg. He finished the 2016–17 season with 21 appearances.
2017–18 season On 13 September 2017, Boateng made his comeback after 115 days on the sidelines in the Champions League match and provided one assist to Joshua Kimmich's late goal after being subbed on in a 3–0 victory over Anderlecht. On 21 December, Boateng scored a header in a 2–1 win as his side knocked their fierce rival Borussia Dortmund out of the DFB-Pokal during the round of 16 match. On 27 January 2018, Boateng scored another header in the league match and his first league goal since November 2013 as his side made a comeback from two goal behind to finish the game with a 5–2 victory over 1899 Hoffenheim. Boateng made his 250th appearance for the club in a 6–0 victory over Hamburg on 10 March. On 11 April, Boateng and his teammate Thomas Müller made their 100th European appearance in the Champions League match against Sevilla as the game finished 0–0 draw. On 26 April, Boateng suffered thigh muscle injury during the Champions League semi-final first leg match against Real Madrid in which the game ended 2–1 loss for his sides and the injury made him miss all the remaining matches of the season. He finished the 2017–18 season with two goals in 31 appearances.
2018–19 season Boateng entered the season injury-free and started the season strong as he played every minute of Bayern's first three Bundesliga matches. During the first half of the season, Boateng was rotated along with Bayern's other two centre-backs, Mats Hummels and Niklas Süle. Boateng lost his place in the starting lineup as Bayern's coach, Niko Kovač, decided that Hummels and Süle were his first option. After the winter break, Boateng was linked to other clubs as he was reported to be unhappy with his position at Bayern.
On 18 May 2019, Boateng won his seventh consecutive Bundesliga title as Bayern finished two points above Dortmund with 78 points. A week later, Boateng won his fourth DFB-Pokal as Bayern defeated RB Leipzig 3–0 in the 2019 DFB-Pokal Final. Boateng did not appear in the match as he was an unused substitute. He finished the 2018–19 season without scoring in 28 appearances.
2019–20 season On 14 December 2019, Boateng made his 300th appearance for Bayern in a match against Werder Bremen.
Boateng also regained his place in the starting XI, often partnering up with David Alaba, after Niklas Süle suffered a long-term injury in October 2019 and Bayern's new signing Lucas Hernandez suffered from minor injuries. He regained his form in this season and performed very well, completing his second continental treble.
2020–21 season On 3 November 2020, Boateng scored his first goal of the season in a 6–2 away win over Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League.
In April 2021, Bayern's sporting director Hasan Salihamidžić stated that Boateng's contract would expire in the summer and would not be extended.
Lyon On 1 September 2021, Boateng joined Ligue 1 club Lyon on a free transfer. He signed a contract until 30 June 2023. On 9 June 2023, Lyon confirmed via social media that Boateng would leave the club upon the expiry of his contract.
Salernitana On 2 February 2024, Boateng signed with Salernitana in Italy until the end of the 2023–24 season. He became a free agent upon the season's conclusion following the club's relegation.
LASK On 31 May 2024, Boateng joined Austrian side LASK by signing a contract until 2026. On 19 August 2025, Boateng's contract was terminated by mutual consent.
Retirement On 19 September 2025, Boateng announced his retirement from professional football. Boateng pursued coaching training at Bayern Munich and Barcelona in 2025, but both clubs severed ties due to backlash surrounding Boateng’s legal proceedings.
International career