Nicolas "Chicco" Höfler (born 9 March 1990) is a German former professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for Regionalliga Südwest club SC Freiburg II. For most of his career, he played for SC Freiburg.
Career Born in Überlingen, Höfler joined SC Freiburg in 2005 and spent three years in the youth team and a further three in the reserves, before joining 2. Bundesliga side Erzgebirge Aue on a two-year loan in July 2011. He made his debut a month later, as a substitute for Guido Koçer in a 1–1 draw with Eintracht Braunschweig.
Höfler was part of Freiburg’s professional squad for 13 years. For many years, he was a regular starter in the defensive midfield position. His career at the club was seen as a positive example of the “Freiburg way”, which focuses on developing young players, integrating them into the first team, and continuously improving them there.
On 13 May 2026, Freiburg announced that Höfler would be retiring from professional football at the end of the 2025–26 season. On 20 May 2026, Höfler played his last professional match against Aston Villa at the 2025–26 Europa League final match. He will continue playing with the second team and set to serve as a senior squad member, passing on his experience to the younger players.
Career statistics
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueCupContinentalOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsSC Freiburg II2008–09Regionalliga Süd132———1322009–10Regionalliga Süd325———3252010–11Regionalliga Süd290———2902013–14Regionalliga Südwest41———412018–19Regionalliga Südwest10———10Total798———798SC Freiburg2010–11Bundesliga000000—002013–14Bundesliga1422040002022014–15Bundesliga20020—002202015–162. Bundesliga33220——3522016–17Bundesliga28110——2912017–18Bundesliga2712020003112018–19Bundesliga18020——2002019–20Bundesliga32110——3312020–21Bundesliga31120——3312021–22Bundesliga30251——3532022–23Bundesliga3205171—4422023–24Bundesliga28120100—3912024–25Bundesliga19020——2102025–26Bundesliga1300060—190Total325112622910038014Erzgebirge Aue II (loan)2011–12Oberliga Süd40———40Erzgebirge Aue (loan)2011–122. Bundesliga13110—001412012–132. Bundesliga27020—00290Total41130—00441SC Freiburg II2026–27Regionalliga Südwest60——0060Career total454203122910051323
Honours Freiburg Bundesliga U19: 2007–08 DFB-Junior-Pokal: 2008–09 2. Bundesliga: 2015–16 DFB-Pokal runner-up: 2021–22 Europa League runner-up: 2025–26
References
External links