Germany captain Giulia Gwinn made her Bayern Munich return after suffering a knee injury while playing for her country at Euro 2025.
The 26-year-old came on as a 74th-minute substitute for Munich in their 4-0 victory over Freiburg on Tuesday night.
Gwinn looked emotional as she warmed up on the sideline before her introduction, in place of Franziska Kett.
Bayern took a comfortable victory thanks to goals from Vanessa Gilles, Lena Oberdorf, Lea Schuller and Klara Buhl.
Oberdorf only recently made her Bayern Munich debut after suffering an ACL injury last year after her arrival from VfL Wolfsburg.
Gwinn, after her own return, said: “I’m very, very happy about my comeback.
“It was another long period of suffering where I had to endure a lot. It wasn’t exactly easy, especially after missing the European Championship. That’s why I felt all the emotions today. And I’m just really happy to be back with the team.”
𝑬𝒎𝒐𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒔 𝑪𝒐𝒎𝒆𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 ❤️🤍
So verlief Giulia Gwinns Rückkehr beim Sieg über Freiburg! 👀
🗞️ https://t.co/7uD3404GC2 pic.twitter.com/QyxP9AvK1V— FC Bayern Frauen (@FCBfrauen) September 24, 2025
How did Giulia Gwinn suffer her knee injury?
Bayern Munich star Giulia Gwinn suffered a medial ligament injury during Germany’s 2-0 victory over Poland at Euro 2025.
She suffered the injury when making a challenge on Poland captain Ewa Pajor.
Gwinn was visibly upset as she left the pitch and was ruled out of the rest of Euro 2025.
This left Germany without their captain, as they crashed out in the semi-finals to Spain during extra-time.
She has been plagued with knee injuries in recent years.
Gwinn missed the 2023 World Cup after suffering an ACL injury. She also suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury in Germany’s 3-0 win over the Republic of Ireland in September 2020, which kept her out of action until August 2021.
There had been concerns that she could miss a considerable amount of time after her most recent injury.
However, just two-and-a-half months after suffering the injury, she returned to duty for her club Bayern Munich.
What’s next for Gwinn and Bayern Munich?
Gwinn will likely take some time to be fully integrated back into the Bayern Munich side following her return to action.
Bayern will next play Dortmund in the first round of the DFB Pokal Women’s Cup on Monday, September 29th, before facing Werder Bremen in the Frauen Bundesliga the following weekend.
Their Women’s Champions League campaign kicks off on Tuesday, October 7th, away at Barcelona.
The Women’s Champions League draw was made last week, and Bayern Munich will also face Arsenal, Juventus, Paris Saint-Germain, Valerenga and Atletico Madrid during the League Phase.
