Antonio Rüdiger recently announced to his Instagram followers that he was joining the Under Armour roster. His choice to do so was motivated by the values and ideals that Under Armour upholds.
“VALUES ARE THE THING THAT I FOCUS ON THE MOST. AS THEY UNDERSTAND NOT ONLY WHAT PLAYERS ENDURE DURING THE GAME, BUT HOW COMPETITORS ARE BORN AND BRED BEHIND THE SCENES, THESE VALUES MADE IT VERY EASY FOR ME TO CHOOSE UNDER ARMOUR.”
Rüdiger’s path has taken him from playing on concrete fields in the Berlin suburb of Neukölln, where the surface was so harsh that he tore holes in the bottoms of his shoes, to the immaculate pitch at the Santiago Bernabéu, where he now represents the most successful European club team in history.
He was up in a neighborhood in the German capital that was predominately made up of immigrants; his mother had fled the civil wɑr in Sierra Leone. According to him, his football journey wasn’t about moving his family out of Neukölln or having a large house or playing in the UEFA Champions League.
Rüdiger recently met with Under Armour in Madrid, where they had a long conversation about the events that impacted his life and made him into the strong athlete and motivating leader he is today. In the ensuing movie, Rüdiger is “Unboxed,” which closely examines a number of objects and pictures that show the people, places, and things that shaped him into the player and person he is now.
Rüdiger elaborates on the experiences that explain why he plays every game with the intensity that earned him the nickname “Rambo” as a child, using old family photos, memories of his difficult upbringing in Neukölln, and even the face mask that has come to represent him.
Along with his Under Armour Clone Magnetico Pro 2 boots, which are decorated with the flags of Sierra Leone and Germany, Rüdiger can be seen reacting to his UEFA Champions League Medal, which serves as the ultimate recognition of his accomplishments in European club football.
This season, Rüdiger will aim to bolster his list of accomplishments, but you can be sure he won’t forget how he got there. With Under Armour on his side, he continues to toil and hustle.
