The new boys: Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund's new signings ahead of the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup
Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund will kick off the 2026/27 season with the Franz Beckenbauer Supercup on Saturday (kick-off: 8.30pm CEST). While the usual suspects are set to feature, some fresh arrivals will be eager to introduce themselves to their new fans in style…
Although the 2026 FIFA World Cup dominated the headlines over the summer, the decision-makers at Bundesliga clubs had their eyes set on boosting their squads already full of talent.
Last season’s top two were no exception. But who are the fresh faces supporters can look forward to seeing for the first time at Signal Iduna Park this weekend? Let’s take a look…
Bayern’s first signing of the summer, Ismael Saibari’s stock has only risen after scoring three goals for Morocco at the World Cup as they reached the quarter-finals. That came after a stellar campaign for PSV in the Eredivisie, where his 15 goals in 27 games fired the Eindhoven-based outfit to the title.
Following Nicolas Jackson’s return to Chelsea, the Bavarians needed to add to their forward options, and Saibari offers versatility across the front line. Although primarily an attacking midfielder, he is comfortable at centre-forward or on the flanks, and has even been deployed in central midfield in the past.
One of the shining lights from Germany’s disappointing World Cup campaign, Brown joins Bayern from Eintracht Frankfurt, where he was also one of the best performers in a team that did not reach the heights many expected in 2025/26. Now at the reigning Bundesliga champions, he will be confident that those around him can match the level of his displays.
Bayern have a history of producing, but also acquiring, top German talent, and given Alphonso Davies’ recent injury issues, a move for Brown made perfect sense. After impressing at Nuremberg in Bundesliga 2, the left-back settled into his new surroundings in Frankfurt almost immediately. Vincent Kompany will hope he makes a similar transition at the Allianz Arena.
In the aftermath of Julian Brandt’s exit, Dortmund had a hole to fill in attacking midfield. They ultimately chose to replace experience with youth, completing the signing of 18-year-old Karetsas from Belgian club Genk.
Greece have several exciting talents on their hands, and Karetsas may well be the cream of the crop. The youngest goalscorer in the history of the Greek national team, as well as the Belgian top flight, he amassed 18 assists across all competitions in 2025/26 and could be the creative spark BVB require to challenge Bayern at the top of the table.
Finding players who can create goals has been an important objective for Dortmund this summer, and in Veerman, they have found one of the best. A 16-time Netherlands international, he racked up 48 assists across the last four Eredivisie seasons, including 14 last year.
Very much a midfield specialist, he should slot in nicely alongside Felix Nmecha in the middle of the park. This will be his first taste of football outside his homeland, but at 27, he should be able to adapt to the new demands.
Not content with signing one Greek youngster, Dortmund snapped up Karetsas’ equally talented compatriot, Konstantelias, to give Niko Kovač even more options in the middle. In contrast to his national team colleague, the 23-year-old is more of a goalscorer than a playmaker, netting 14 times across all competitions last season.
He started this campaign on fire too, scoring three times in four UEFA Europa League qualifiers for PAOK before moving to Dortmund. After watching Greece tear Scotland apart in the Nations League last year, legendary coach Sir Alex Ferguson compared Konstantelias and Karetsas to Paul Scholes and David Beckham – seeing the two new boys link up should be a mouth-watering prospect for BVB fans.
Looking to replicate their penchant for buying top young talents with room to grow, Dortmund have brought another teenager through the door in Lerma. Signed in 2024, the Black-Yellows have had to wait until he turned 18 to bring him into the fold, although that at least allowed him to continue to pick up regular minutes in his homeland at Independiente del Valle.
Independiente have earned a reputation for developing the best young Ecuadorian talent, with Moisés Caicedo, Piero Hincapié and Willian Pacho all coming through their system on the way to becoming stars in Europe. Dortmund will hope Lerma, who is an attacking midfielder, can follow in their footsteps.
Dortmund have worked not only to improve their attack, but also to reinforce their defence. To do so, they acquired Gadou from Red Bull Salzburg in an attempt to give stability and strength to the heart of their back four.
A graduate of Paris Saint-Germain’s famed academy, Gadou made the bold move not to sign a professional contract at the club, instead choosing to go to Austria to earn more playing time and speed up his progress. Standing at 1.95m, he has the physical attributes to bully opposition forwards, which he may need to do immediately as Dortmund start the season without Emre Can and Nico Schlotterbeck.
Left-back Prates completes Dortmund’s incoming business so far this summer. Another teenager, he joins from Brazilian outfit Cruzeiro, where he made 18 senior appearances before swapping Belo Horizonte for the Ruhr.
His most impressive displays have come on the international stage. At the age of 16, he started five of Brazil’s six games as they won the U17 Copa America last year, with all of his outings coming at centre-back. During that run, Brazil conceded just three times and kept as many clean sheets. Given his relative inexperience, he is likely to be one for the future, but he remains a prospect to keep an eye on.
