{{Short description|Association football player (born 1993)}} {{Use dmy dates|date=August 2024}} {{Infobox football biography |name = Sandra Starke |image = Sandra_Starke_20190505.jpg |image_size = 300px |caption = Starke training with SC Freiburg in 2019 |fullname = Sandra Starke<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fifadata.com/document/FU17W/2010/pdf/FU17W_2010_SquadLists.pdf |title=FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup Trinidad and Tobago 2010 – List of Players: Germany |publisher=FIFA |page=4 |date=6 September 2010 |access-date=18 February 2022 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191104193102/http://www.fifadata.com/document/FU17W/2010/pdf/FU17W_2010_SquadLists.pdf |archive-date=4 November 2019}}</ref> |birth_date = {{birth date and age|1993|7|31|df=y}} |birth_place = Windhoek, Namibia |death_date = |death_place = |height = 1.65 m |position = Forward |currentclub = RB Leipzig |clubnumber = 13 |youthyears1 = |youthclubs1 = |years1 = 2009–2013 |clubs1 = Turbine Potsdam II |caps1 = 81 |goals1 = 36 |years2 = 2012 |clubs2 = Turbine Potsdam |caps2 = 1 |goals2 = 0 |years3 = 2013–2021 |clubs3 = SC Freiburg |caps3 = 152 |goals3 = 41 |years4 = 2017–2018 |clubs4 = SC Freiburg II |caps4 = 4 |goals4 = 0 |years5 = 2021–2023 |clubs5 = VfL Wolfsburg |caps5 = 19 |goals5 = 3 |years6 = 2021–2023 |clubs6 = VfL Wolfsburg II |caps6 = 5 |goals6 = 1 |years7 = 2023 |clubs7 = → Chicago Red Stars (loan) |caps7 = 7 |goals7 = 0 |years8 = 2023– |clubs8 = RB Leipzig |caps8 = 42 |goals8 = 3 |totalcaps = |totalgoals = |nationalyears1 = 2009 |nationalteam1 = Germany U16 |nationalcaps1 = 4 |nationalgoals1 = 1 |nationalyears2 = 2011–2012 |nationalteam2 = Germany U19 |nationalcaps2 = 2 |nationalgoals2 = 0 |nationalyears3 = 2019– |nationalteam3 = Germany |nationalcaps3 = 6 |nationalgoals3 = 1 |club-update = 17:04, 9 February 2026 (UTC) |nationalteam-update = 05:12, 16 June 2021 (UTC) }} '''Sandra Starke''' (born 31 July 1993) is a Namibian-born German footballer who plays as a forward for Frauen-Bundesliga club RB Leipzig and the Germany national team.
She was born in Windhoek, Namibia to a Namibian-born German father and a Dutch mother.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.fc-hansa.de/news/glueckwunsch-zum-geburtstag-manfred-starke.html|title=Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag, Manfred Starke!|language=de|date=21 February 2012|accessdate=1 September 2019|publisher=Hansa Rostock}}</ref>
== Club career == Sandra Starke was born and raised in Namibia and came to Germany at age twelve. On the recommendation of a friend, she went to the "Sportschule Friedrich-Ludwig Jahn", the sports boarding school of the Turbine Potsdam.<ref>{{Cite news |title=Fußballinternat: Eine wie Podolski |language=de-DE |work=Der Tagesspiegel Online |url=https://www.tagesspiegel.de/sport/eine-wie-podolski-6814969.html |access-date=2023-05-30 |issn=1865-2263}}</ref> From 2006 to 2010 she played in the youth teams and won the German B junior championship in 2008, 2009, and 2010. In 2010 she got promoted to the professional squad, but she was mainly used for the second team in the 2. Frauen-Bundesliga North.
Her first-team debut came on 23 November 2012.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2012-12-15 |title=Sandra Starke feiert Debüt in der ersten Bundesliga |url=http://www.az.com.na/sport/sandra-starke-feiert-debt-in-der-ersten-bundesliga.160613.php |access-date=2023-05-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121215010408/http://www.az.com.na/sport/sandra-starke-feiert-debt-in-der-ersten-bundesliga.160613.php |archive-date=2012-12-15 }}</ref> In the summer of 2013, Starke signed a contract with SC Freiburg. On 14 September 2013 (second matchday) she scored her first Bundesliga goal in the 1–2 defeat in the away game against Bayern Munich with the goal in the 51st minute.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-10-20 |title=Sandra Starke verstärkt SC-Frauen {{!}} SC Freiburg |url=http://www.scfreiburg.com/teams/frauen-m%C3%A4dchen/meldungen/sandra-starke-verst%C3%A4rkt-sc-frauen |access-date=2023-05-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020215536/http://www.scfreiburg.com/teams/frauen-m%C3%A4dchen/meldungen/sandra-starke-verst%C3%A4rkt-sc-frauen |archive-date=2014-10-20 }}</ref> In 2017–18 season, Starke was injured<ref>{{Cite web |title=Wolfsburg im Spitzenspiel gegen Potsdam |url=http://www.dfb.de/news/detail/wolfsburg-im-spitzenspiel-gegen-potsdam-175904/?no_cache=1&cHash=9db5ccd6da2ca2848ae8236e97fb312b |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=DFB – Deutscher Fußball-Bund e.V. |language=de}}</ref> but was able to play again in the 2018–19 season and extended her contract with SC Freiburg in February 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-03-25 |title=Sandra Starke verlängert ihren Vertrag beim Sport-Club {{!}} SC Freiburg |url=https://www.scfreiburg.com/node/23716 |access-date=2023-05-30 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190325150752/https://www.scfreiburg.com/node/23716 |archive-date=2019-03-25 }}</ref>
In February 2021, Starke signed a three-year contract with VfL Wolfsburg until mid-2024.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Vierter Neuzugang steht fest |url=https://www.vfl-wolfsburg.de/newsdetails/news-detail/detail/news/vierter-neuzugang-steht-fest/ |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=VfL Wolfsburg |language=de}}</ref> In April 2023, she joined Chicago Red Stars on loan until 30 June 2023.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Leihe zum Partnerverein |url=https://www.vfl-wolfsburg.de/newsdetails/news-detail/detail/news/leihe-zum-partnerverein |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=VfL Wolfsburg |language=de}}</ref>
In July 2023, Starke signed a contract with RB Leipzig until summer 2025.<ref>{{Cite web |last=RBLive/msc |title=Erster Neuzugang vom VfL Wolfsburg: Sandra Starke verstärkt die Frauen |url=https://rblive.de/frauen/rb-leipzig-nach-dem-aufstieg-erster-neuzugang-vom-vfl-wolfsburg-sandra-starke-verstaerkt-die-frauen-3590211 |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=rblive.de |language=de}}</ref>
== International career == For the U16 national team, she played four international matches in the Nordic Cup tournament, for the first time on 29 June 2009 in Hagfors / Sweden in a 3–0 victory over the selection of the Netherlands, when she came on in the 67th minute for Sofia Nati, most recently on July 4, 2009 in the 2–1 defeat by the Swedes. Her only international goal came on 30 June 2009 in Forshaga, 1–0 after 15 minutes in a 6–0 win over the Icelandic team. Starke was in the squad for the U17 national team for the 2010 World Cup, but did not play. Most recently, from 2011 to 2012, she made five appearances for the U19 national team. She made her debut for the senior team in a 5–0 win over Greece on 8 October 2019, scoring her first senior international goal with a 3–0 goal in the 65th minute. She had come on for Linda Dallmann in the second half.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Greece vs. Germany – 8 October 2019 – Soccerway |url=https://int.soccerway.com/matches/2019/10/08/europe/uefa-womens-championship/greece/germany/3011032/ |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=int.soccerway.com}}</ref>
== Personal life == On the occasion of World Diabetes Day on 14 November 2020, Starke made her type 1 diabetes public, which was first diagnosed a few years earlier.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Zeitung |first=Badische |date=2020-11-13 |title=Diagnose Diabetes: So gehen Freiburgs OB Horn und Fußballerin Starke mit ihrer Krankheit um |url=https://www.badische-zeitung.de/diagnose-diabetes-so-gehen-freiburgs-ob-horn-und-fussballerin-starke-mit-ihrer-krankheit-um |access-date=2023-05-30 |website=Badische Zeitung |language=de}}</ref> She is the sister of Namibian international footballer Manfred Starke.<ref>{{Cite web |date=25 March 2015 |title=Broken windows and a sibling rivalry |url=https://www.fifa.com/news/broken-windows-and-a-sibling-rivalry-2578338 |accessdate=5 January 2020 |website=FIFA}}{{dead link|date=October 2021|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref>
==Career statistics==
===Club=== {{updated|26 March 2023}}{{citation needed|date=April 2026}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competition |- !rowspan="2"|Club !rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="3"|League !colspan="2"|DFB-Pokal !colspan="2"|Continental !colspan="2"|Total |- !Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="5"|Turbine Potsdam II |2009–10 |rowspan="4"|2. Frauen-Bundesliga |20||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||20||1 |- |2010–11 |18||9||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||18||9 |- |2011–12 |22||14||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||22||14 |- |2012–13 |21||12||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||21||12 |- !colspan="2"|Total !81!!36!!0!!0!!0!!0!!81!!36 |- |rowspan="3"|Turbine Potsdam |2010–11 |rowspan="2"|Frauen-Bundesliga |0||0||3||0||colspan="2"|—||3||0 |- |2012–13 |1||0||0||0||0||0||1||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total !1!!0!!3!!0!!0||0!!4!!0 |- |rowspan="9"|SC Freiburg |2013–14 |rowspan="8"|Frauen-Bundesliga |17||6||4||2||colspan="2"|—||21||8 |- |2014–15 |21||11||4||2||colspan="2"|—||25||13 |- |2015–16 |21||5||3||1||colspan="2"|—||24||6 |- |2016–17 |21||3||4||1||colspan="2"|—||25||4 |- |2017–18 |8||1||2||0||colspan="2"|—||10||1 |- |2018–19 |21||6||5||5||colspan="2"|—||26||11 |- |2019–20 |22||5||2||2||colspan="2"|—||24||7 |- |2020–21 |21||4||4||2||colspan="2"|—||25||6 |- !colspan="2"|Total !152!!41!!28!!15!!0!!0!!180!!56 |- |SC Freiburg II |2017–18 |2. Frauen-Bundesliga |4||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||4||0 |- |rowspan="3"|VfL Wolfsburg |2021–22 |rowspan="2"|Frauen-Bundesliga |18||3||2||0||2||0||22||3 |- |2022–23 |1||0||1||0||colspan="2"|—||2||0 |- !colspan="2"|Total !19!!3!!3!!0!!2!!0!!24!!3 |- |rowspan="3"|VfL Wolfsburg II |2021–22 |rowspan="2"|2. Frauen-Bundesliga |1||0||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||1||0 |- |2022–23 |4||1||colspan="2"|—||colspan="2"|—||4||1 |- !colspan="2"|Total !5!!1!!0!!0!!0!!0!!5!!1 |- !colspan="3"|Career total !262!!81!!34!!15!!2!!0!!298!!96 |}
===International=== {{updated|18 September 2021|<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://datencenter.dfb.de/profil/222734|title=Sandra Starke|publisher=dfb.de|date=18 September 2021}}</ref>}}
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |- !colspan=3|Germany |- !Year!!Apps!!Goals |- |2019||2||1 |- |2020||1||0 |- |2021||3||0 |- !Total!!6!!1 |}
:''Scores and results list Germany's goal tally first, score column indicates score after Starke goal.''
{| class="wikitable" |- ! No. !! Date !! Location !! Opponent !! Score !! Result !! Competition |- |align=center| 1 || 8 October 2019 || Kleanthis Vikelidis Stadium, Thessaloniki, Greece || {{fbw|GRE}} ||align=center| 3–0 ||align=center| 5–0 || UEFA Women's Euro 2021 qualifying |}
== Honours == * German Cup: Finalist 2019, Winner 2022 * German Champion: 2022 * German B Junior Champion: 2008, 2009, 2010
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * [https://datencenter.dfb.de/datencenter/personen/sandra-starke/spielerin Germany player profile] * {{Soccerway|97272}} * {{WorldFootball.net}}
{{RB Leipzig (women) squad}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Starke, Sandra}} Category:1993 births Category:Living people Category:Women's association football forwards Category:German women's footballers Category:Germany women's international footballers Category:German people of Namibian descent Category:German people of Dutch descent Category:Frauen-Bundesliga players Category:1. FFC Turbine Potsdam players Category:SC Freiburg (women) players Category:VfL Wolfsburg (women) players Category:RB Leipzig (women) players Category:2. Frauen-Bundesliga players Category:Namibian women's footballers Category:21st-century Namibian sportswomen Category:Footballers from Windhoek Category:White Namibian people Category:Namibian people of German descent Category:Namibian people of Dutch descent Category:21st-century German sportswomen