Football: Borussia Dortmund to play Lion City Sailors in friendly in late November

Borussia Dortmund would use the mid-season World Cup break to travel to South-east Asia to play with local sides in each of Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam. PHOTO: EPA-EFE

SINGAPORE - Lion City Sailors announced on Wednesday (Sept 14) that they will host a friendly with eight-time German champions Borussia Dortmund.

The Singapore Premier League (SPL) champions said further details on the game, which will take place in late November, will be shared later this month.

On Monday, Dortmund revealed they would use the mid-season World Cup break to travel to South-east Asia from Nov 21 to Dec 1 to play with local sides in each of Singapore, Indonesia and Vietnam.

The Dortmund squad will likely be missing stars like German internationals Marco Reus, Niklas Sule and Julian Brandt, as well as England's Jude Bellingham - all set to feature at the Nov 20-Dec 18 World Cup in Qatar - but fans in Asean might still catch the likes of up-and-coming players like Turkish midfielder Salih Ozcan and 17-year-old prodigy Youssoufa Moukoko.

Persib Bandung and Persebaya Surabaya were yesterday announced as opponents for Dortmund in Indonesia.

Dortmund, who have had an office in Singapore since 2014, last visited the Republic in 2015 for a short trip when they held meet-and-greet sessions that sandwiched a friendly match at Johor Darul Takzim.

They had planned to return to play here in 2019 and 2020 in the International Champions Cup, but the tournament length was reduced and later stopped altogether due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Sailors, SPL champions in 2021, are aiming to retain their title this term but trail league leaders Albirex Niigata by three points with four matches left

Join ST's Telegram channel and get the latest breaking news delivered to you.