Tuesday, February 3, 2026
Felipe Chavez trained with 1. FC Köln for the first time on Tuesday. The 18-year-old moved from FC Bayern Munich to the Billy Goats on Monday. The central midfielder could be in the FC squad for the first time and make his debut on Sunday against RB Leipzig.
Coach Lukas Kwasniok plans to use the left-footer in midfield at eight or ten. This means Chavez will compete for playing time with players like Denis Huseinbasic and Isak Johannesson, but also Florian Kainz and Luca Waldschmidt. The Peruvian international can also play on the right wing.
1. FC Köln signed Felipe Chávez on loan from FC Bayern Munich on deadline day. The billy goats also secured a purchase option for the 18-year-old. The central midfielder made his Bundesliga debut against VfL Wolfsburg in January and has made two short appearances so far. He also played eight times in the Bavarian Regional League for FC Bayern II.
“We are pleased that we were able to convince Felipe with our sporting perspective,” said sports director Thomas Kessler. “He has a very interesting profile, received excellent training at FC Bayern and has high footballing qualities. With his offensive skills he gives us additional variability in midfield.” FC Bayern is said to have secured a buyback option should the billy goats exercise the purchase option in the summer.
Dominique Heintz has not yet played a competitive game for 1. FC Köln in 2026. The central defender has been out since suffering a torn muscle fiber during training camp and had to watch the game against VfL Wolfsburg again. However, the 32-year-old was optimistic that he would return to team training soon. Heintz told “Sky” that he was making good progress with the rehab trainer and that he expected “it won’t be long” before he can get back into action.
