You probably know his parents
This celebrity son plays in the youth ranks of a Bundesliga team
Updated May 24, 2026 – 9:26 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
During his youth career at VfB Stuttgart, he is on his way to becoming a professional footballer. His parents are real celebrities in Germany. You can find out who it is here.
The 17-year-old is attracting attention as a central defender in the U19 team at VfB Stuttgart. The young footballer, who moved from Viktoria Cologne to Swabia in the summer of 2024, is described by his father as follows: two-footed, fast, tall and with a strong header game.
And the father should know, because he once played as a left-back in his youth at VfB and also at AS Roma. However, he didn’t make it to become a professional footballer, but instead started out as a musician thanks to a casting show. And he also gained a lot of experience on TV. After numerous projects, he has been hosting a Saturday evening show named after him on ZDF since 2021.
The player’s mother is also a TV presenter. Like the rest of her family, she loves football – but her heart beats for the national team of her home country, Brazil.
But who is the young footballer with famous parents who could play for the national teams of Germany, Italy and Brazil? It is none other than Gabriel Zarrella, the son of Giovanni and Jana Ina.
Giovanni Zarrella raves about his son’s talent
Giovanni Zarrella wrote an emotional post on Instagram after his son signed the youth contract in Stuttgart. The ZDF star and musician wrote: “A heart of gold and the mentality of a lion. May God protect you in all your ways, my boy.”
In Tommi Schmitt’s football podcast “Copa TS”, Zarrella explained about his son Gabriel: “He brings a lot, a lot, so much, much, much more than I ever could. He has so much more talent. All the love for football that we have in this Zarrella family, plus talent, we all passed on to my boy.”
