AUDIO: Downs move to HSV perfect (1 min)
As of: January 7, 2026 2:19 p.m
Hamburger SV has responded to its storm problems and signed US national striker Damion Downs. The 21-year-old is coming to HSV from English second division soccer team FC Southampton on loan until the end of the Bundesliga season.
“With Damion, we closed a vacant position in the squad early in this transfer window. He knows the Bundesliga and brings an interesting mix of quality and development potential. He is a vertical center forward who has a good mix of size, speed and depth,” said sports director Claus Costa: “With his strengths in the transition game and his boxing presence, he fits very well into the requirements profile that we have developed in close coordination with the coaching team.”
Hoping to take part in the World Cup with the US team
Just last summer, Downs moved from 1. FC Köln to the relegated Premier League club for around ten million euros, but was recently only a substitute there. In order to improve his chances of participating in the World Cup with the US team, the striker, who was born in the Lower Franconian district of Schweinfurt, is now moving back to Germany. On Tuesday he completed the medical check in Hamburg and signed his new contract.
“I had good conversations with those responsible for the sport, in which I developed a good feeling for the task,” said the German-American. HSV’s Bundesliga competitors such as Werder Bremen are also said to have been interested in the six-time US international.
HSV worries in attack
The Hamburg team needs immediate reinforcements in attack. Captain Yussuf Poulsen is constantly struggling with injuries and is not an option for 90 minutes. Robert Glatzel still needs some time after his torn muscle fiber and Ransford Königsdörffer is running behind his form.
So it’s quite possible that Downs will find himself in Hamburg’s starting line-up in the away game at SC Freiburg on Saturday (3.30 p.m., in the NDR Livecenter). In Southampton, the 21-year-old failed to score in eleven games, but the 1.92 meter tall attacker knows how to do it. Downs scored 13 times in 42 competitive games for 1. FC Köln.
