Willi Thomas Orbán (born 3 November 1992) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for and captains Bundesliga club RB Leipzig. Born in Kaiserslautern, Germany, he plays internationally for the Hungary national team, for whom he qualifies through his father.
Personal life
Orbán was born and grew up in Kaiserslautern, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany to a Hungarian father and a mother of Polish descent. However, his parents split up when he was two, leaving his mother to raise him and his sister, Sandra. Growing up, Orban said: "when I was a kid at home, I shot everything with my football. A few flower vases and bottles, nothing wild, but it was enough that Mama said: The boy has too much energy, we prefer to put it in a football club. Since she has done everything right." He revealed that his father was a karate master in his youth. Because of his Hungarian father, Orbán has a Hungarian passport. Orbán attended Heinrich Heine High School in Kaiserslautern. Outside of football, Orban is a fan of classical music and plays the violin.
Club career
1. FC Kaiserslautern
Orbán started his career in the 1. FC Kaiserslautern youth academy as a 4 year old and progressed through the ranks of the club's academy by playing for the club's U17 and U19 sides.
At the start of the 2011–12 season, Orbán was then promoted to 1. FC Kaiserslautern II squad. Shortly after, he was called up to the first team by Manager Marco Kurz. He made first-team debut in a match against Bayern Munich on 27 August 2011. But his return was short–lived when he suffered an injury that kept him out for a month. Despite this, he signed his first professional contract with the club, keeping him until 2014. Orbán received his first start against 1. FC Nürnberg on 26 November, deputising for suspended right back Florian Dick. Orbán made the team 6 times in the Bundesliga, but spent most of his time with the reserve team, 1. FC Kaiserslautern II, in the fourth tier, scoring three goals in 23 matches.
Orbán split the following season with the first team and the reserve team, but managed to break into the first team down the stretch, starting 4 of Kaiserslautern's final 5 matches in the 2012–13 2. Bundesliga. He scored his first goal with the first team in a 3–1 victory over Jahn Regebsburg on 12 May 2013. Orbán also started both legs of Kaiserslautern's promotion playoff against 1899 Hoffenheim as the club sought an immediate return to the Bundesliga. Kaiserslautern lost 5–2 on aggregate, remaining in the second division. At the end of the 2012–13 season, he made nine appearances and scoring once in all competitions.
The 2013–14 season saw Orbán's breakthrough by getting more playing time, establishing himself in the centre–back position. On 26 July 2013, he signed a new contract with the club, keeping him until 2016. Orbán then captained the side for the first time on 12 August 2013, starting the whole game, in a 2–1 loss against Greuther Fürth. In a follow–up match against Erzgebirge Aue, Orbán suffered a broken nose, but continued to play throughout the match, which he wore a mask. In mid–September, Orbán began playing in the defensive midfield position, though he played in the centre–back position as well. It wasn't until on 20 October 2013 when he scored his first goal for the club, in a 2–2 draw against Karlsruher SC. Two months later on 3 December 2013 in the round of 16 of the DFB-Pokal, Orbán scored and set up the second goal of the goal, in a 3–1 win over Union Berlin. His third goal for the side came on 26 March 2014, in a 1–1 draw against Arminia Bielefeld. In a match against FC St. Pauli on 11 April 2014, Orbán was sent–off for a second bookable offence, as 1. FC Kaiserslautern won 3–2. At the end of the 2013–14 season, he went on to make thirty–two appearances and scoring three times in all competitions.