Lisa Baum, 19 years old and 30 goals: Arsenal lead the race for the summer’s most coveted forward
The European women’s football summer market will stir up big names – Alexia Putellas, Sam Kerr, Mary Earps, Georgia Stanway, Ona Batlle and Mapi León, among others. But it is a young German of Tanzanian origin who is drawing the attention of practically all the continent’s big clubs: Lisa Baum, a 19-year-old forward for RB Leipzig, is one step away from taking the biggest leap of her career.
A season that did not go unnoticed
Baum ended last season as Leipzig’s top scorer in the Frauen-Bundesliga: six goals and two assists in 23 games as a starter. The numbers may seem modest at first glance, but the context changes everything. The club finished tenth in the league – and she still ranked among the seven leaders in assists across the entire competition. Very few teammates played more minutes than she did.
Her pace, her ability with both feet and her instinct for showing up at the right moment caught the eye. Clubs such as Barcelona, Lyon, Bayern Munich, Manchester United and London City Lionesses are following her situation closely. But, according to available information, it is Arsenal who lead the race.
The story behind the player
Born in Tanzania, the daughter of a German father and a Tanzanian mother, Baum arrived in Germany at the age of four. She grew up kicking a ball with her brother Dennis – who died in a traffic accident at 17. She carries his initials on her boots and a bracelet with his name and a remembrance phrase. “That way, he is always with me”, she once said.
She came through the youth ranks of Hamburg and signed her first professional contract at just 15 years old. She was a key part of the club’s promotion to the Frauen-Bundesliga – something that had not happened since 2012 – before transferring to Leipzig as a free agent last summer. With the German national team, she gathered appearances at under-16, under-17 and under-20 level, where she played all five games of the youth World Cup. Today she is a frequent presence in the under-23s, even being the youngest in the group.
Why Arsenal makes sense – and what the risks are
The Gunners lost important players on the wings and need to reinforce that area. The playing style of coach Renee Slegers, who tends to rotate the flanks and gradually give space to newcomers, could be exactly the environment Baum needs to adapt without excessive pressure. Smilla Holmberg’s recent development at the club is a positive sign that the integration process has improved.
Even so, the deal is not done. Barcelona and Lyon – finalists in the last Champions League – have the structure, history and appeal to turn the head of any young talent. Manchester United and London City could offer more minutes from the outset. The final decision has not yet come.
What is known is that Baum thinks long term. She ruled out next summer’s World Cup as an immediate goal and pointed to the 2029 Euros, to be held on German soil, as the main objective. “My goal is not to be a star. Above all, I want to be happy with what I do”, she said. That cool head, combined with the talent already on display, is exactly the type of profile that big clubs rarely let slip away.
