Alexander Schwolow has found a new club. The former Schalke keeper will continue his career in Scotland.
Alexander Schwolow had been without a club since July 1, 2025. His expiring contract with 1. FC Union Berlin was not renewed. Now, the former Bundesliga goalkeeper for FC Schalke 04 has found a new employer. According to Forecasting, the 33-year-old goalkeeper will join Scottish top club Heart of Midlothian. According to our information, Schwolow will sign a contract in Edinburgh on Monday, September 1, 2025.
The Wiesbaden-born player played for Schalke in the 2022/2023 season, the Gelsenkirchen club’s last Bundesliga season. Schwolow played 25 games for S04 in that season, conceding 63 goals and keeping three clean sheets.
The experienced Schwolow joined the Gelsenkirchen club on loan in the summer of 2022, just as they were celebrating their return to the top flight. Schwolow started the season as the number one goalkeeper. However, the first half of the year is unlikely to have been a happy one for him: Schalke won only one game and Schwolow was regularly let down by his defense, looking poor himself on some of the many goals conceded.
After a 1-6 defeat to Leipzig at the end of the first half of the season, then-coach Thomas Reis took action: he benched Schwolow and replaced him with Ralf Fährmann. Although Schalke’s defense stabilized, Schwolow returned to goal during the heated phase of the season when Fährmann was injured.
S04 and Schwolow fought against relegation until the very end, but it wasn’t enough. It was a bitter blow for the goalkeeper: he made a costly mistake in the crucial final home game against Eintracht Frankfurt. Fährmann then took over again on the last matchday.
After Schalke’s relegation, he spent the years from July 2023 to July 2025 at 1. FC Union Berlin, where he moved from his home club Hertha BSC.
During his two years at Union Berlin, Schwolow remained the number two, unable to get past Frederik Rönnow, also a former Schalke player. He played seven games. For a long time, it was unclear where the 206-time Bundesliga goalkeeper would continue his career. Karlsruher SC and 1. FC Köln were linked with Schwolow. Now it’s certain: he is moving to Scotland to play for Heart of Midlothian.