Michael Opitz

Michael Opitz

Opitz in 1987
Personal information
Date of birth	(1962-07-16)16 July 1962
Place of birth	Finnentrop, North Rhine-Westphalia, West Germany
Date of death	20 January 2026(2026-01-20) (aged 63)
Place of death	Finnentrop, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
Height	1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position	Defensive midfielder
Youth career
1976–1979	Schalke 04
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
1979–1988	Schalke 04	224	(12)
1988–1990	Sportfreunde Siegen
International career
1982	West Germany U-21	2	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals

Michael Opitz (16 July 1962 – 20 January 2026) was a German footballer who played as a defensive midfielder for Schalke 04.¹ He completed 158 matches in the Bundesliga and made 66 appearances in the 2. Bundesliga for the club.

Opitz died on 20 January 2026, at the age of 63.²