Lars Bender

Early career

Bender played from 1993 to 1999 in the youth of the TSV Brannenburg, from 1999 to 2002 he was part of SpVgg Unterhaching youth teams. In summer 2002, he moved to the 1860 München youth team.

1860 Munich

In August 2006, Bender played his first game for 1860 Munich II in the Regionalliga Süd. In October, he was an unused substitute in the 1860 Munich senior team, and on 27 November 2006, when he was 17 years old, he made his professional debut at the home game against the TuS Koblenz in the 2. Bundesliga. In his first professional season, he played 13 matches, nine of them in the starting lineup. In this season, Bender won the Fritz-Walter trophy, ahead of then Mönchengladbach's Marko Marin and his twin brother, Sven Bender. In his second season, he was a regular player in the defensive midfield. On the first day of the new season, he scored his first goal. Bender started 2008–09 season again as a regular player. In the second league game against FSV Frankfurt on 3 October 2008, he took over the captaincy and was at 19 the youngest captain in the history of the 1860 Munich, but on 20 October he was seriously injured and after a number of injuries, he finished that season with only 15 matches played. In his three professional seasons played for 1860 München in the 2. Bundesliga, he played 58 games and scored four goals.

Bayer 04 Leverkusen

On 18 August 2009, Bender signed a three-year contract with Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen. He…

He was part of the German under-19 side that won the 2008 UEFA European Under-19 Football Championship. He and his twin Sven were named jointly as players of the tournament. Bender was chosen as part of Germany's 23-man squad for Euro 2012. He scored an 80th-minute winner in the final group game against Denmark. On 29 May 2013, Bender scored twice in a 4–2 win over Ecuador. He was named in Germany's provisional 30-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, but withdrew on 23 May following a thigh injury in training. Manager Joachim Löw said, "I feel personally very sorry for Lars because I know how much he wanted to be in Brazil, when a player is ruled out so close before a tournament then it is very disappointing for everyone". He played his last internationals for Germany in late 2014. Lars was part of the Germany Olympic football team for Rio along with his twin and Nils Petersen who were the three selected over 23 years old players, winning the silver medal.

Bender normally played as a defensive midfielder or right-back. He was primarily known for his all-action style and possessed good tackling, passing and ball interception.

In June 2022, the German Football Association appointed him as the new assistant coach of the German U-15 national team. Bender became manager of SV Wacker Burghausen in the German fourth division in January 2025, ahead of the 2025–26 season. In May 2026, he was appointed as head coach of the under-17s category of Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich ahead of the 2026–27 season.