SSC Palmberg Schwerin ties young talent Celina Kleemann to the Bundesliga squad

SSC Palmberg Schwerin continues its development path and promotes the next player from its own system to the Bundesliga team with Celina Kleemann. The 18-year-old middle blocker has signed her first contract for the first league team – a step that seems consistent after stints in the 2nd Bundesliga North and initial appearances in the Women's Volleyball Bundesliga.

Kleemann comes from Neubrandenburg and moved to the federal training center in Schwerin in 2023. There, she continued to develop in the daily routine of the youth program and played for Schweriner SC II in the 2nd Bundesliga North.

She gained additional experience at the highest level in the 2025/26 season with a special playing permit at ETV Hamburg in the Women's Volleyball Bundesliga. According to the club and a report from the Volleyball Bundesliga, the agreement was finalized at the end of May.

From the federal training center to the first team

The personnel decision shows above all one thing: Schwerin is not strengthening from outside, but is promoting a middle blocker from its own development line. For Kleemann, this means the transition to a professional weekly rhythm with permanent first league training, competition in the middle block, and the demands of a full season in the squad.

At the same time, the 18-year-old still has to complete her school graduation: Kleemann is preparing for her Abitur at the sports high school in Schwerin. The fact that the contract comes about even before this step underlines how early the club assesses her prospects in the Bundesliga area.

Club management sees confirmation of youth work

Head coach Felix Koslowski sees Kleemann's path as the result of continuous development:

"Celina has developed excellently in recent years. In addition to her great talent, her ambition is particularly noteworthy. We are very pleased that once again a player from our own youth has made the leap to the first team. This also speaks for the outstanding work at the federal training center and in the youth sector."

Federal training center director Markus Pabst also focuses on the process behind the signing:

"Celina's path to the Bundesliga shows how our youth work functions – from talent scouting in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern to training at the federal training center and finally the step into a Bundesliga team. We are very pleased with her development and wish her all the best for the upcoming tasks."

Both statements aim at the same core: The club sees Kleemann's contract not only as a sporting squad decision, but as a reliable signal that the Schwerin development path leads all the way to the Bundesliga.

First complete Bundesliga season as the next step

For Kleemann herself, it is the biggest step in her career so far.

"This opportunity means an incredible amount to me and is at the same time a great honor. For me, it shows that hard work and all the extra training sessions can pay off. That I can now be part of SSC Palmberg Schwerin and learn daily from experienced players and coaches makes me very grateful," she says. She also explains that the step into the first league squad feels "surreal" because of her long-standing goal to one day play for SSC.

In sporting terms, the starting position is clear: After her previous stations at SC Neubrandenburg, in Schwerin and most recently at ETV Hamburg, the focus is now on the daily routine of a full Bundesliga season. Kleemann announces that she will use the challenge as a learning phase:

"I am really looking forward to the coming season, to new challenges and to developing myself further every day."

For SSC Palmberg Schwerin, this personnel decision is more than just a youth announcement: It fits into a strategy to make the permeability from the federal training center to the professional squad visible. For Celina Kleemann, the acid test now begins – not in individual appearances, but over an entire season in the Bundesliga environment.