Michael Ballack (born 26 September 1976) is a German football midfielder who plays for Chelsea of the English Premier League and is the captain of the German national team. He is among the top goal scorers in the history of his international team. Ballack has worn the number 13 shirt for every team he has played for except for 1. FC Kaiserslautern. He was selected as one of FIFA's 100 Greatest Living Players, and the UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year in 2002. He has won the German Footballer of the Year award three times 2002, 2003 and 2005.

Ballack began his career as a youth at Chemnitzer FC, his local team, and made his professional debut in 1995. Although the team were relegated in his first season, his performances in the Regionalliga the following season led to a transfer to Kaiserslautern in 1997. He won the Bundesliga in his first season at the club; his first major honour. He became a first team regular in 1998–99 season and also earned his first senior national cap for Germany. He moved to Bayer Leverkusen for €4.1 million in 1999. The 2002 season saw him win a slew of runners-up medals: Bayer Leverkusen finished second in the Bundesliga, German Cup, UEFA Champions League and Germany lost to Brazil in the 2002 World Cup Final.

A €12.9 million move to Bayern Munich led to further honours: the team won the Bundesliga and German Cup double in 2003, 2005 and 2006. Ballack had become a prolific goalscorer from midfield, scoring 58 goals for Bayern Munich between 2002 and 2006. He joined Premier League side Chelsea in mid-2006 and won his first English honours, the FA Cup and Football League Cup, in his first season at the club. Injury ruled out much of 2007 but he returned the following season, helping Chelsea reach their first ever Champions League Final.

Internationally, Ballack has played in the European Championships in 2000, 2004 and 2008, and the FIFA World Cup in 2002 and 2006. Jürgen Klinsmann appointed him captain of the national team in 2004. He captained his country in the Euro 2008 Final but the team lost to Spain.