German poker players: the all-time live money list
Germany has the deepest high-roller contingent in Europe. Where most national money lists are built from main events, Germany's top ten is built from super high rollers, and that produces figures no comparable country matches — two players past $47 million and eight more past $11 million.
| # | Player | Hometown | Cashes | Live earnings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Fedor Holz | Saarbrücken | — | $50,681,510 |
| 2 | Christoph Vogelsang | Sassenberg | — | $47,381,847 |
| 3 | Rainer Kempe | Berlin | — | $23,534,768 |
| 4 | Koray Aldemir | Berlin | — | $23,271,015 |
| 5 | Ole Schemion | Berlin | — | $22,250,266 |
| 6 | Dominik Nitsche | Minden | — | $21,680,167 |
| 7 | Hossein Ensan | Münster | — | $15,858,708 |
| 8 | Steffen Sontheimer | — | — | $13,739,392 |
| 9 | Leon Sturm | — | — | $13,699,137 |
| 10 | Manig Loeser | Bad Homburg | — | $12,249,675 |
| 11 | Christopher Nam Nguyen | — | — | $11,926,687 |
| 12 | Philipp Gruissem | — | — | $11,528,509 |
| 13 | Tobias Reinkemeier | Hamburg | — | $11,195,904 |
| 14 | Stefan Schillhabel | Düsseldorf | — | $10,327,497 |
| 15 | Leonard Maue | — | — | $9,763,297 |
| 16 | Pius Heinz | Cologne | — | $9,071,367 |
| 17 | Martin Finger | Vienna | — | $8,988,239 |
| 18 | Christopher Robin Frank | — | — | $7,742,248 |
| 19 | Marvin Guido Rettenmaier | Leonberg | — | $7,696,882 |
| 20 | Tom Fuchs | — | — | $7,373,300 |
| 21 | Jan Eric Schwippert | — | — | $7,115,690 |
| 22 | Jan-Peter Jachtmann | — | — | $5,728,486 |
| 23 | Niko Koop | — | — | $5,391,730 |
| 24 | Robert Heidorn | — | — | $5,063,345 |
| 25 | Tobias Schwecht | — | — | $5,005,294 |
How to read this list
The order is by total recorded live tournament earnings in US dollars. These figures come from two sources and carry different verification dates, which we keep visible rather than smoothing over: most were read from The Hendon Mob's Germany all-time money list on 29 September 2026, while the longest-standing profiles on the site — among them Fedor Holz, Koray Aldemir, Rainer Kempe, Ole Schemion and Dominik Nitsche — carry figures taken from Wikipedia and verified on 12 September 2026. Where a figure is older it goes back into our queue to be re-read against the primary source.
The top of the list
Fedor Holz leads at $50,681,510, with Christoph Vogelsang at $47,381,847. Then come Rainer Kempe at $23,534,768, Koray Aldemir at $23,271,015, Ole Schemion at $22,250,266 and Dominik Nitsche at $21,680,167.
Below that sits a second tier that would be the top of most countries' lists: Hossein Ensan at $15,858,708, Steffen Sontheimer at $13,739,392, Leon Sturm at $13,699,137, Manig Loeser at $12,249,675, Christopher Nam Nguyen at $11,926,687, Philipp Gruissem at $11,528,509 and Tobias Reinkemeier at $11,195,904.
The list then runs on through Stefan Schillhabel, Leonard Maue, Martin Finger, Pius Heinz, Christopher Robin Frank, Marvin Guido Rettenmaier, Tom Fuchs, Jan Eric Schwippert, Jan-Peter Jachtmann, Niko Koop, Robert Heidorn and Tobias Schwecht, every one of them above $5 million.
Why the German numbers are so large
The answer is buy-in size, not volume. The names at the top of this list made their money in events where a single entry costs more than most players' annual tournament budget, and where a deep run can be worth eight figures on its own. That cuts both ways: earnings of this kind are gross figures before entry costs and before any staking arrangement, and a super-high-roller career can show tens of millions in earnings on a thin margin. A money list records money won, never money kept.
That caveat matters more in Germany than almost anywhere else on this site, precisely because the headline numbers are so large. Read the ordering as earnings to date, not as a ranking of skill and certainly not as an indication of what anyone should expect to win.
Two different kinds of German career
The contrast inside the top ten is the interesting part. Holz, Vogelsang, Kempe, Aldemir, Schemion and Sontheimer are high-roller specialists. Hossein Ensan's $15,858,708 and Pius Heinz's $9,071,367 were built on the main-event route instead, which is the one a recreational player can actually recognise the shape of. Both routes reach eight and seven figures respectively; they are not the same game.
Where German players play
Germany is a licensed online market under the Gluecksspielstaatsvertrag 2021, with its own advertising and deposit rules, and a live scene spread across the state Spielbanken rather than concentrated in one venue. Our Germany market page sets out the legal position; the German venues page covers which Spielbanken actually deal player-versus-player poker as opposed to a house-banked table game, and the Germany tournaments page has the current schedules.
Earnings figures are attributed to the source we read each one from — The Hendon Mob or Wikipedia, as noted above.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the top German poker player by live earnings?
On our list, Fedor Holz, at $50,681,510 in recorded live tournament earnings, a figure verified on 12 September 2026. Christoph Vogelsang is second at $47,381,847, verified on 29 September 2026 against The Hendon Mob.
How many Germans have won more than $20 million live?
Six on our list: Fedor Holz, Christoph Vogelsang, Rainer Kempe, Koray Aldemir, Ole Schemion and Dominik Nitsche.
Why are German earnings higher than other European countries'?
Because Germany's top players are concentrated in super high roller events, where a single entry costs six figures and a deep run can be worth eight. The totals reflect buy-in size rather than a larger number of cashes.
Do these figures show profit?
No. A money list records gross tournament winnings before entry fees and before any staking or backing arrangement. It is not a measure of profit, and the distinction is largest for high-roller players.
Where do these figures come from?
Most were read from The Hendon Mob's Germany all-time money list on 29 September 2026. The longest-standing profiles carry figures taken from Wikipedia and verified on 12 September 2026.