SC Paderborn have officially confirmed the departure of attacking midfielder Mika Baur, with the 22-year-old completing a permanent move to Scottish champions Celtic. Baur has signed a contract through 2030 in Glasgow after several weeks of negotiations between the two clubs.
According to Sky UK, Celtic will pay Paderborn an initial €5.25m, with a further €2.75m available through bonus payments. The complete €8m package makes Baur the most expensive sale in Paderborn history, surpassing the €4.5m received from Wolfsburg for Aaron Zehnter last summer.
Get German Football Newsfirst covered Baur’s rise prominently following his late Germany U21 call-up last November. At that stage, the attacking midfielder had only recently broken through as a regular at Paderborn following an earlier loan spell with Dynamo Dresden.
The transfer represents an enormous return on Paderborn’s original investment in the Freiburg academy product.
Baur completes rapid rise from prospect to record sale
Baur joined Paderborn from Freiburg in 2024 before eventually establishing himself as an important member of Ralf Kettemann’s promotion-winning side. The 22-year-old made 33 league appearances during the 2025/26 campaign, scoring four goals and registering six assists as Paderborn earned promotion to the Bundesliga.
His performances also transformed his standing on the transfer market. By this summer, Baur’s estimated market value had risen to approximately €5m and interest arrived from several German clubs as well as Celtic.
GGFNreported in July that Celtic had agreed personal terms with Baur, with the player preferring a move to Glasgow despite reported interest from Schalke, Mainz and Werder Bremen. GGFN subsequently reported that negotiations had stalled over a relatively small valuation gap. Paderborn were holding firm at around €5m while Celtic’s offer stood at approximately £4m, or €4.7m.
Paderborn were even prepared to retain Baur for their Bundesliga campaign despite his contract entering its final year. Celtic ultimately returned with an improved package substantial enough to convince the newly-promoted Bundesliga side to sanction the transfer.
The attacking midfielder revealed that former Celtic winger Nicolas Kühn helped reinforce his desire to move to Glasgow. Baur, who shares an agency with Kühn, contacted the former Bayern and Leipzig prospect to ask about life at Celtic before completing the switch.
Paderborn plan to reinvest record fee
Baur’s departure leaves Paderborn without one of their most important creative players immediately before their return to the German top flight. Head coach Kettemann admitted before completion of the deal that losing Baur hurt both “sportingly and personally” and made clear that the club would have to react in the transfer market.
Sporting director Sebastian Lange has now confirmed that the proceeds from the sale will be used to strengthen the squad before the end of the window. For Baur, the move also provides an immediate opportunity to compete for trophies and potentially feature in the Champions League.
Sebastian Lange on Mika Baur’s departure
“As one of our key performers from the promotion season, we would actually have very much liked to keep Mika,” Lange said. “When he expressed his wish to move to Celtic Glasgow, we did not want to stand in his way, particularly given that he had less than one year remaining on his contract. We want to use the very good economic solution we have found to strengthen our squad further before the end of the transfer window.”
Mika Baur on joining Celtic
“This is absolutely the right step,” Baur said. “It is a great club and I have heard incredible things about the fans. Celtic are champions. I want to win something, and I believe this is exactly the right place for me. I had a good preseason with good matches and tough training sessions. So I am in good shape and ready to get started.”
Martin O’Neill on Mika Baur
“He is a player with excellent qualities and great technical ability,” Celtic head coach Martin O’Neill said. “He will play an important role in our build-up and is also extremely versatile. After my conversations with Mika, I can sense how excited he is about the challenges here at Celtic. I am sure he will be another excellent addition to the squad.”