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Brandon Joel Gaetano Borrello (; born 25 July 1995) is an Australian professional association football player who plays as a right winger for A-League Men club Western Sydney Wanderers and the Australia national team.
Borrello moved to Brisbane in 2011 where he played for Brisbane Roar, for whom he made his A-League Men debut in November 2013. In the following seasons, he established himself in the first-team and as one of Brisbane's most potent attackers, helping his side towards qualifications in both the A-League Finals Series and AFC Champions League. Borrello eventually moved to Germany where he remained for 5 years before moving back to Australia with Western Sydney Wanderers in July 2022.
Borrello's initial football development took place at Salisbury Villa and later continued at the Royal Park-based Western Strikers, where he joined at the age of nine. Despite being part of the South Australian Sports Institute (SASI) program, in 2011, Borrello's family relocated to Brisbane when Borrello was offered a soccer scholarship at the Queensland Academy of Sport that provided top-tier training facilities and coaching to further his development as a player.
In his high school years, Borrello attended St Columban's College and graduated from the college in 2013.
Ahead of the 2014–15 season, Borrello would find a place within the first team following the absence of Besart Berisha who was out with an injury. On 8 November 2014, Borrello scored his first goal for the club where his lost 3–1 at home to Sydney FC. On 4 March 2015, he scored his first AFC Champions League goal, netting the only goal in the 2nd minute, in a 1–0 win over Urawa Reds, handing them their second consecutive defeat in the group stage. Four days later, Borrello scored the winning goal, his second that same week, in a league tie against Western Sydney Wanderers where he contributed to a 1–0 victory to put his club on 6th place in the league table and into finals contention. Following his decisive performances, Borrello was named March Nominee for Young Footballer of the Year.
Borrello was named as one out of five Young Footballer of the Year nominees at the end of the league season, but lost the award to Adelaide United's midfielder James Jeggo.
On 27 December, Borrello scored his 5th goal of the season in a 3–1 win over Melbourne City. Following the match, Borrello didn't score for the remainder of the campaign and finished the season with 5 goals in 22 appearances. He missed out on the Young Footballer of the Year award for a second time, coming short of teammate Jamie Maclaren. On 10 February 2016, Borrello signed a two-year contract (his first professional contract) with Brisbane Roar. In the subsequent season, following a poor league start due to Maclaren's dip in form, Borrello scored the winning goal in Brisbane's 2–1 win against Perth Glory on 30 October 2016, to give his side their second win out of five rounds. However, for the next months, he found himself sitting on the bench, due to hamstring problems, leading him to lose a starting place within the squad.
After recovering by December, on 21 January 2017, Borrello retained his starting place and continued to contribute, earning Man of the match after assisting the winner to Maclaren, in a crucial 1–0 win over Wellington Phoenix to bring them eight points behind Melbourne Victory who sat second. His performance was described as brilliant by Aloisi, whilst Borrello afterwards stated it was “just a snippet of what’s to come”. On 30 January, in an AFC Champions League play-off match, Borrello scored a record 4 goals, the most scored by any A-League player, in a 6–0 thrashing against Global at Suncorp Stadium. In the next round, Borrello provided an assist and the winning goal, most notably in Carlos Tevez's debut, in a 2–0 away victory over Shanghai Shenhua, helping his side qualify to the group stage. He was nominated in January 2017 for the Young Footballer of the Year award for the 2016–17 season.
It wasn't until 9 September 2017 that Borrello made his club debut, coming off the bench in the 57th minute in a 2–1 loss against Holstein Kiel at Holstein-Stadion. Despite making his debut, Borrello struggled to find consistent playing time under manager Jeff Strasser and only managed to make three appearances by the end of October, leading him to be delegated to the U23 team. Borrello's fortunes changed when he replaced Nicklas Shipnoski in the starting lineup and earned his first start for the club on 3 November 2017 against VFL Bochum.
Under new manager Michael Frontzeck, following the departure of Strasser due to health problems, Borrello established himself as a regular starter within his system and on 28 February 2018, he scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 away win against Darmstadt. The following match on 2 March, Borrello showcased an outstanding individual display against Union Berlin, when he scored the opening goal in the fifth minute, a volley from outside the box, putting his side 1–0 up. Later in the match, he won his side a penalty and provided an assist to contribute to a thrilling 4–3 victory for Kaiserslautern. His impressive performances drew attention, and he was even considered a potential candidate for the 2018 World Cup Australia squad by the media. However, he was ultimately overlooked by coach Bert van Marwijk in the final selection.
On 24 April, during a training session, Borrello suffered a cruciate ligament rupture in his right knee that ruled him out for the remainder of the season. Following Kaiserslautern's relegation to the 3. Liga (the third division of German football) at the end of the season, Borrello looked to depart the club and finished his campaign with 3 goals and 8 assists in 19 league appearances.
The following season marked Borrello's return to training with the first team, and in a symbolic gesture of his comeback, he shaved off his trademark beard. On 17 August, he finally made his long-awaited Bundesliga debut, starting in a 3–1 win against Mainz. In the early stages of the season, Borrello made 7 league appearances for SC Freiburg, with 4 of them being starts, helping the team accumulate 26 points in the league table. However, due to his relative inexperience and the need for further improvement at the top level, Borrello was eventually dropped from the squad by coach Christian Streich. Nonetheless, Borrello remained with the team for the 2020–2021 season and participated in the training camp in Austria to gain first-team experience before the possibility of loan offers was considered as part of his development.
On 7 March 2021, Borrello played a crucial role, contributing with an assist in a 3–1 victory against Nürnberg to help his side close the gap for a top 4 finish. This performance marked his first significant contribution after initially finding it challenging to adapt as a substitute. Subsequently, on 3 May, Borrello scored his first goal for the club just five minutes after coming on as a substitute in a 3–2 win against Karlsruher SC at the Merkur Spiel-Arena. Fortuna Düsseldorf finished the season in 5th place, with Borrello's performances excelling during the final phase of the campaign. Borrello returned to SC Freiburg following the expiration of his loan on 24 May.
After promising performances in his first three starts for the club, Borrello was voted Man of the match after an impressive display in a DFP Pokal tie against Paderborn. On 10 August, he suffered an injury during a training duel, leading him to seek immediate medical attention. After undergoing a thorough examination at the Carl Gustav Carus University Hospital in Dresden, he was diagnosed with a Jones fracture on his left foot. He made his return on 21 November, in a 1–0 win against his former side Fortuna Düsseldorf at Rudolf-Harbig-Stadion.
In a match against Heidenheim on 19 February 2022, Borrello came on as a substitute in the 46th minute but was forced to leave the field in the 84th minute due to behavioural issues on the pitch. His coach, Alexander Schmidt, openly criticised him for his unprofessionalism, stating, "I'm not talking around it," adding, "he had the wrong shoes. You can't accept that, he should have gone out and changed his shoes." On 24 May 2022, Borrello played in the relegation play-off final against his former club, Kaiserslautern where Dynamo Dresden suffered relegation as Kaiserslautern won the tie 2–0 on aggregate. Following the club's relegation, Borrello was among the four players who departed the team just one week after the relegation fixture.
However, Borrello's season was not without controversy. Following a 1–0 defeat to Sydney FC in the Sydney Derby on 11 February 2023, he expressed frustration with his team's performance, particularly highlighting his belief that Sydney FC did not deserve the win and commented towards the end, "It’s hard not to sound like a sore loser, but bang average". His comments drew criticism from Sydney FC fans but garnered attention from the media who praised it.
On 25 February, Borrello scored his 6th goal in 9 appearances in the Wanderers' 4–0 victory over Macarthur FC. In the following match against Macarthur on 8 April, he scored twice, including a 95th-minute brace that brought his goal tally for the season to 10. The game ended in a 2–2 draw at Campbelltown Stadium. On 21 April, Borrello scored in his 100th A-League appearance in a convincing 4–0 win against Wellington Phoenix at CommBank Stadium.
Borrello finished his debut season as the top goalscorer for the Wanderers, registering 13 goals and 5 assists. His performances earned him recognition at the Western Sydney Wanderers' end-of-year ceremony, where he received six awards, including the Rod Allen Award for Media Player of the Year, the Isuzu UTE A-League Members Player of the Year, the Isuzu UTE A-League Golden Boot, and the Isuzu UTE A-League Player of the Year. On 5 June, Borrello received the Alex Tobin Medal for the 2022–23 season coming out on top ahead of Melbourne City's Mathew Leckie and Sydney FC's marquee man Joe Lolley.
Borrello's second campaign with the Wanderers was impacted by injury, with a foot fracture sustained during the Sydney Derby in round 5 ruling him out for 3 months.
Borrello's next international appearance came for the Australia U23 team, initially during a training camp, before the AFC U-23 Championship in 2016. He made two appearances in the tournament as Australia finished in 3rd place, mirroring Borrello's previous Asian tournament experience, this time falling short of qualifying for the Olympics.
After a 13-month absence from international duty, Borrello made his return to Australia in the two friendly matches against Ecuador. In the first match on 24 March, he came on in the second half before Australia won 3–1 at CommBank Stadium. In the second match on 28 March 2023, he scored his first international goal, opening the scoring for his team before succumbing to a 2–1 defeat to La Tri at Marvel Stadium.
Shortly after Borrello's return to the national team, he sustained a fractured foot while playing for Western Sydney Wanderers, ruling him out for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup.
During his time with Brisbane Roar, Borrello was often positioned on the right side of attack in a 4-3-3 formation. He excelled in this role, utilising his speed and composure in front of goal to contribute to the team's attacking play. When deployed on the wing, Borrello showcases his dribbling skills by cutting inside from the right and delivering accurate crosses to create scoring opportunities for his teammates.
In his stint with SC Freiburg, Borrello initially played as a right-winger before being converted to a no. 10 role. This versatility demonstrates his ability to adapt to different positions and contribute effectively to the team's style of play. Similarly, during his loan spell with Fortuna Düsseldorf, Borrello predominantly operated as a right winger, utilising his attacking prowess from wide areas.
Upon joining Western Sydney Wanderers, Borrello was transformed into a striker by head coach Marko Rudan, following Sulejman Krpić departure after failing to lead the attack for the Wanderers. This change in position highlighted Borrello's movement, positivity, and willingness to go forward, bringing a unique set of attributes to the frontline, including technical ability, sharp shooting, and consistent energy off the ball. His work rate and pressing ability make him particularly effective against a 2-chain CB pair and a single pivot, disrupting the opposition's defensive structure and creating opportunities for the attacking midfielders to exploit.
Borrello is married to Kristina Petrovic who is from Germany. The couple shares a love for spending time at the beach, with Borrello being particularly fond of surfing. Notably, Borrello is fluent in German.
| + Appearances and goals by club, season and competition !rowspan="2" | Club !rowspan="2" | Season !colspan="3" | League !colspan="2" | Cup !colspan="2" | Continental !colspan="2" | Total |
| Brisbane Roar | 2013–14 | A-League | 0 | |||
| 2014–15 | A-League | 6 | ||||
| 2015–16 | A-League | 5 | ||||
| 2016–17 | A-League | 9 | ||||
| 1. FC Kaiserslautern | 2017–18 | 2. Bundesliga | 3 | |||
| SC Freiburg | 2018–19 | Bundesliga | 0 | |||
| 2019–20 | Bundesliga | 0 | ||||
| + Appearances and goals by national team and year | |
| Australia | 0 |
| 0 | |
| 2 | |
| + List of international goals scored by Brandon Borrello |
| Friendly |
| 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
Individual
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