Career So Far: Raphael Sallinger

Raphael Sallinger has joined the Hibees on a permanent transfer from TSV Hartberg – read more about the keeper’s career so far!

The Austrian shot-stopper arrives in Leith to compete for the number one spot following a strong campaign in the Austrian Bundesliga.

Born in Austria’s sixth-largest city, Klagenfurt, Sallinger came through the youth academies of local teams FC Kärnten and FC Welzenegg. 

The towering keeper’s first foray into senior football came in the 2012/13 season with SC Kalsdorf in the Regionalliga Central – the third tier of the Austrian football system. 

Aged just 17, Sallinger moved to Germany after catching the eye of 2. Bundesliga club 1. FC Kaiserslautern. Impressing as a key player at a very young age for the Red Devils’ reserve club, he soon earn a move to the Austrian top-flight. 

The goalkeeper’s Austrian Bundesliga debut would arrive in April 2017 for Wolfsberger AC versus SV Mattersburg before a move to TSV Hartberg would materialise. Sallinger fought to earn the number one spot at his new club and would go on to make 106 appearances during his time at the Profertil Arena. 

A standout 2024/25 campaign saw Sallinger keep 12 clean sheets across all competitions, including four crucial shut-outs across five rounds to help guide Hartberg to their first ever Austrian Cup final – which they would narrowly lose 1-0 to Wolfsberger. 

Sallinger has represented his country at youth level, earning his Under-20 debut in 2015 while plying his trade in Germany. 

Now, the goalkeeper ventures out of central Europe for the first time in his professional career and joins David Gray’s Hibees on a three-year deal!