"Nicholas Mickelson" made history as the second Thai player to appear in the German "Bundesliga," following "Coach Heng" Witthaya Laohakul.
On 5 Sep 2026, "Lookso" Nicholas Mickelson, right-back for the Thai national team "War Elephants," who recently played left-back, made history as the second Thai footballer to take the field in the Bundesliga, Germany's top football league, following “Coach Heng” Witthaya Laohakul, who first achieved this in 1979—45 years ago.
"Lookso" Nicholas Mickelson was given the chance to play for "Schwarz und Weiß" SV Elversberg, coming on as a substitute in the 75th minute in a match where the team came from behind to beat Borussia Mönchengladbach 4-3. Previously, he was on the bench as a substitute but did not play in the opening game, where SV Elversberg defeated Bayer Leverkusen 3-2.
Meanwhile, Witthaya Laohakul, known to Thai fans as "Coach Heng," a legendary figure in Thai football who has served as head of technical development for various clubs and the Football Association of Thailand, was the first Thai to play in the Bundesliga on 8 December 1979 in a 3-0 win over Fortuna Düsseldorf. He appeared in three matches totaling 96 minutes.