Alexander Zickler began his career in 1980 with Dynamo Dresden, where he worked his way through the youth system into the first team. In 1993, Zickler tranferred from Dynamo to Bayern Munich, where he remained as a player until the end of the 2005 Bundesliga season. With Bayern, Zickler won seven German Bundesliga Championships (1994, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2003, and 2005) as well as four German Cups (1998, 2000, 2003, and 2005). Additionally, Zickler became a UEFA Cup Winner in 1996, a UEFA Champions League Winner in 2001, as well as a Intercontinental Cup winner in 2001 with Bayern Munich. In the final of the 2001 UEFA Champions League against Valencia CF, Zickler entered the game as a substitute and successfully converted a penalty kick in the match-ending shoot-out. During his time in the Bundesliga he broke the record as the highest goal-scoring substitute of all-time, scoring 18 times in 102 appearances off the bench. However, his prolific career was often hampered by injuries and medical conditions.