List of Famous people born in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany

Günter Theodor Netzer is a German former professional football player and executive. He achieved great success in Germany with Borussia Mönchengladbach in the early 1970s, and, after moving to Spain in 1973, with Real Madrid. A technically gifted playmaker, Netzer played as an attacking midfielder and is considered one of the greatest passers in the game's history. He was voted German Footballer of the Year twice, in 1972 and 1973.

Joachim Frank is a German-American biophysicist at Columbia University and a Nobel laureate. He is regarded as the founder of single-particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM), for which he shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2017 with Jacques Dubochet and Richard Henderson. He also made significant contributions to structure and function of the ribosome from bacteria and eukaryotes.

Tommy Engel is a German musician and actor. He was the lead singer of German band Bläck Fööss through 1994, and has released albums as a solo performer.

Shadi Hedayati is a German actor of Persian descent. She became known for her role as Zari in the Sat.1 production Die Schlikkerfrauen.

Mirjam Müntefering is a German author and a lesbian.

Ilia Topuria is a Georgian-Spanish mixed martial artist who competes in the Featherweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Ralf Hütter is a German musician and composer best known as the lead singer, keyboardist, founding member and leader of Kraftwerk. Since the departure of Florian Schneider in 2008, he has been the band's sole remaining founding member.

Philip Hindes MBE is a British track cyclist, specialising in sprints. He holds dual nationality, having been born in Germany to a British father. Having initially competed for Germany at a junior level, in 2010 he switched to the British Cycling programme. At the 2012 Summer Olympics he won the gold medal in the Men's team sprint, and again at the 2016 Summer Olympics he won the gold medal in the Men's team sprint.

Danny aus den Birken is a German professional ice hockey goaltender. He is currently playing for EHC München in the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL).

Achim Petry is a German singer and musician.