Schweinsteiger lives with his girlfriend Sarah Brandner in Munich. His fans nicknamed him "Schweini" or "Basti" to distinguish him from his brother. His elder brother Tobias is a professional footballer who plays for third-tier side SpVgg Unterhaching.
Schweinsteiger initially lost his place in the starting eleven when manager Joachim Löw moved striker Lukas Podolski to his usual position on the left wing to accommodate the strike partnership of Miroslav Klose and Mario Gómez and he made two substitute appearances in the group stages.
Schweinsteiger signed for Bayern Munich as a youth team player on 1 July 1998 and rose through the club's youth sides.
A right-footed player, he usually plays as a left winger but can also play on the right and is especially dangerous when outside the penalty box, where he will assist the strikers with pin-point crosses or have an effort at goal, although he has been playing in a more central role during the latter half of the 2009–10 season.
