"I've taken this decision for personal reasons," Lehmann said in a statement released through the German Football Association on Friday.

Lehmann, 38, had been considering a move back to the Bundesliga after losing his status as first choice keeper at Arsenal to the Spaniard Manuel Almunia.

Germany coach Joachim Loew had been keen to see Lehmann playing more regularly in the build-up to Euro 2008 but he said the decision to stay on in London would not mean him losing his place in the national side.

"A return to the Bundesliga would have been interesting ... (but) our attitude towards Jens Lehmann will not change because of his decision," Loew said in a statement.