After starting with amateurs Eintracht Bad Kreuznach and having a spell with Borussia Dortmund's reserves, he joined 1.

[1] Abel made his Bundesliga debut on 14 August 2004, in a 2–1 home win over Hamburger SV.

From 2006 onwards, Abel would appear sparingly for several clubs: FC Schalke 04 – which also loaned him for five months to Hamburg – and 1.

[2][3] Abel's first appearance for Kaiserslautern's first team only took place on 26 October 2010, as an early substitute in a 3–0 home win against Arminia Bielefeld for the campaign's German Cup.

Four days later, he managed to play the full 90 minutes in the league fixture against Borussia Mönchengladbach (same venue and result).