A versatile blue-collar worker with a powerful shot, he spent the better part of his career at Werder Bremen (nearly one full decade), amassing Bundesliga totals of 388 games and 19 goals over the course of 15 seasons.
Born in Menden (Sauerland), Borowka made his Bundesliga debut at the age of 19 for Borussia Mönchengladbach, becoming a regular from his second season onwards – in 1984–85, as the team finished fourth, he scored a career-best five goals in 32 matches.
In 1987, Borowka signed for SV Werder Bremen, being a defensive mainstay for the club in six of his nine seasons and managing to net at least once in seven of them.
In his debut campaign he helped to the league conquest, the first in 23 years, scoring in a 1–0 win at SV Waldhof Mannheim on 9 April 1988.
Borowka earned six caps for West Germany in 1988, and featured for the nation at UEFA Euro 1988, playing all four matches for the semifinalists (two complete).