Ozan Kabak

Ozan Kabak — Biography

Ozan Kabak is a Turkish international centre-back, described as the first player born in the 2000s to appear in the Süper Lig. His path has run from the Galatasaray academy to Germany and England, and today he plays for the Bundesliga club TSG Hoffenheim; in April 2026 he signed a new long-term contract there, and he was part of the 26-man Turkey squad named for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

He joined the Galatasaray youth academy in 2011, made his Süper Lig debut against Yeni Malatyaspor on 12 May 2018 and was part of the club's 2017-18 title-winning side. In January 2019 he moved to VfB Stuttgart; in March he scored twice in a 5-1 win over Hannover 96, becoming the youngest Turkish centre-back to score twice in a single Bundesliga match. Although Stuttgart were relegated, he was named the Bundesliga's rookie of the season. In June 2019 he joined Schalke 04, and in February 2021 he went on loan to Liverpool, where an away match at RB Leipzig made him the first Turkish player to appear in the Champions League for an English club. In August 2021 he was loaned to Norwich City, and on 23 July 2022 he signed for Hoffenheim.

In 2017 he captained Turkey at the Under-17 European Championship in Croatia and was named by UEFA among ten players to watch. He made his senior debut for Turkey against Andorra on 17 November 2019 and scored his first international goal in a 2-1 friendly win over Scotland on 16 November 2022.