Kevin De Bruyne

Kevin De Bruyne (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈkɛvɪn də ˈbrœynə]; born 28 June 1991) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Serie A club Napoli and the Belgium national team. Widely regarded as one of the greatest players of his generation and one of the best players in Premier League history, he has been described as a "complete" footballer.

After spending most of his youth career at Gent, De Bruyne began his professional senior career at Genk, where he was a regular player when they won the 2010–11 Belgian Pro League. In 2012, he joined English club Chelsea, where he was used sparingly and then loaned to Werder Bremen. He signed with VfL Wolfsburg for £18 million in 2014, establishing himself as one of the best players in the Bundesliga, and was integral in the club's 2014–15 DFB-Pokal win. In the summer of 2015, De Bruyne joined Manchester City for a then-club record £54 million. Making 422 appearances for the club, he won the UEFA Champions League, six Premier League titles, five League Cups, and two FA Cups. In 2017–18, he had a significant role in City becoming the only Premier League team to attain 100 points in a single league season. In 2019–20, De Bruyne equalled the then-record for most assists in a Premier League season and was named Player of the Season, the award he won for the second time in 2021–22. He was again heavily involved in 2022–23, as Manchester City sealed the continental treble in their most successful season to date. In June 2025, he joined Napoli on a free transfer following his departure from City at the end of the 2024–25 season.

De Bruyne made his full international debut for Belgium in 2010, and he has since earned over 120 caps, scoring 38 goals for his country. He was a member of the Belgian squads that reached the quarter-finals at the 2014 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2016 and the 2026 World Cup. De Bruyne was named in the Fan Dream Team of the 2018 World Cup, as Belgium finished in third place, as well as appearing at Euro 2020, the 2022 World Cup and Euro 2024.

De Bruyne has been named in the UEFA Champions League Squad of the Season and IFFHS Men's World Team six times each, ESM Team of the Year and the FIFPRO World 11 five times each, the UEFA Team of the Year three times, and the France Football World XI and the Bundesliga Team of the Year once each. He has also won the Premier League Playmaker of the Season three times, the PFA Players' Player of the Year twice, Manchester City's Player of the Year four times, the UEFA Champions League Midfielder of the Season, the Bundesliga Player of the Year, the Footballer of the Year (Germany), the Belgian Sportsman of the Year and the IFFHS World's Best Playmaker three times each. He was nominated for the prestigious Ballon d'Or award several times, ending third in the 2022 edition, and fourth in 2023.