Charles De Ketelaere
Belgian footballer (born 2001)
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Charles Marc S. De Ketelaere (Dutch pronunciation: [də ˈkeːtəˌlaːrə]; born 10 March 2001) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or forward for Serie A club Atalanta and the Belgium national team.
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De Ketelaere with Belgium in 2026 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Charles Marc S. De Ketelaere[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 10 March 2001 | ||
| Place of birth | Bruges, Belgium | ||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in)[2] | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Atalanta | ||
| Number | 17 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2008–2019 | Club Brugge | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2022 | Club Brugge | 90 | (19) |
| 2022–2024 | AC Milan | 32 | (0) |
| 2023–2024 | → Atalanta (loan) | 35 | (10) |
| 2024– | Atalanta | 67 | (10) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017 | Belgium U16 | 4 | (1) |
| 2018 | Belgium U17 | 1 | (0) |
| 2019 | Belgium U19 | 6 | (3) |
| 2020–2023 | Belgium U21 | 10 | (1) |
| 2020– | Belgium | 33 | (6) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:07, 22 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 15:35, 2 July 2026 (UTC) | |||
Club career
Club Brugge
De Ketelaere joined Club Brugge at the age of seven, also working as a ball boy.[3] He also played tennis as a youth, but chose to pursue football.[3]
He made his senior debut on 25 September 2019, when he played the full game in the 2019–20 Belgian Cup matchup against Francs Borains.[4]
On 22 October 2019, he made his UEFA Champions League debut against Paris Saint-Germain. He started the game and was substituted in the 57th minute with the score of 1–0 to Paris Saint-Germain, the game eventually ended with a 5–0 loss.[5] On 5 February 2020, he scored a goal in a 2–1 win against Zulte Waregem to reach the Belgian Cup final.[6]
On 20 October 2020, De Ketelaere scored the game-winning goal in the 93rd minute to defeat Zenit St. Petersburg 2–1 in the group stage of the 2020–21 UEFA Champions League.[7]
AC Milan
On 2 August 2022, De Ketelaere joined Serie A club AC Milan on a contract until 30 June 2027.[8] Signed for a fee reported to be in the range of €35 million, De Ketelaere however failed to fulfill the initial expectations of the Rossoneri, scoring no goals throughout the entire season and making only nine league starts.[9]
Atalanta
On 16 August 2023, Atalanta formally confirmed the signing of De Ketelaere from AC Milan on a loan move with an option to buy.[10] On 20 August 2023, De Ketelaere came off the bench during Atalanta's Serie A match against Sassuolo, striking the crossbar before sealing his debut Serie A goal with a precise header.[11] The match ended 2–0 in Atalanta's favour.[12] On 21 September, De Ketelaere marked his presence by netting his first goal in a UEFA Europa League group stage match against Raków Częstochowa, contributing to Atalanta's 2–0 victory.[13][14] De Ketelaere scored 14 goals and provided 11 assists in all competitions during his first season at Atalanta; the club made his move permanent on 15 June 2024.[15] Later that year, on 26 November, he scored a brace and provided a hat-trick of assists in a 6–1 away victory over Young Boys in the Champions League.[16]
International career
In November 2020, De Ketelaere debuted for the Belgian senior squad as a substitute in a loss to Switzerland for the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League.[17] On 10 October 2021, he scored his first international goal in the third place playoff match loss to Italy for the Nations League, 2–1.[3] In a 2022 FIFA World Cup match against Morocco, De Ketelaere came on as a substitute Michy Batshuayi in the 75th minute.[18]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 22 May 2026[19]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Europe | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Club Brugge | 2019–20 | Belgian Pro League | 13 | 1 | 6 | 1 | 6[b] | 0 | — | 25 | 2 | |
| 2020–21 | 38 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 7[c] | 2 | — | 46 | 6 | |||
| 2021–22 | 39 | 14 | 3 | 4 | 6[d] | 0 | 1[e] | 0 | 49 | 18 | ||
| Total | 90 | 19 | 10 | 5 | 19 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 120 | 26 | ||
| AC Milan | 2022–23 | Serie A | 32 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6[d] | 0 | 1[f] | 0 | 40 | 0 |
| Atalanta (loan) | 2023–24 | Serie A | 35 | 10 | 4 | 2 | 11[g] | 2 | — | 50 | 14 | |
| Atalanta | 2024–25 | 36 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 10[d] | 4 | 2[h] | 0 | 50 | 13 | |
| 2025–26 | 31 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 8[d] | 2 | — | 42 | 5 | |||
| Atalanta total | 102 | 20 | 9 | 4 | 29 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 142 | 32 | ||
| Career total | 224 | 39 | 20 | 9 | 54 | 10 | 4 | 0 | 302 | 58 | ||
- Includes Belgian Cup, Coppa Italia
- Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, two appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Six appearances and two goals in UEFA Champions League, one appearance in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- Appearance in Belgian Super Cup
- Appearance in Supercoppa Italiana
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- One appearance in UEFA Super Cup, one appearance in Supercoppa Italiana
International
- As of match played 1 July 2026[20]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Belgium | 2020 | 1 | 0 |
| 2021 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 3 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 6 | 2 | |
| 2026 | 7 | 2 | |
| Total | 33 | 6 | |
- Scores and results list Belgium's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each De Ketelaere goal.[21]
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 October 2021 | Juventus Stadium, Turin, Italy | 2 |  Italy | 1–2 | 1–2 | 2021 UEFA Nations League Finals |
| 2 | 12 September 2023 | King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium | 13 |  Estonia | 5–0 | 5–0 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 3 | 18 November 2025 | Stade Maurice Dufrasne, Liège, Belgium | 26 |  Liechtenstein | 6–0 | 7–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 4 | 7–0 | ||||||
| 5 | 28 March 2026 | Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, United States | 27 |  United States | 3–1 | 5–2 | Friendly |
| 6 | 6 June 2026 | King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium | 30 |  Tunisia | 2–0 | 5–0 |
Honours
Club Brugge
Atalanta
Individual
- Belgian Promising Talent of the Year: 2020[26]
- Best Youngster of the Belgian Pro League: 2020, 2021[27][28]
- Dominique D'Onofrio Award: 2020[29]
- Belgian Young Professional Footballer of the Year: 2021–22[30]
- Golden Shoe Best Belgian Abroad: 2024[31]
