Nikola Serafimov
Macedonian footballer
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Nikola Serafimov (Macedonian: Никола Серафимов; born 11 August 1999) is a Macedonian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Bulgarian First League club Levski Sofia and the North Macedonia national team.
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 11 August 1999[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Skopje, Macedonia | ||
| Height | 1.93 m (6 ft 4 in) | ||
| Position | Centre-back | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Levski Sofia | ||
| Number | 31 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2011–2017 | Vardar | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2020 | Vardar | 15 | (0) |
| 2017 | → Pelister (loan) | 3 | (0) |
| 2018–2019 | → Bregalnica (loan) | 0 | (0) |
| 2020–2021 | Akademija Pandev | 25 | (0) |
| 2021–2022 | Zalaegerszegi | 31 | (4) |
| 2022–2025 | Fehérvár | 64 | (3) |
| 2025– | Levski Sofia | 18 | (1) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2019–2020 | Macedonia U21 | 7 | (0) |
| 2022– | North Macedonia | 29 | (1) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 2 September 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 15:31, 4 July 2026 (UTC) | |||
Club career
Serafimov started his football career at the Vardar academy. After being promoted to the senior team, Vardar loaned him out to Pelister in 2017 and Bregalnica in 2018, respectively.[2] He spent one season with Vardar, winning the 2019–20 Macedonian league title.
On 7 July 2020, he joined Akademija Pandev.[3]
On 21 June 2021, Serafimov transferred to Zalaegerszegi TE in the Hungarian NB I.[4] After impressing in his first season, on 11 July 2022, he signed with fellow NB I club Fehérvár FC for a fee of 400,000 €.[5] Serafimov scored his first goal for Fehérvár in the 66th minute of their 2–1 defeat to Újpest FC on 9 November 2022.[6]
On 15 August 2025, Serafimov joined Bulgarian First League club Levski Sofia on a three-year deal.[7]
International career
In August 2021, Serafimov received his debut call up for the senior North Macedonia national team in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification games against Armenia, Iceland and Romania.[8]
He played throughout North Macedonia's 2022 UEFA Nations League campaign against Bulgaria, Gibraltar and Georgia.[9][10]
On 14 November 2024, Serafimov scored his first goal for the national team in a 1–0 win against Latvia.[11]
Career statistics
Club
- As of 25 May 2026
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Vardar | 2017–18 | 1. MFL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | |
| 2018–19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | |||
| 2019–20 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 12 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 15 | 0 | |||
| Pelister (loan) | 2017–18 | 1. MFL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 3 | 0 | ||
| Bregalnica (loan) | 2018–19 | 2. MFL East | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | ||
| Akademija Pandev | 2020–21 | 1. MFL | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 25 | 0 | ||
| Zalaegerszegi TE | 2021–22 | Nemzeti Bajnokság I | 31 | 4 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 33 | 4 | ||
| Fehérvár | 2022–23 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2[b] | 0 | — | 14 | 1 | ||
| 2023–24 | 30 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 30 | 1 | ||||
| 2024–25 | 23 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 4[b] | 0 | — | 29 | 1 | |||
| Total | 64 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 0 | — | 73 | 3 | |||
| Levski Sofia | 2025–26 | Bulgarian First League | 15 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 2 |
| 2026–27 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Total | 15 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 2 | ||
| Career total | 153 | 8 | 8 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 167 | 9 | ||
- Includes Macedonian Cup, Magyar Kupa and Bulgarian Cup
- Appearances in UEFA Conference League
International
- As of match played 1 June 2026[12]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| North Macedonia | |||
| 2022 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2026 | 3 | 0 | |
| Total | 29 | 1 | |
- Scores and results list North Macedonia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Serafimov goal.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 14 November 2024 | Toše Proeski Arena, Skopje, North Macedonia |  Latvia | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League C |
