Pavel Šulc
Czech footballer (born 2000)
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Pavel Šulc (born 29 December 2000) is a Czech professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for Ligue 1 club Lyon and the Czech Republic national team.
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Šulc playing for Vysočina Jihlava in 2019 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | 29 December 2000 | ||
| Place of birth | Karlovy Vary, Czech Republic | ||
| Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position | Attacking midfielder[1] | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Lyon | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2017–2025 | Viktoria Plzeň | 115 | (36) |
| 2019 | → Vysočina Jihlava (loan) | 16 | (3) |
| 2019 | → Opava (loan) | 15 | (0) |
| 2020 | → České Budějovice (loan) | 15 | (3) |
| 2022–2023 | → Jablonec (loan) | 32 | (5) |
| 2025– | Lyon | 27 | (11) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017–2018 | Czech Republic U18 | 4 | (1) |
| 2018–2019 | Czech Republic U19 | 7 | (2) |
| 2019 | Czech Republic U20 | 4 | (1) |
| 2019–2020 | Czech Republic U21 | 20 | (2) |
| 2024– | Czech Republic | 22 | (5) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 17 May 2026 ‡ National team caps and goals as of 11 June 2026 | |||
Šulc made over 150 appearances for Viktoria Plzeň, and was named the Czech Footballer of the Year in 2025.
Club career
Viktoria Plzeň
Šulc was promoted to the first team of Viktoria Plzeň in January 2020 but only played his first match on 17 January 2021 against FK Příbram.[2]
Scoring once each season in 2020–21 and 2021–22,[3] Šulc started the 2023–24 season with a hat-trick against České Budějovice.[4][5] He contributed to Viktoria Plzeň's 2023–24 UEFA Europa Conference League campaign, where they reached the quarter-final of a European competition for the first time.[6]
Loan spells
On 29 January 2019, Šulc was loaned to FC Vysočina Jihlava in Czech National Football League, playing he played in 16 league matches and scored 3 goals.
On 3 July 2019, he was loaned to SFC Opava in Czech First League. In six months long loan he played in 15 league matches and in 1 Czech Cup match without scoring a goal.
On 26 January 2020, he was loaned to SK Dynamo České Budějovice in Czech First League. In one year long loan he played in 15 league matches and scored 3 goals.
In June 2022, he joined Czech First League side FK Jablonec on a season-long loan, reuniting with manager David Horejš who he had worked with at České Budějovice in his previous loan spell.[7]
Lyon
On 4 August 2025, Šulc signed a four-year contract with Lyon in France.[8][9]
International career
Šulc had played international football at youth levels that ranged from Czech Republic U18 to U21. He played a total of 15 matches for the U18–U20 teams and scored four times. For the U21 team, he played in 20 matches and scored two times.[10]
On 22 March 2024, Šulc debuted for the Czech senior squad in a friendly match against Norway.[11]
On 10 September 2024, Šulc scored his first goals for the Czech Republic, scoring twice in a 3–2 victory against Ukraine in the Nations League[12]
On 31 May 2026, Šulc was selected in the 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[13]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 17 May 2026
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | Europe | Total | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Vysočina Jihlava (loan) | 2018–19 | Czech National League | 16 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 16 | 3 | |
| Opava (loan) | 2019–20 | Czech First League | 15 | 0 | 3 | 0 | — | 18 | 0 | |
| České Budějovice (loan) | 2019–20 | Czech First League | 11 | 2 | — | — | 11 | 2 | ||
| 2020–21 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 4 | 1 | |||
| Total | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 15 | 3 | |||
| Viktoria Plzeň | 2020–21 | Czech First League | 20 | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | 25 | 1 | |
| 2021–22 | 27 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6[b] | 1 | 35 | 3 | ||
| 2023–24 | 31 | 18 | 5 | 2 | 13[b] | 2 | 49 | 22 | ||
| 2024–25 | 35 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 16[c] | 4 | 54 | 20 | ||
| 2025–26 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2[d] | 0 | 4 | 1 | ||
| Total | 115 | 36 | 15 | 4 | 37 | 7 | 167 | 47 | ||
| Jablonec (loan) | 2022–23 | Czech First League | 32 | 5 | 2 | 0 | — | 34 | 5 | |
| Lyon | 2025–26 | Ligue 1 | 27 | 11 | 3 | 2 | 8[c] | 1 | 38 | 14 |
| Career total | 220 | 58 | 23 | 6 | 45 | 8 | 288 | 71 | ||
- Includes Czech Cup, Coupe de France
- Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
International
- As of match played 11 June 2026[14]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Czech Republic | 2024 | 10 | 3 |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | |
| 2026 | 4 | 1 | |
| Total | 22 | 5 | |
Scores and results list the Czech Republic's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 September 2024 | Fortuna Arena, Prague, Czech Republic |  Ukraine | 1–0 | 3–2 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B |
| 2 | 2–1 | |||||
| 3 | 19 November 2024 | Andrův stadion, Olomouc, Czech Republic |  Georgia | 1–0 | 2–1 | |
| 4 | 25 March 2025 | Estádio Algarve, Faro/Loulé, Portugal |  Gibraltar | 3–0 | 4–0 | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 5 | 31 March 2026 | Stadion Letná, Prague, Czechia |  Denmark | 1–0 | 2–2 (a.e.t.) (3–1 p) | 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification play-offs |
Honours
Viktoria Plzeň
Individual