Piero Hincapié
Ecuadorian footballer (born 2002)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Piero Martín Hincapié Reyna (Spanish pronunciation: [ˈpjeɾo iŋkaˈpje]; born 9 January 2002) is an Ecuadorian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back or left-back for Premier League club Arsenal and the Ecuador national team.[3]
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Hincapié with Ecuador at the 2026 FIFA World Cup | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Piero Martín Hincapié Reyna[1] | ||
| Date of birth | 9 January 2002[1] | ||
| Place of birth | Esmeraldas, Ecuador | ||
| Height | 1.84 m (6 ft 0 in)[2] | ||
| Positions | |||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Arsenal | ||
| Number | 5 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2009–2010 | Emelec Esmeraldas | ||
| 2010–2012 | Barcelona Esmeraldas | ||
| 2012–2013 | Norte América | ||
| 2013–2016 | Deportivo Azogues | ||
| 2016–2019 | Independiente del Valle | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2019–2020 | Independiente del Valle | 3 | (0) |
| 2020–2021 | Talleres | 14 | (0) |
| 2021–2026 | Bayer Leverkusen | 116 | (5) |
| 2025–2026 | → Arsenal (loan) | 25 | (1) |
| 2026– | Arsenal | 0 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2019 | Ecuador U17 | 11 | (0) |
| 2021– | Ecuador | 55 | (3) |
|
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 24 May 2026 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 25 June 2026 | |||
Club career
Early career
Hincapié began playing football at the age of seven, initially for local clubs Escuela Refinería, Emelec and Barcelona.[4][5] Aged ten, the defender moved to Guayaquil with Norte América.[5] After a spell with Deportivo Azogues, he joined Independiente del Valle in November 2016.[6] Hincapié was promoted into their first-team in August 2019 for a Serie A match with Mushuc Runa.[3] He was selected to start and played the full duration of a narrow home defeat.[3] In the subsequent 2020 campaign, shortly after winning the U-20 Copa Libertadores, Hincapié made appearances off the bench against Universidad Católica and Macará.[3]
Talleres
On 20 August 2020, Hincapié agreed a five-year contract with Primera División side Talleres; who paid $1,000,000 for 50% of his pass.[7][8]
Bayer Leverkusen
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In August 2021, Hincapié signed for the German Bundesliga club Bayer Leverkusen.[9] He made his debut on 16 August, coming into the Europa League group stage match against Ferencváros as Leverkusen won 2–1.[10] He scored his first goal for the club on 30 September, scoring the opening goal against Celtic in a 4–0 victory in the Europa League.[11] In the 2023–24 season, Hincapié was part of the Leverkusen team that won the club’s first ever Bundesliga title while undefeated the entire league season.[12]
Arsenal
On 1 September 2025, Hincapié joined Premier League club Arsenal on a season-long loan with an option to buy, initially reported as being worth £45 million (€52 million).[13][14] He made his debut off the bench against Athletic Bilbao in the UEFA Champions League on 16 September, but picked up a groin injury in a training session shortly after.[15] On 26 October, Hincapié made his league debut, also from the bench, against Crystal Palace. He started in his EFL Cup debut on 29 October against Brighton & Hove Albion.[16][17]
Hincapié scored his first goal for Arsenal on 18 February 2026, in a 2–2 draw against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux.[18][19] On 11 March 2026, Hincapié started for Arsenal against his parent club in the UEFA Champions League, playing the entire 1–1 draw in the first leg of the Round of 16 tie at the BayArena.[20][21] He then played in the second leg at Emirates Stadium on 17 March, as Arsenal progressed to the quarter-finals with a 2–0 (3–1 on aggregate) win.[22][23]
Hincapié won the Premier League title in his debut season with the club.[24] He later started in the 2026 Champions League final, where Arsenal lost 4–3 on penalties to Paris Saint-Germain after a 1–1 draw following extra time.[25] On 25 June 2026, it was announced that Arsenal had activated their option to sign Hincapié on a permanent basis for a fee reported to be £34.5 million plus add-ons, on a five-year-contract.[26][27]
International career
Hincapié appeared for the Ecuador U15s in 2017.[4] In 2019, Hincapié represented his country as captain at U17 level.[3][5] He played seven times at the South American U-17 Championship in Peru, before featuring four times at the subsequent FIFA U-17 World Cup in Brazil.[3][5]
Hincapié was selected in the 28 player Ecuador squad for the 2021 Copa América.[28] On 13 June 2021, Hincapié debuted for the Ecuador senior squad in a 2021 Copa América match against Colombia, playing the full match as Ecuador lost 1–0.[29]
On 14 November 2022, Hincapié was named in Ecuador's 26-man squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup.[30] He played 90 minutes in the group stage win against Qatar,[31] the draw against the Netherlands,[32] and defeat against Senegal.[33]
Hincapié was called up to the final 26-man Ecuador squad for the 2024 Copa América.[34]
On 31 May 2026, Hincapié was selected in the 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.[35]
Career statistics
Club
- As of match played 30 May 2026[3]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Continental | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Independiente del Valle | 2019 | Ecuadorian Serie A | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2020 | Ecuadorian Serie A | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 2 | 0 | |||
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 3 | 0 | ||||
| Talleres | 2021 | Argentine Primera División | 14 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | 6[c] | 0 | — | 22 | 0 | ||
| Bayer Leverkusen | 2021–22 | Bundesliga | 27 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 6[d] | 1 | — | 33 | 2 | ||
| 2022–23 | Bundesliga | 30 | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 13[e] | 0 | — | 43 | 1 | |||
| 2023–24 | Bundesliga | 26 | 1 | 5 | 0 | — | 12[d] | 0 | — | 43 | 1 | |||
| 2024–25 | Bundesliga | 32 | 2 | 3 | 0 | — | 9[f] | 1 | 1[g] | 0 | 45 | 3 | ||
| 2025–26 | Bundesliga | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | ||||
| Total | 116 | 5 | 9 | 0 | — | 40 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 166 | 7 | |||
| Arsenal (loan) | 2025–26 | Premier League | 25 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 10[f] | 0 | — | 39 | 1 | |
| Arsenal | 2026–27 | Premier League | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0[f] | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Career total | 158 | 6 | 12 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 56 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 230 | 8 | ||
- Includes Copa Argentina, DFB-Pokal, FA Cup
- Appearances in Copa Sudamericana
- Appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Five appearances in UEFA Champions League, eight appearances in UEFA Europa League
- Appearances in UEFA Champions League
- Appearance in DFL-Supercup
International
- As of match played 25 June 2026[36]
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ecuador | 2021 | 12 | 1 |
| 2022 | 12 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 6 | 0 | |
| 2024 | 13 | 2 | |
| 2025 | 7 | 0 | |
| 2026 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 55 | 3 | |
Scores and results list Ecuador's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 11 November 2021 | Estadio Rodrigo Paz Delgado, Quito, Ecuador |  Venezuela | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 16 June 2024 | Pratt & Whitney Stadium, East Hartford, United States |  Honduras | 2–1 | 2–1 | Friendly |
| 3 | 26 June 2024 | Allegiant Stadium, Paradise, United States |  Jamaica | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2024 Copa América |
Honours
Independiente del Valle[3]
Bayer Leverkusen
- Bundesliga: 2023–24[37]
- DFB-Pokal: 2023–24
- DFL-Supercup: 2024[38]
- UEFA Europa League runner-up: 2023–24[39]
Arsenal
- Premier League: 2025–26[40]
- EFL Cup runner-up: 2025–26[41]
- UEFA Champions League runner-up: 2025–26[42]
Individual
- IFFHS Men's World Youth (U20) Team: 2022[43]
- Copa América Team of the Tournament: 2024[44]
- Kicker Bundesliga Team of the Season: 2024–25
