Kári Árnason Facts for Kids

This is an Icelandic name. The last name is a patronymic, not a family name; this person is properly referred to by the given name "Kári".

Quick facts for kids
Kári Árnason
Personal information
Kári playing for Iceland against Hungary in UEFA Euro 2016
Full name	Kári Árnason
Date of birth	(1982-10-13) 13 October 1982 (age 42)
Place of birth	Gothenburg, Sweden
Height	1.90 m (6 ft 3 in)
Position(s)	Centre-back
Youth career
1999–2001	Víkingur
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2002–2003	Gonzaga Bulldogs	25	(8)
2004	Adelphi Panthers	5	(0)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2001–2004	Víkingur	41	(3)
2004–2006	Djurgården	35	(0)
2006–2009	AGF Aarhus	51	(3)
2009	→ Esbjerg fB (loan)	8	(0)
2009–2011	Plymouth Argyle	72	(3)
2011–2012	Aberdeen	33	(3)
2012–2015	Rotherham United	116	(5)
2015–2017	Malmö FF	37	(2)
2017	Omonia	8	(2)
2017–2018	Aberdeen	21	(3)
2018–2019	Gençlerbirliği	13	(0)
2019–2021	Víkingur	41	(2)
Total		476	(26)
International career
2005–2021	Iceland	90	(6)
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Kári Árnason (born October 13, 1982) is a former professional footballer from Iceland. He played as a centre-back, which is a defensive position in the middle of the field. Kári played for many different clubs during his career, including Djurgården, Plymouth Argyle, Aberdeen, and Rotherham United.

He also played for the Iceland national team for many years, starting in 2005. He played in 90 games for his country and scored 6 goals. Kári was part of the Icelandic team that made history by playing in major tournaments like UEFA Euro 2016 and the 2018 FIFA World Cup.

Kári's Club Journey
Kári's International Career
Career Statistics
Honours and Achievements
See also

Kári's Club Journey

Starting Out in Football

Kári Árnason was born in Gothenburg, Sweden. He started his football journey as a young player in 1999 with Víkingur in his hometown of Reykjavík, Iceland. He spent his first five years there.

He also played college soccer in the United States. From 2002 to 2003, he played for the Gonzaga University Bulldogs. He then played one season for Adelphi University in 2004.

After showing great skill in midfield for Víkingur in 2004, Kári joined the Swedish club Djurgårdens IF. There, he helped his team win both the Swedish league and cup in 2005. In 2007, he moved to the Danish club AGF Aarhus and also had a loan spell at Esbjerg fB.

Playing for Plymouth Argyle

In the summer of 2009, Kári had a trial with the English team Plymouth Argyle. He played well in friendly matches and signed a one-year contract. He made his first appearance for the club in August 2009 against Derby County. Kári quickly became a regular player in the team's defense.

He scored his first goal for Plymouth Argyle on December 28, 2009, against Reading. This made him the 500th player to score a league goal for the club since it became professional in 1903. Because he played so consistently, Kári signed a new two-year contract in January 2010, keeping him at the club until 2012.

Time with Aberdeen

In June 2011, Kári had a trial with Heart of Midlothian in Scotland. He was not offered a contract there. Then, he tried out for another Scottish club, Aberdeen. He signed with Aberdeen on July 18, 2011.

Kári made his debut for Aberdeen on July 23 in a 0–0 draw against St Johnstone. He scored his first goal for the team on October 15 in a 3–1 win against Dundee United. In January 2012, he scored the winning goal from 35 yards against Dundee United again.

He scored his third goal for Aberdeen against Rangers in a 1–1 draw. Kári was offered a new contract by Aberdeen, but he decided to leave the club in the summer of 2012 to find a new team.

Success with Rotherham United

In June 2012, Kári Árnason joined Rotherham United. He played over 100 games for this club. During his time there, he helped the team get promoted twice in a row, moving from League Two to the Championship. He mostly played in defense, but sometimes also in midfield.

Kári playing for Malmö FF.

Playing for Malmö FF

On June 29, 2015, Kári returned to Sweden, the country where he was born. He signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with Malmö FF. Malmö FF had sold two of their main defenders, so Kári became a new central defender alongside Rasmus Bengtsson.

Even though the team was struggling in their league, they qualified for the 2015–16 UEFA Champions League group stage. Kári quickly became a leader in the team and was made vice-captain. The team started winning again during the 2016 season. When the captain was injured, Kári wore the captain's armband and led the team to win the Allsvenskan title with two games left to play.

Short Stays and Returns

On January 30, 2017, Kári joined AC Omonia in Cyprus. He played 8 games for them. He then moved back to Aberdeen on July 14, 2017, for a second time. He played for Aberdeen until May 2018, when his contract ended.

After that, on July 24, 2018, Kári signed a one-year deal with Gençlerbirliği, a team in Turkey.

Back to Víkingur

When his contract with Gençlerbirliği ended, Kári returned to the club where he started as a youth player, Víkingur. He signed a two-year deal that lasted until the end of the 2020 season. He retired from professional football in 2021.

Kári's International Career

Kári playing for Iceland

Kári Árnason was first called up to the senior Iceland squad in March 2005. He made his first appearance for Iceland four days later against Italy. He scored his first goal for his country in October 2005 against Sweden.

He was chosen by coach Lars Lagerbäck to play in UEFA Euro 2016. This was Iceland's first time ever playing in a major football tournament. In their first game, Kári played a key role in defending against Cristiano Ronaldo in their draw with Portugal, who later won the tournament.

In their last group game, Iceland beat Austria to move on to the next stage. Kári helped set up a goal and was named the best player of that match. He also assisted another goal in Iceland's surprising win over England in the Round of 16.

In May 2018, Kári was also part of Iceland's 23-man squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Career Statistics

Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Iceland
	2005	8	1
	2006	4	0
	2007	4	0
	2010	1	0
	2012	7	1
	2013	8	0
	2014	6	0
	2015	7	0
	2016	11	1
	2017	8	1
	2018	9	2
	2019	8	0
	2020	6	0
	2021	3	0
Total		90	6

Scores and results list Iceland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Kári goal.

List of international goals scored by Kári Árnason
No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	12 October 2005	Råsunda Stadium, Solna, Sweden	8	Sweden	1–0	1–3	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
2	7 September 2012	Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland	22	Norway	1–0	2–0	2014 FIFA World Cup qualification
3	6 October 2016	Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland	54	Finland	1–1	3–2	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
4	6 October 2017	New Eskişehir Stadium, Eskişehir, Turkey	62	Turkey	3–0	3–0	2018 FIFA World Cup qualification
5	7 June 2018	Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland	67	Ghana	1–0	2–2	Friendly
6	11 October 2018	Stade de Roudourou, Guingamp, France	70	France	2–0	2–2	Friendly