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Ryan Babel

Babel playing for Kasımpaşa in 2014

Personal information

Date of birth

19 December 1986 (age 38)

Place of birth

Amsterdam, Netherlands

Height

1.85 m

Playing position

Winger

Youth career

1992–1994

SV Diemen

1994–1997

ASV Fortius

1997–2004

Ajax

Senior career*

Years

Team

Apps^†

(Gls)^†

2004–2007

Ajax

(14)

2007–2011

Liverpool

(12)

2011–2012

1899 Hoffenheim

(5)

2012–2013

Ajax

(4)

2013–2015

Kasımpaşa

(14)

2015–2016

Al Ain

(1)

2016

Deportivo La Coruña

(4)

2017–2019

Beşiktaş

(22)

2019

Fulham

(5)

2019–2022

Galatasaray

(15)

2020

→ Ajax (loan)

(0)

2022–2023

Eyüpspor

(5)

National team^‡

2002–2003

Netherlands U17

(3)

2003–2004

Netherlands U19

(2)

2004–2005

Netherlands U20

(2)

2005–2007

Netherlands U21

(2)

2008

Netherlands U23

(2)

2005–2021

Netherlands

(10)

Honours


Men's football
Representing Netherlands
FIFA World Cup
Runner-up	2010 South Africa
UEFA Nations League
Runner-up	2019 Portugal
UEFA European Under-21 Championship
Winner	2007 Netherlands

Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 21 August 2023.

† Appearances (Goals).

‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 23:04, 30 March 2021 (UTC)

Ryan Guno Babel (born 19 December 1986) is a Dutch former professional footballer. He played as a winger, which means he played on the sides of the field to attack.

Babel started his football journey at Ajax in 1997. He moved up through their youth teams to the main squad. After three seasons with Ajax, he joined Liverpool in 2007. Later, he played for several clubs, including 1899 Hoffenheim in Germany and Kasımpaşa, Beşiktaş, and Galatasaray in Turkey. He also had short spells in the United Arab Emirates and Spain.

Ryan Babel was a key player for the Netherlands national team from 2005 to 2021. He played for his country at all youth levels too. He even played in two World Cups, reaching the final in 2010. He announced his retirement from football in November 2024.

Early Football Days
Club Career Highlights
Playing for His Country
Career Statistics Summary
Awards and Trophies
See also

Early Football Days

Ryan Babel was born in Amsterdam, Netherlands. He loved football from a young age. Famous Dutch players like Ruud Gullit and Frank Rijkaard inspired him.

He started playing for local youth teams, S.V. Diemen and then Fortius. In 1997, he tried out for the famous Ajax youth academy. He didn't make it the first time. But the next year, Ajax accepted him. He played for their D1 team in 1999–2000. He then moved up through other youth teams. In January 2004, Babel signed his first professional contract.

Club Career Highlights

Starting at Ajax

Ryan Babel made his first team debut for Ajax on 1 February 2004. He was only 17 years old. Ajax won that game 4–0 against ADO Den Haag. Ajax won the Dutch league title that season. However, Babel didn't play any more games that year.

Nine months later, on 20 November 2004, he scored his first goal. It was in a big 5–0 win against De Graafschap. In July 2005, Babel signed a new contract with Ajax. He helped Ajax win the Johan Cruyff Shield by scoring the winning goal against PSV Eindhoven. He also scored in the UEFA Champions League qualifying rounds. In 2006, Babel helped Ajax win the KNVB Cup final. He also won another Johan Cruyff Shield medal in 2006.

Time at Liverpool

On 10 July 2007, Liverpool offered to buy Babel. They agreed on a fee of about £11.5 million. Babel signed a five-year contract with Liverpool on 13 July. He wore the number 19 shirt.

He made his first game for Liverpool in a friendly match. His Premier League debut was against Aston Villa. On 1 September, Babel scored his first goal for Liverpool against Derby County. He also scored his first Champions League goals for Liverpool against Beşiktaş J.K. and Olympique de Marseille. He helped Liverpool reach the Champions League semi-finals in 2008.

Babel before Jamie Carragher's testimonial match in 2010

Many people praised Babel's speed and skill. On 13 September 2008, he scored the winning goal against Manchester United. This was his first goal of the 2008–09 season. He also scored in a big 5–1 win against Newcastle United.

In September 2009, Babel came off the bench against West Ham. He helped set up the winning goal for Fernando Torres. He also scored two goals against Hull City in a 6–1 victory. In November 2009, he scored a great goal from 25 yards in a Champions League game against Lyon.

In January 2010, Liverpool turned down an offer for Babel. He was disciplined by his manager for a social media post. He was often linked with moves away from Liverpool. On 1 April 2010, he received a red card for the first time in his Liverpool career. This happened in a Europa League game against S.L. Benfica.

On 31 August 2010, there were many rumors about Babel moving clubs. People joked about him flying around in a "Babelcopter" to different teams. This term became famous for players whose future was uncertain on transfer deadline day. In January 2011, Babel was fined for a social media post about a referee. On 25 January 2011, Babel left Liverpool to join German club TSG 1899 Hoffenheim.

Playing in Germany

Babel signed a two-and-a-half-year deal with Hoffenheim. His first game was in a cup match on 26 January 2011. He scored his first goal for Hoffenheim on 9 April 2011. In the 2011–12 season, he scored his first league goal against Augsburg. He also scored two goals in a game against Mainz 05. After 18 months, Babel left Hoffenheim in August 2012. He had scored six goals in 51 matches.

Back to Ajax

After leaving Hoffenheim, Babel returned to his old club, Ajax. He signed a one-year deal. He wore shirt number 49, the same number he wore when he first played for Ajax. He made his return debut on 15 September 2012. He came on as a substitute and helped set up a goal in a 2–0 win. He scored his first goal since returning to Ajax on 23 September 2012.

Babel played 16 league matches for Ajax that season, scoring four goals. He also played in the Champions League and the Dutch Cup. He helped his team win their third league title in a row.

Later Career Teams

Babel decided not to stay at Ajax. He wanted to make way for younger players. He then joined Turkish club Kasımpaşa. He played there for two seasons, scoring 14 goals.

Babel playing for Beşiktaş in 2018.

In July 2015, Babel moved to Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates. However, he had some difficulties with the club. He was moved to the reserve team in December 2015.

On 17 September 2016, Babel joined Deportivo de La Coruña in Spain. He was without a club before this move. He scored three goals in four games, helping his team move out of the relegation zone. He left the club in December 2016.

In January 2017, Babel signed with Beşiktaş in Turkey. He quickly became an important player. He made 18 league appearances and scored 5 goals. He helped Beşiktaş win their fifteenth league title that season.

On 15 January 2019, Babel joined Fulham in the Premier League. He played there until the end of the season. In June 2019, he moved to Galatasaray in Turkey. He also had a short loan spell back at Ajax in 2020. Babel played for Galatasaray until his contract ended in July 2022. He then joined another Turkish club, Eyüpspor. He retired from football in November 2024.

Playing for His Country

Babel playing for the Netherlands in August 2007

Ryan Babel was born in the Netherlands and has family roots in Suriname. He played for the Netherlands at many youth levels. He was part of the team that reached the quarter-finals of the 2005 FIFA World Youth Championship.

He made his debut for the senior national team on 26 March 2005. He came on as a substitute and scored a goal in a 2–0 win against Romania. This made him one of the youngest goalscorers ever for the Netherlands.

In 2006, Babel was chosen for the Dutch squad for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. He played once in the tournament. In June 2007, Babel was part of the Netherlands under-21 team. They won the UEFA Under-21 Championship. Babel scored a penalty in the group stage. He also scored in the final, where the Netherlands won 4–1 against Serbia.

In May 2008, Babel was selected for the UEFA Euro 2008 tournament. But he had to withdraw due to an ankle injury.

Babel was also in the squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The Netherlands reached the final, but Babel did not play in any matches during the tournament.

After a break, Babel returned to the national team in November 2011. On 29 September 2017, he was called back to the national team after six years. He played in the 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. Even though the Netherlands didn't qualify, Babel continued to play for the team in the UEFA Nations League. He scored a goal against France in the first Nations League match.

Career Statistics Summary

Ryan Babel had a long and successful career. He played in many different leagues and competitions. Overall, he played in 490 league matches, scoring 101 goals. Across all competitions, he played 650 games and scored 134 goals. For the Netherlands national team, he played 69 matches and scored 10 goals.

International goals by date, venue, opponent, score, result and competition
No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1	26 March 2005	Stadionul Giuleşti, Bucharest, Romania	Romania	2–0	2–0	2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
2	12 November 2005	Amsterdam Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands	Italy	1–0	1–3	Friendly
3	1 June 2006	Philips Stadion, Eindhoven, Netherlands	Mexico	2–1	2–1	Friendly
4	7 February 2007	Amsterdam Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands	Russia	1–0	4–1	Friendly
5	24 May 2008	De Kuip, Rotterdam, Netherlands	Ukraine	3–0	3–0	Friendly
6	14 November 2017	Arena Națională, Bucharest, Romania	Romania	2–0	3–0	Friendly
7	26 March 2018	Stade de Genève, Geneva, Switzerland	Portugal	2–0	3–0	Friendly
8	9 September 2018	Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France	France	1–1	1–2	2018–19 UEFA Nations League A
9	9 September 2019	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia	Estonia	1–0	4–0	UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying
10	9 September 2019	A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia	Estonia	2–0	4–0	UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying