.jpg) Kökçü playing forTurkey in 2024 | |||
| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date of birth | (2000-12-29)29 December 2000 (age 24) | ||
| Place of birth | Haarlem, Netherlands[1] | ||
| Height | 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in) | ||
| Position | Midfielder | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Beşiktaş (on loan fromBenfica) | ||
| Number | 10 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| 2007–2009 | Olympia Haarlem | ||
| 2009–2010 | EDO | ||
| 2010–2011 | Stormvogels | ||
| 2011–2014 | Groningen | ||
| 2014–2018 | Feyenoord | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2018–2023 | Feyenoord | 119 | (23) |
| 2023– | Benfica | 60 | (14) |
| 2025– | →Beşiktaş (loan) | 10 | (0) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2017–2018 | Netherlands U18 | 5 | (2) |
| 2018–2019 | Netherlands U19 | 7 | (2) |
| 2019 | Turkey U21 | 2 | (0) |
| 2020– | Turkey | 46 | (3) |
| * Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23:37, 2 November 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 23:09, 18 November 2025 (UTC) | |||
Orkun Kökçü (Turkish pronunciation:[oɾˈkunˈkœktʃy]; born 29 December 2000) is a professionalfootballer who plays as amidfielder forSüper Lig clubBeşiktaş whom he captains, on loan fromPrimeira Liga clubBenfica. Born in the Netherlands, he plays for theTurkey national team.
A youth product ofFC Groningen, where he arrived after having played for local clubs around his hometownHaarlem,[2] Kökçü joined theFeyenoord youth academy in 2014.[3] He made his debut for Feyenoord at the age of 17 in a 4–0 win overVV Gemert in the first round of theKNVB Cup on 17 September 2018, scoring Feyenoord's second goal.[4] He made hisEredivisie debut againstFC Emmen on 9 December 2018,[5] and contributed with a goal and an assist after coming on as a substitute.[6] On 10 April 2019, he extended his contract at Feyenoord until 2023.[7] On 26 June 2020, he reached an agreement to extend his contract with Feyenoord for another two years, a deal to the end of the 2024–25 season.[8]
FollowingJens Toornstra's departure, Feyenoord head coachArne Slot chose Kökçü as hisclub captain on 2 September 2022.[9] With Kökçü as captain, Feyenoord went on to win the2022–23 Eredivisie.[10]
On 10 June 2023, Kökçü joinedBenfica on a five-year deal for a reported fee of €25 million, plus €5 million in variables.[11] The sum represented a record signing for the Portuguese club and the league surpassingDarwin Núñez transfer fromAlmería to Benfica in 2020 for transfer fee of €24 million and a club record sale for Feyenoord becoming the club's biggest sale since Kökçu's former Feyenoord teammateLuis Sinisterra's transfer toLeeds United in 2022 for a fee of €25 million.[12]
Kökçü made his debut for Benfica in theSupertaça Cândido de Oliveira, starting in a2–0 win overrivalsFC Porto.[13] He scored his first goal on 2 September, netting Benfica's third goal in a 4–0 home win overVitória de Guimarães.[14] Kökçü made hisUEFA Champions League debut on 20 September, starting in a 2–0 home loss toRed Bull Salzburg.[15]
On 12 July 2025, Kökçü agreed on a loan deal withSüper Lig clubBeşiktaş with an option to buy.[16] On 17 October 2025, Kökçü has been appointed as the new captain of the team.[17]
Kökçü was a youth international for the Netherlands, having represented theNetherlands U18s,[18] andNetherlands U19s.[19] In July 2019, Kökçü announced the intent to play for the Turkey national team.[20] He represented theTurkey U21s in a 3–22021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification loss to theEngland U21s on 6 September 2019.[21]
He made hisTurkey national team debut on 6 September 2020 in aNations League game againstSerbia, he started the game and played the first hour of the 0–0 away draw.[22]
In June 2021, Kökçü was included in the list of 26 Turkish players selected to compete atUEFA Euro 2020.[23]
On 7 June 2024, he was named in the final squad of 26 players chosen byVincenzo Montella to take part inUEFA Euro 2024.[24]
Born in the Netherlands, Kökçü is of Turkish descent,[25] fromSuvermez, Emirdağ.[26] He is the younger brother of the professional footballerOzan Kökçü who plays internationally for theAzerbaijan national team. He is a lifelong fan ofBeşiktaş and indicated a desire to play for the club he had been supporting since childhood.[27]
| Club | Season | League | National cup[a] | League cup[b] | Europe | Other | Total | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Feyenoord | 2018–19 | Eredivisie | 11 | 3 | 1 | 1 | — | 0 | 0 | — | 12 | 4 | ||
| 2019–20[c] | Eredivisie | 22 | 2 | 4 | 0 | — | 9[d] | 1 | — | 35 | 3 | |||
| 2020–21 | Eredivisie | 22 | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 6[d] | 1 | 2[e] | 0 | 31 | 4 | ||
| 2021–22 | Eredivisie | 32 | 7 | 1 | 0 | — | 18[f] | 2 | — | 51 | 9 | |||
| 2022–23 | Eredivisie | 32 | 8 | 4 | 1 | — | 10[d] | 3 | — | 46 | 12 | |||
| Total | 119 | 23 | 11 | 2 | — | 43 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 175 | 32 | |||
| Benfica | 2023–24 | Primeira Liga | 27 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 9[g] | 0 | 1[h] | 0 | 43 | 7 |
| 2024–25 | Primeira Liga | 33 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 12[i] | 4 | 4[j] | 0 | 55 | 12 | |
| Total | 60 | 14 | 7 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 21 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 98 | 19 | ||
| Beşiktaş | 2025–26 | Süper Lig | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 5[k] | 0 | — | 15 | 0 | ||
| Career total | 189 | 37 | 18 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 69 | 11 | 7 | 0 | 288 | 51 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Turkey | 2020 | 2 | 0 |
| 2021 | 11 | 1 | |
| 2022 | 5 | 0 | |
| 2023 | 6 | 1 | |
| 2024 | 14 | 0 | |
| 2025 | 8 | 1 | |
| Total | 46 | 3 | |
Scores and results list Turkey's goal tally first.[29]
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 16 November 2021 | Podgorica City Stadium,Podgorica, Montenegro | 13 |  Montenegro | 2–1 | 2–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 2 | 25 March 2023 | Vazgen Sargsyan Republican Stadium,Yerevan, Armenia | 19 |  Armenia | 1–1 | 2–1 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 3 | 20 March 2025 | Rams Park,Istanbul, Turkey | 39 |  Hungary | 1–0 | 3–1 | 2024–25 UEFA Nations League promotion/relegation play-offs |
Feyenoord
Benfica
Individual
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Awards | |||||
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