| Personal information | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Full name | Kenneth Gerardo Vargas Vargas[1] | ||
| Date of birth | (2002-04-17)17 April 2002 (age 22) | ||
| Place of birth | San José, Costa Rica | ||
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in) | ||
| Position(s) | Forward | ||
| Team information | |||
Current team | Heart of Midlothian | ||
| Number | 77 | ||
| Youth career | |||
| –2020 | Herediano | ||
| Senior career* | |||
| Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
| 2020–2024 | Herediano | 55 | (12) |
| 2020–2022 | →Municipal Grecia (loan) | 28 | (5) |
| 2023–2024 | →Heart of Midlothian (loan) | 33 | (6) |
| 2024– | Heart of Midlothian | 26 | (4) |
| International career‡ | |||
| 2023– | Costa Rica U23 | 11 | (5) |
| 2023– | Costa Rica | 12 | (2) |
| *Club domestic league appearances and goals, correct as of 3 March 2025 ‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 29 March 2025 | |||
Kenneth Gerardo Vargas Vargas (born 17 April 2002) is a Costa Rican professionalfootballer who plays as aforward forScottish Premiership clubHeart of Midlothian.[2]
Vargas played forMunicipal Grecia on loan fromC.S. Herediano. After returning to Herediano, he scored on his senior league debut for the club, against Grecia, on 15 January 2022.[3] He went on to score 10 goals in 41 appearances in theLiga FPD, the Costa Rican first division, in 2022.[4]
On 7 August 2023, Vargas joinedScottish Premiership clubHeart of Midlothian on a season-long loan deal from Herediano, with an option to purchase outright.[5]
Vargas was permanently signed byHearts on 26 March 2024 on a five-season contract.[6]
Capped atunder-23 level,[7] Vargas received his first call-up to theCosta Rica senior national team in 2021.[8] In October 2022 he was again called up to the national team set-up but didn't make an appearance from the substitute bench.[9]
His father, also called Kenneth Vargas and nicknamed “Huevo”, was a professional footballer in Costa Rica who played as a striker. Kenneth Vargas Jnr is subsequently nicknamed “Huevito”.[10]
| Club | Season | League | National cup | Continental | Other | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | ||
| Grecia (loan) | 2020–21 | Liga FPD | 11 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 11 | 2 | ||
| 2021–22 | Liga FPD | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 17 | 3 | |||
| Total | 28 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 5 | ||
| Herediano | 2021–22 | Liga FPD | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 2[a] | 0 | 14 | 2 | |
| 2022–23 | Liga FPD | 33 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 3[b] | 0 | 8[a] | 0 | 52 | 12 | |
| 2023–24 | Liga FPD | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | 1[c] | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Total | 45 | 12 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 67 | 14 | ||
| Heart of Midlothian (loan) | 2023–24 | Scottish Premiership | 33 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 2[d] | 0 | 3[e] | 0 | 42 | 9 |
| Heart of Midlothian | 2024–25 | Scottish Premiership | 26 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 8[f] | 0 | 1[e] | 0 | 38 | 4 |
| Career total | 132 | 27 | 14 | 4 | 13 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 174 | 31 | ||
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
| Costa Rica | 2023 | 3 | 0 |
| 2024 | 7 | 1 | |
| 2025 | 2 | 1 | |
| Total | 12 | 2 | |
Scores and results list Costa Rica's goal tally first.
| No. | Date | Venue | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 15 October 2024 | Estadio Nacional,San José, Costa Rica |  Guatemala | 2–0 | 3–0 | 2024–25 CONCACAF Nations League A |
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