Patrick Kluivert

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Kluivert was part of Ajax's Golden Generation of the 1990s, scoring the winner in the 1995 UEFA Champions League Final at the age of 18. He spent six years with Spanish club Barcelona, where he scored 124 goals from 249 appearances. He formed a successful partnership with Rivaldo, and won the Spanish La Liga championship of 1999. Kluivert played for the Netherlands national team from 1994 to 2004. With 40 goals in 79 appearances, he is the fourth highest goalscorer for the Oranje. He played in three European Championships and the 1998 FIFA World Cup, and was joint top scorer at Euro 2000, where he scored five goals. In 2004, he was named in the FIFA 100.

In Their Own Story

The defining moment arrived on a rainy night in Vienna during the 1995 UEFA Champions League Final against AC Milan. With the match deadlocked at 0–0 deep into stoppage time, Kluivert entered as a substitute. In the 85th minute, he received the ball near the box, took a touch to set himself, and fired a thunderous strike inside the post to secure the title. At only 18 years, 10 months, and 23 days, he became the youngest scorer in a Champions League final history. The celebration was one of pure relief and triumph for a teenager who had grown up playing on Amsterdam streets before joining the academy at seven. This goal cemented his place not just as a player, but as the spearhead of a squad that conquered Europe without losing a single league match that season.

Reader's Guide

Kluivert began his coaching career as an assistant at AZ and NEC, as well as the Brisbane Roar, before managing Jong Twente to a national title in the Dutch reserves league. He was an assistant to Louis van Gaal with the Dutch team that finished third at the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In 2015, he took over as head coach of the Curaçao national team. He then served as a sporting director for Paris Saint-Germain, as well as coaching the Ajax A1 (under-19) team in 2016 and assisting Clarence Seedorf for the Cameroon national team in 2018. After leaving Cameroon in July 2019, he served as the academy director of Barcelona until his brief return to Curaçao as interim coach in May 2021. Kluivert was head coach of Turkish side Adana Demirspor in 2023 and the Indonesia national team in 2025.

Did You Know?

• Kluivert scored the winning goal in extra time of the 1995–96 Dutch Supercup against Feyenoord.
• He was the youngest player to score in a Champions League final, being 18 years, 10 months and 23 days old.
• Kluivert scored a hat-trick in the 6–1 quarter-final demolition of Yugoslavia at Euro 2000.
• He is the fourth highest goalscorer for the Netherlands national team with 40 goals.