Viktor Gyökeres

Club career

Viktor Gyökeres grew up in Stockholm and first kicked a ball for IFK Aspudden-Tellus at the age of five. When he was 14, in 2013, he moved to Brommapojkarna. After working his way through the youth setup, he played his first senior match two years later. His first goals came on 20 August 2015, when he scored twice in a 3-0 Svenska Cupen victory over IF Sylvia. The next season, after the club had dropped down a division, his seven goals helped Brommapojkarna earn promotion back to the Superettan. He then fired them into the Svenska Cupen semi-finals by netting the winner against top-flight Elfsborg in the quarter-finals, though IFK Norrköping ended their run with a 4-0 defeat.

By 6 September 2017, Gyökeres had already scored ten league goals. That day he agreed to join Premier League side Brighton & Hove Albion on a two-and-a-half-year contract, with the move set to happen once the Superettan season finished. He closed out the campaign with 13 goals in 29 league appearances, including a hat-trick on the final day, as Brommapojkarna won the league title and secured promotion to the Allsvenskan. He officially became a Brighton player on 1 January 2018 and started out with the under-23 squad. His senior debut for the club came on 28 August in a 1-0 EFL Cup loss to Southampton. On 26 January 2019, he made his FA Cup debut as a substitute in a 0-0 home draw with West Bromwich Albion.

In July 2019, Gyökeres was loaned to German second-division side St. Pauli for the 2019-20 season. He made his debut off the bench in a 1-1 draw at Arminia. His first goal for the club came on 29 September, scoring the second in a 2-0 home win over SV Sandhausen. On 17 September 2020, he netted his first Brighton goal in a 4-0 EFL Cup victory against Portsmouth. A few weeks later, on 2 October 2020, he joined Championship side Swansea City on loan for the rest of the 2020-21 season. He made his Swansea debut as a substitute the next day in a 2-1 home win over Millwall. His first goal for the club arrived on 9 January 2021, when he scored the second in a 2-0 FA Cup win at Stevenage. Brighton recalled him on 14 January 2021.

International career

Viktor Gyökeres first represented Sweden at the under-19 and under-21 levels. During the qualification run for the 2017 European Under-19 Championship, he scored twice, one of which was the decider against Italy that sent Sweden to the tournament for the first time. At the finals in Georgia, he found the net in every group match, but Sweden did not advance. His three goals put him level with England’s Ben Brereton and Ryan Sessegnon and the Netherlands’ Joël Piroe for the Golden Boot.

Gyökeres made his senior debut on 8 January 2019 in a 1-0 defeat to Finland. Three days later, he got his first senior goal in a 2-2 draw with Iceland. In October 2021, after nine goals in 11 Championship games for Coventry, he was called up to replace Zlatan Ibrahimović for World Cup qualifiers against Kosovo and Greece. On 16 October 2023, he put Sweden ahead in the 15th minute against Belgium, but Romelu Lukaku equalised before the Euro 2024 qualifier was abandoned at half-time due to a fatal shooting outside the stadium that killed two Swedish fans.

On 16 November 2024, he opened the scoring in a 2-1 win over Slovakia that secured Sweden’s promotion to Nations League B. Three days later, he bagged four goals in a 6-0 home win against Azerbaijan, his first international hat-trick. On 26 March 2026, he scored a hat-trick in a 3-1 win over Ukraine in a World Cup play-off semi-final. Five days later, he netted the winner in a 3-2 victory over Poland in the play-off final, sending Sweden back to the World Cup after missing the 2022 edition. In May 2026, manager Graham Potter named him in the squad for the tournament, and in the opening match against Tunisia, Gyökeres scored to make it 3-1 in a 5-1 win.

Player profile

Viktor Gyökeres relies on a combination of strength, speed, and endurance. He uses his quick acceleration to get behind defensive lines and his power to hold up play, whether in the air or on the ground. He can shield the ball, link up with teammates, run into wide areas, and deliver crosses. In one-on-one situations, he creates chances with sharp turns and flicks. His pressing forces errors from opponents and disrupts their buildup, and he is also useful on set pieces.

At Sporting CP, he operated as the central striker in a 3–4-3 system, leading the attack from the highest point. He makes runs into the box, uses his physicality to occupy defenders, and pulls them out of position to open space for the wide forwards. He also drifts to the wings or half-spaces to stretch the defense. His link-up play involves holding the ball and passing it to teammates, creating opportunities through his movement and positioning.

After scoring, Gyökeres crosses both hands over his mouth. His former Coventry City teammate Josh Eccles said the gesture is based on the character Hannibal Lecter, who eats people, and that Viktor destroys defenses. In November 2023, Gyökeres told Aftonbladet that many guessed Hannibal Lecter or Batman, but no one was right, and he kept the meaning a secret. On December 18, 2023, after a 2-0 league win over Porto, he said he would explain after the season if Sporting won the league. In June 2024, Portuguese media reported the celebration was inspired by the comics character Bane, after Gyökeres posted a line attributed to Bane on Instagram.

Personal life

Viktor Gyökeres holds both Hungarian and Swedish citizenship, a heritage traced to his paternal grandfather who moved to Sweden. His father, Stefan Gyökeres, was a footballer for IFK Östersund and Stugun during the 1980s and 1990s. In January 2024, broadcaster CMTV reported that Gyökeres is dating Portuguese actress Inês Aguiar. He previously dated professional footballer Amanda Nildén, a high school acquaintance who joined Brighton’s women’s team when he transferred to the club in 2018.