Rafael van der Vaart

"Van der Vaart" redirects here. For other people with the same surname, see Van der Vaart (surname).

In this Dutch name, the surname is van der Vaart, not Vaart.
Rafael van der Vaart
Van der Vaart at practice with Hamburger SV in 2014
Personal information
Full name Rafael Ferdinand van der Vaart[1]
Date of birth (1983-02-11) 11 February 1983 (age 41)[2]
Place of birth Heemskerk, Netherlands
Height 1.76 m (5 ft 9 in)[3]
Position(s) Attacking midfielder
Youth career
1987–1993 De Kennemers
1993–2000 Ajax
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2000–2005 Ajax 117 (52)
2005–2008 Hamburger SV 74 (30)
2008–2010 Real Madrid 58 (11)
2010–2012 Tottenham Hotspur 63 (24)
2012–2015 Hamburger SV 78 (16)
2015–2016 Betis 7 (0)
2016–2018 Midtjylland 17 (2)
2018 Esbjerg 3 (0)
Total 417 (135)
International career
1998–1999 Netherlands U17 13 (5)
1999–2000 Netherlands U19 8 (2)
2000–2001 Netherlands U21 4 (2)
2001–2013 Netherlands 109 (25)
Managerial career
2021–2023 Esbjerg (assistant)
2022 Esbjerg (interim)
Medal record
Men's football
Representing  Netherlands
FIFA World Cup
Runner-up 2010 South Africa
UEFA European Championship
Bronze medal – third place 2004 Portugal
UEFA European Under-16 Championship
Bronze medal – third place 2000 Israel U-16 Team
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Rafael Ferdinand van der Vaart (born 11 February 1983) is a Dutch former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder.[4]

Van der Vaart began his career at Ajax's youth academy and worked his way into the first team, debuting as a 17-year-old. Known for his playmaking skills, he drew comparisons to Johan Cruyff. He was named Dutch Football Talent of the Year and became the first recipient of the Golden Boy Award while at the club. He moved to Bundesliga club Hamburger SV, then to Real Madrid, then on to Tottenham Hotspur before returning to Hamburger SV in 2012. In the latter stages of his career, Van der Vaart had brief spells playing in Spain and Denmark before announcing his retirement in 2018, and return in 2019 with a testimonial match.

Van der Vaart earned 109 caps for the Netherlands between 2001 and 2013. He represented the country at three UEFA European Championships and two FIFA World Cups, reaching the final in 2010.

In 2019, Van der Vaart began his darts career, joining the British Darts Organisation.

  1. ^ "Acta del Partido celebrado el 08 de mayo de 2016, en Eibar" [Minutes of the Match held on 8 May 2016, in Eibar] (in Spanish). Royal Spanish Football Federation. Retrieved 18 June 2019.
  2. ^ "R. van der Vaart" (in Dutch). Voetbal International. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  3. ^ "Spielerprofil – Rafael van der Vaart" (in German). Hamburger SV. Archived from the original on 30 May 2013. Retrieved 8 June 2013.
  4. ^ "Rafael van der Vaart interim-trainer bij Deense club Esbjerg". De Telegraaf (in Dutch). 12 March 2022. Retrieved 12 March 2022.