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Nathan De Cat

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Nathan De Cat
De Cat with Belgium in 2026
Personal information
Full name Nathan De Cat[1]
Date of birth (2008-07-19) 19 July 2008 (age 18)
Place of birth Vilvoorde, Belgium
Height 1.92 m (6 ft 4 in)
Position Midfielder
Team information
Current team
 TSG Hoffenheim
Number 17
Youth career
–2024 Anderlecht
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2024–2025 RSCA Futures 33 (3)
2025–2026 Anderlecht 42 (3)
2026– TSG Hoffenheim 0 (0)
International career‡
2023 Belgium U15 4 (0)
2024–2025 Belgium U17 10 (2)
2025– Belgium U18 2 (1)
2024– Belgium U19 4 (0)
2026– Belgium 1 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 24 May 2026
‡ National team caps and goals as of 29 March 2026

Nathan De Cat (born 19 July 2008) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder for German Bundesliga club TSG Hoffenheim and the Belgium national team.

Club career

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De Cat with Anderlecht in 2025.

Anderlecht

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De Cat is a youth product of Anderlecht having joined them at age 10, and he signed his first professional contract with them in October 2023, valid until June 2025.[2] He made his professional debut on 22 February 2024, in a 0–1 Challenger Pro League away win against SL16 FC.[3] On 27 August 2024, De Cat extended his contract with Anderlecht until 2027, and was promoted to the senior squad.[4]

On 20 February 2025, he made his first team debut for Anderlecht in UEFA Europa League knockout game against Fenerbahçe, coming on as a substitute. He is one of the youngest debutants for Anderlecht at 16 years, 7 months and 1 day.[5]

He made his professional league debut as a 1 minute substitute vs Racing Genk on 6 April in a Jupiler Pro League Champions’ Playoffs match, coming on in the 90th minute.

On 1 May 2025, he scored his first goal for RSC Anderlecht against Royal Antwerp FC in a Jupiler Pro League Champions’ playoffs match, after coming on as a substitute for Majeed Ashimeru.[6]

TSG Hoffenheim

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On 10 July 2026, De Cat moved to Bundesliga side TSG Hoffenheim, signing a long-term contract until 2031.[7][8] His transfer fee was reportedly €20 million, with €4 million in potential bonuses, and a future sale percentage retained by Anderlecht.[9]

International career

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De Cat is a youth international for Belgium. He was part of the Belgian U17 team who reached the semi-finals of the 2025 UEFA European Under-17 Championship, where he was named in the Team of the Tournament.[10]

On 28 March 2026, he made his senior debut for Belgium as a substitute in a 5–2 friendly victory over the United States.[11]

Style of play

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De Cat was included in The Guardian's "Next Generation 2025: 60 of the best young talents in world football", where he was described as a "towering midfielder", and further "He is a fighter, but loves dribbling too".[12]

Career statistics

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Club

[edit]
As of match played 24 May 2026
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League Belgian Cup Europe Other Total
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
RSCA Futures 2023–24 Challenger Pro League 100———100
2024–25 Challenger Pro League 233———233
Total 333———333
Anderlecht 2024–25 Belgian Pro League 61001[a]0—71
2025–26 Belgian Pro League 362515[b]0—463
Total 4235160—534
Career total 756516000857
  1. ↑ Appearance in UEFA Europa League
  2. ↑ One appearance in UEFA Europa League, four appearances in UEFA Conference League

International

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As of match played 29 March 2026
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National teamYearAppsGoals
Belgium 202610
Total10

Honours

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Individual

References

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  1. ↑ "LISTE D'ÉQUIPE" (PDF). FIFA. 12 September 2025. Retrieved 12 November 2025.
  2. ↑ "Nathan De Cat signs his first professional contract - October 2023 - Soccerway". rsca.be.
  3. ↑ "SL16 FC vs. RSCA Futures - 2 February 2024 - Soccerway". soccerway.com.
  4. ↑ "Nathan De Cat has extended his contract until 2027 | RSC Anderlecht". www.rsca.be. Retrieved 2025-11-11.
  5. ↑ "16-jarige Decat debuteert bij RSC Anderlecht" [16 year old Decat makes his debut for RSC Anderlecht]. voetbalbelgië.be. voetbalbelgië. 26 April 2025.
  6. ↑ "Antwerp-Anderlecht live: 16 jarige De Cat zet Anderlecht op dubbele voorsprong tegen tienkoppig Antwerp" [Antwerp-Anderlecht live: 16 year old De Cat puts Anderlecht 2 goals ahead against 10-men Antwerp]. Sporza.be. Sporza. 1 May 2025.
  7. ↑ "TSG Hoffenheim verpflichtet Top-Talent Nathan De Cat" [TSG Hoffenheim signs top talent Nathan De Cat] (in German). TSG 1899 Hoffenheim. 10 July 2026. Retrieved 10 July 2026.
  8. ↑ "Nathan De Cat joins Hoffenheim from Anderlecht". bundesliga.com - the official Bundesliga website. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
  9. ↑ "Nathan De Cat verlaat Anderlecht en trekt voor 20 miljoen euro naar Hoffenheim". De Standaard (in Flemish). 2026-07-10. Retrieved 2026-07-11.
  10. ↑ "2025 U17 EURO Team of the Tournament". UEFA.com. 3 June 2025. Retrieved 11 November 2025.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  11. ↑ van Haaster, Jonathan (28 March 2026). "Mika Godts kent sterk debuut voor België, dat vijf keer scoort tegen de Verenigde Staten" (in Dutch). Voetbalzone.
  12. ↑ Christenson, Marcus; Bloor, Steven; Blight, Garry (2025-10-14). "Next Generation 2025: 60 of the best young talents in world football". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2025-11-11.
  13. ↑ "2025 U17 EURO Team of the Tournament". UEFA. 3 June 2025. Retrieved 28 June 2025.
  14. ↑ "Verrassing op de Gouden Schoen: Ardon Jashari (AC Milan) troeft ex-ploegmaats van Club Brugge af met 1 stemronde". Sporza (in Dutch). 11 January 2026.
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