Martijn Kaars

Last updated

Martijn Kaars
Austria U-18 vs. Netherlands U-18 2017-03-23 (101).jpg
Kaars for Netherlands U18 in 2017
Personal information
Date of birth (1999-03-05) 5 March 1999 (age 26)
Place of birth Monnickendam, Netherlands
Height 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in)
Position(s) Forward
Team information
Current team
 FC St. Pauli
Number 19
Youth career
2004–2010 VV Monnickendam
2010–2014 Volendam
2014–2018 Ajax
Senior career*
YearsTeamApps(Gls)
2018–2019 Jong Volendam 30 (21)
2018–2022 Volendam 103 (27)
2022–2024 Helmond Sport 75 (35)
2024–2025 1. FC Magdeburg 36 (21)
2025– FC St. Pauli 1 (0)
International career
2014 Netherlands U15 2 (0)
2016–2017 Netherlands U18 5 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 11:42, 30 August 2025 (UTC)

Martijn Kaars (born 5 March 1999) is a Dutch professional footballer who plays as a forward for Bundesliga club FC St. Pauli. [1]

Contents

Kaars began his career with VV Monnickendam before joining the youth academies of Volendam and Ajax. He returned to Volendam in 2018 to make his senior debut in the Eerste Divisie, and moved to Helmond Sport in 2022, where he became a regular goalscorer.

In 2024, he transferred to 1. FC Magdeburg for a reported €800,000, the highest fee received by Helmond Sport, and finished his first season as the 2. Bundesliga's second-highest scorer with 19 goals. He joined FC St. Pauli the following year.

Club career

Early years

Having previously played for his local team VV Monnickendam, Kaars moved to FC Volendam at the age of eleven. He played for four years in the youth teams of the club, before being scouted by the famed Ajax academy. [2] He progressed through the youth teams, and reached Jong Ajax but did not make an appearance for that team. [3]

Volendam

In June 2018, Kaars returned to Volendam as his contract with Jong Ajax expired. [4] He made his Eerste Divisie debut for Volendam on 17 August 2018 in a game against Den Bosch, as an 80th-minute substitute for Nick Doodeman. [5] He scored his first goal on 25 September 2018 in a 2–1 loss in the KNVB Cup against Willem II. [6] [7] His first league goal followed three days later, as he secured the 2–2 draw in an away match against Helmond Sport after an assist by Teije ten Den. [8] [9]

Helmond Sport

On 7 April 2022, Helmond Sport announced the signing of Kaars on a three-year contract, with him joining the club from the 2022–23 season. [10] He made his competitive debut for the club on the first matchday of the season, playing the full game against NAC Breda which was lost 1–0. [11] His first goal came in the following match against Jong AZ on 12 August, where he made the equaliser as Helmond suffered a 3–1 home defeat at De Braak. [12] On 2 September, Kaars scored a brace in a 3–0 victory against Almere City. [13] [14]

1. FC Magdeburg

On 17 June 2024, Kaars joined 2. Bundesliga side 1. FC Magdeburg for a reported fee of around €800,000, a sum that made him the most expensive departure in Helmond Sport's history. [15] [16] He made his competitive debut on 3 August 2024, starting in a 0–0 home draw with SV Elversberg. [17] A week later he scored his first goals for the club, a brace in a 3–1 win away to Eintracht Braunschweig. [18] He registered his first DFB-Pokal goal on 19 August 2024, equalising in a 2–1 first-round defeat at Kickers Offenbach. [19] After the winter break he scored a hat-trick in a 5–2 victory at Elversberg on 19 January 2025, [20] before hitting four goals in a 5–2 win away to FC Schalke 04 on 1 February 2025. [21] In his first season with the club, he scored 19 goals in the league and provided six assists, finishing as the second-highest goalscorer in the competition behind Davie Selke. [22]

FC St. Pauli

On 28 August 2025, Kaars signed for Bundesliga club FC St. Pauli on undisclosed terms. [23] The transfer quickly became a media focal point when an e-mail detailing the offer was inadvertently photographed from the laptop of 1. FC Magdeburg's sporting director and leaked online; Magdeburg subsequently filed a criminal complaint in response. [24] [25]

He made his debut the following day in the Hamburg derby, replacing Andréas Hountondji in the 69th minute of a 2–0 away win over Hamburger SV at the Volksparkstadion. [26]

Career statistics

As of match played 29 August 2025 [1]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
ClubSeasonLeagueCupOtherTotal
DivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoals
Jong Volendam 2018–19 Derde Divisie 2519——2519
2019–20 Tweede Divisie 52——52
Total3021——3021
Volendam 2018–19 Eerste Divisie15111—162
2019–20 Eerste Divisie271110—2811
2020–21 Eerste Divisie3211101 [a] 03411
2021–22 Eerste Divisie29410—304
Total10327411010828
Helmond Sport 2022–23 Eerste Divisie371410—3814
2023–24 Eerste Divisie382110—3921
Total753520—7735
1. FC Magdeburg 2024–25 2. Bundesliga 331911—3420
2025–26 2. Bundesliga3211—43
Total362122—3823
FC St. Pauli 2025–26 Bundesliga1000—10
Career total2451048310254107
  1. ↑ Appearance in Eerste Divisie promotion play-offs

Honours

Jong Volendam

References

  1. 1 2 Martijn Kaars at WorldFootball.net
  2. ↑ Koelemeijer, Tijmen (18 April 2021). "Van pupil tot trainer: Martijn Kaars aankomend seizoen assistent-trainer bij VV Monnickendam". NH Nieuws (in Dutch).
  3. ↑ "Martijn Kaars wilde bij Jong Ajax nóg liever winnen dan normaal". NH Nieuws (in Dutch). 4 November 2019.
  4. ↑ "Aanvaller keert na vier seizoenen Ajax terug bij jeugdliefde FC Volendam". Voetbalprimeur (in Dutch). 4 June 2018.
  5. ↑ "Game Report by Soccerway". Soccerway. 17 August 2018.
  6. ↑ "Volendam vs. Willem II – 25 September 2018". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  7. ↑ "FC Volendam uitgeschakeld door Willem II". NH Nieuws (in Dutch). 25 September 2018.
  8. ↑ "Helmond Sport vs. Volendam – 28 September 2018". int.soccerway.com. Retrieved 18 September 2021.
  9. ↑ "FC Volendam pakt punt in Helmond". FC Volendam (in Dutch). 28 September 2018.
  10. ↑ "Martijn Kaars komende drie seizoenen bij Helmond Sport! | Helmond Sport". Helmond Sport (in Dutch). 7 April 2022. Archived from the original on 7 April 2022. Retrieved 4 July 2022.
  11. ↑ Kas, Dennis (5 August 2022). "Velanas zorgt voor prima seizoensstart op sfeervol Avondje NAC". BN De Stem (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  12. ↑ "Valse seizoensstart voor teleurstellend Helmond Sport: ook Jong AZ is te sterk". Eindhovens Dagblad (in Dutch). 12 August 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  13. ↑ Pichel, Dominique (3 September 2022). "Kaars laat licht branden op De Braak: Hier hebben we bij Helmond Sport naar gesmacht". Eindhovens Dagblad (in Dutch). Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  14. ↑ "Eerste driepunter voor Helmond Sport, Almere City FC blijft kwakkelen". Helmonds Dagblad (in Dutch). 3 September 2022. Retrieved 3 September 2022.
  15. ↑ "FCM verpflichtet Martijn Kaars" [FCM signs Martijn Kaars]. 1.fc-magdeburg.de (in German). 17 June 2024. Retrieved 17 June 2024.
  16. ↑ "Martijn Kaars voor recordbedrag naar Duitse tweedeklasser 1. FC Magdeburg" [Martijn Kaars for record fee to German second-tier side 1. FC Magdeburg]. Brabants Dagblad (in Dutch). 17 June 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  17. ↑ "Aufstellung: 1. FC Magdeburg – SV Elversberg". Kicker (in German). 3 August 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  18. ↑ "Magdeburg holt ersten Saisonsieg in Braunschweig". Kicker (in German). 11 August 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  19. ↑ "FCM verliert bei Kickers Offenbach". 1.fc-magdeburg.de (in German). 19 August 2024. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  20. ↑ "Magdeburg deklassiert Elversberg nach Rückstand". Kicker (in German). 19 January 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  21. ↑ "Spielinfo: FC Schalke 04 – 1. FC Magdeburg". Kicker (in German). 1 February 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  22. ↑ "Torjägerliste 2. Bundesliga 2024/25" [Top scorers list 2. Bundesliga 2024/25]. Kicker (in German). Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  23. ↑ "FC St. Pauli sign striker Martijn Kaars". FC St. Pauli (Press release). 28 August 2025. Archived from the original on 30 August 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  24. ↑ "St. Paulis Kaars ist der öffentlichste Transfer des Jahres" [St. Pauli's Kaars is the most high-profile transfer of the year]. kicker (in German). 28 August 2025. Archived from the original on 28 August 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  25. ↑ "Droomtransfer Kaars naar Bundesliga, maar club doet aangifte na gelekte mail" [Dream transfer for Kaars to the Bundesliga, but club files a complaint after leaked email]. VoetbalPrimeur.nl (in Dutch). 28 August 2025. Archived from the original on 28 August 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  26. ↑ Neuhauss, Florian (28 August 2025). "St. Pauli gewinnt hitziges Hamburger Derby beim HSV" [St. Pauli win heated Hamburg derby at HSV]. NDR (in German). Archived from the original on 30 August 2025. Retrieved 30 August 2025.
  27. ↑ "Jong FC Volendam kampioen Derde Divisie". FC Volendam (in Dutch). 26 May 2019.
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