Ilmari Niskanen

Ilmari Matias Niskanen (born 27 October 1997) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a left winger and wing back for EFL League One club Exeter City and the Finland national team.^[5]

Ilmari Niskanen

Personal information
Full name	Ilmari Matias Niskanen[1]
Date of birth	(1997-10-27) 27 October 1997 (age 27)
Place of birth	Kiuruvesi, Finland
Height	1.77 m (5 ft 10 in)[2]
Position(s)	Left winger, wing back[3]
Team information
Current team	Exeter City
Number	14
Youth career
	Kiuruveden Palloilijat[4]
0000–2013	PK-37
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2013–2020	KuPS	154	(18)
2013	→ PK-37 (loan)	22	(9)
2014	→ KuFu-98	7	(0)
2014	→ PK-37 (loan)	1	(0)
2017	→ KuFu-98	1	(1)
2020–2021	FC Ingolstadt	20	(0)
2021–2023	Dundee United	53	(2)
2023–	Exeter City	74	(2)
International career‡
	Finland U17
2015	Finland U19[2]	3	(0)
2017–2018	Finland U21	6	(0)
2020–	Finland	23	(1)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 13:17, 3 August 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 17 November 2024

Club career

Born in Kiuruvesi,^[2] Niskanen spent his youth years with PK-37 in Iisalmi, before starting his professional career in 2013 in a nearby town Kuopio with Kuopion Palloseura (KuPS).^[6] In the 2019 Veikkausliiga season, Niskanen helped the club to win its first Finnish championship title in 43 years.^[7] He was also named the Veikkausliiga Player of the Month in August 2019^[8] and in July 2020.^[3]

In September 2020, Niskanen signed for German club FC Ingolstadt for a transfer fee of €350,000.^[9][10]

In August 2021, Niskanen had a transfer to Scottish Premiership club Dundee United, which was initially delayed due to work permit issues,^[11] before eventually completing on 20 August 2021.^[12] The transfer fee was reported to be €350,000.^[13]

On 15 August 2023, Niskanen signed for League One club Exeter City for an undisclosed fee.^[14] On 29 April 2024, Niskanen was named the Exeter City Community Champion in the club's end of season awards.^[15] On 15 May 2024, his deal was extended until June 2026.^[16] He was named the Exeter City Player of the Month in October 2024.^[17] At the end of the 2024–25 season, Niskanen received an award from Exeter City's supporters for his extensive interaction in the fan-zone area throughout the season.^[18]

International career

Niskanen represented Finland at under-17, under-19 and under-21 youth levels,^[19] before making his senior international debut in 2020.^[20]

On 10 September 2024, in a 2024–25 UEFA Nations League B away match against England, Niskanen was humiliated by the national team head coach Markku Kanerva, by substituting him in for the second half to a wrong position for his expertise. Later Finland conceded goals directly due to Niskanen's errors and eventually lost the game 2–0.^[21][22][23]

Personal life

On 19 February 2025, it was reported that Niskanen had been caught by English police while driving under the influence of alcohol earlier in February.^[24] On 24 February, he was fined £2,885 and banned from driving for 18 months, by the Exeter Magistrates Court.^[25]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 3 May 2025^[19]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		League cup[b]		Continental		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
KuPS	2013	Veikkausliiga	1	0	0	0	0	0	—		—		1	0
	2014	Veikkausliiga	4	1	0	0	0	0	—		—		4	1
	2015	Veikkausliiga	20	1	1	0	0	0	—		—		21	1
	2016	Veikkausliiga	25	0	1	0	0	0	—		—		26	0
	2017	Veikkausliiga	32	1	6	2	—		—		—		38	3
	2018	Veikkausliiga	33	4	6	4	—		2[c]	0	—		41	8
	2019	Veikkausliiga	26	5	5	1	—		4[c]	0	—		35	6
	2020	Veikkausliiga	13	6	5	1	—		2[d]	0	—		20	7
	Total		154	18	24	8	0	0	8	0	0	0	186	26
PK-37 (loan)	2013	Kakkonen	22	9	2	0	—		—		—		24	9
KuFu-98 (loan)	2014	Kakkonen	7	0	–		—		—		—		7	0
	2015	Kolmonen	0	0	—		—		—		1[e]	0	1	0
	Total		7	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	8	0
PK-37 (loan)	2014	Kakkonen	1	0	—		—		—		—		1	0
KuFu-98 (loan)	2017	Kakkonen	1	1	—		—		—		—		1	1
FC Ingolstadt	2020–21	3. Liga	20	0	0	0	—		—		—		20	0
	2021–22	2. Bundesliga	0	0	1	0	—		—		—		1	0
	Total		20	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	21	0
Dundee United	2021–22[26]	Scottish Premiership	33	1	3	0	0	0	—		—		36	1
	2022–23[27]	Scottish Premiership	20	1	2	0	0	0	2[f]	0	—		24	1
	2023–24[28]	Scottish Championship	0	0	0	0	1	0	—		—		1	0
	Total		53	2	5	0	1	0	2	0	0	0	61	2
Exeter City	2023–24[28]	League One	33	0	0	0	1	0	—		1[g]	0	35	0
	2024–25[29]	League One	40	2	3	0	1	0	—		1[g]	0	45	2
	Total		73	2	3	0	2	0	0	0	2	0	80	2
Career total			331	32	35	8	3	0	10	0	3	0	382	40

1. Includes Suomen Cup, DFB-Pokal, Scottish Cup and FA Cup
2. Includes Finnish League Cup, Scottish League Cup and EFL League Cup
3. Appearances in UEFA Europa League
4. One appearance in the UEFA Champions League and one appearance in UEFA Europa League
5. Appearance(s) in UEFA Regions' Cup
6. Appearances in UEFA Europa Conference League
7. Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy

International

As of match played 17 November 2024

Appearances and goals by national team and year^[20]

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Finland	2020	6	1
	2021	1	0
	2022	6	0
	2023	3	0
	2024	7	0
Total		23	1

Finland score listed first, score column indicates score after each Niskanen goal^[20]

List of international goals scored by Ilmari Niskanen

No.	Date	Venue	Cap	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition	Ref.
1	7 October 2020	Stadion Gdańsk, Gdańsk, Poland	2	Poland	1–3	1–5	Friendly	[30]

Honours

KuPS

• Veikkausliiga: 2019^[19]
• Veikkausliiga runner-up: 2017^[19]
• Finnish Cup runner-up: 2013^[19]

Individual

• Veikkausliiga Player of the Month: August 2019,^[8] July 2020^[3]
• Exeter City: ECCT PFA Community Champion 2023–24^[15]
• Exeter City Player of the Month: October 2024^[17]