Leonidas Stergiou

Leonidas Stergiou (Greek: Λεωνίδας Στεργίου; born 3 March 2002) is a Swiss professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for German Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart and the Switzerland national team.^[2]

Leonidas Stergiou

Personal information
Date of birth	(2002-03-03) 3 March 2002 (age 23)
Place of birth	Wattwil, Switzerland[1]
Height	1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
Position(s)	Centre-back
Team information
Current team	VfB Stuttgart
Number	20
Youth career
	Wil
2015–2019	St. Gallen
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2018–2019	St. Gallen II	5	(0)
2019–2024	St. Gallen	139	(1)
2023–2024	→ VfB Stuttgart (loan)	15	(1)
2024–	VfB Stuttgart	12	(1)
International career‡
2016–2017	Switzerland U15	6	(0)
2017–2018	Switzerland U16	8	(0)
2018–2019	Switzerland U17	9	(1)
2019–2020	Switzerland U19	4	(0)
2020–	Switzerland U21	18	(1)
2022–	Switzerland	6	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 22:24, 25 April 2025 (UTC) ‡ National team caps and goals as of 29 June 2024

Club career

Stergiou initially made his competitive debut for the senior St. Gallen side on 6 February 2019, participating in a 3–1 victory against FC Zürich.^[3]

On 22 August 2023, Stergiou joined VfB Stuttgart in Germany on loan.^[4] Stergiou played just 39 minutes in the first half of the season, but made his first start in February and then became a regular starter.^[5] On 4 May 2024, he scored his first Bundesliga goal in a 3–1 win over Bayern Munich.^[6]

On 15 May 2024, the loan deal was made permanent and Stergiou signed a contract until June 2028 with VfB Stuttgart.^[7]

International career

Stergiou played four games for Switzerland U15^[8] and five for Switzerland U16.^[9] He was the captain of Switzerland U21 at the 2023 UEFA European Under-21 Championship, where they reached quarter-finals.^[10]

Stergiou made his debut for the Switzerland senior national team on 12 June 2022 in a Nations League game against Spain. He replaced Ricardo Rodriguez in the 79th minute as Switzerland won 1–0.^[11]

In June 2024, he was named in the Swiss squad for UEFA Euro 2024 in Germany. He replaced Silvan Widmer as a substitute in the 68th minute of the team's opening Group A match against Hungary.^[12]

Personal life

Stergiou was born in Wattwil in the Canton of St. Gallen, to a Greek father and a Serbian mother. After joining the FC St. Gallen academy at a young age he progressed through the ranks to the first team.^[13][1]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 25 April 2025

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			Cup[a]		Europe		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
St. Gallen II	2018–19	Swiss 1. Liga	5	0	—		—		—		5	0
St. Gallen	2018–19	Swiss Super League	11	0	0	0	—		—		11	0
	2019–20	Swiss Super League	34	1	2	0	—		—		36	1
	2020–21	Swiss Super League	32	0	4	0	1[b]	0	—		37	0
	2021–22	Swiss Super League	27	0	3	0	—		—		30	0
	2022–23	Swiss Super League	35	0	4	0	—		—		39	0
	Total		139	1	13	0	1	0	—		153	1
VfB Stuttgart (loan)	2023–24	Bundesliga	15	1	3	0	—		—		18	1
VfB Stuttgart	2024–25	Bundesliga	12	1	2	0	4[c]	0	—		18	1
Career total			171	3	18	0	5	0	0	0	196	2

1. Includes Swiss Cup and DFB-Pokal
2. Appearance in UEFA Europa League
3. Appearances in UEFA Champions League

International

As of match played 29 June 2024

Appearances and goals by national team and year

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Switzerland	2022	1	0
	2024	5	0
Total		6	0

Honours

Individual

• Swiss Super League Young Footballer of the Year: 2020–21^{[citation needed]}