WikiMini

Ilmari Niskanen

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]
–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 78 (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 14:44, 25 August 2025 (UTC)
‡ National team caps and goals as of 17 November 2024

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]

Club career

[edit]

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

[edit]

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

[edit]

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

[edit]

Club

[edit]
As of match played 23 August 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
2025–26[30] League One 5 0 0 0 0 0 — 0 0 5 0
Total 78 2 3 0 2 0 0 0 2 0 85 2
Career total 336 32 35 8 3 0 10 0 3 0 387 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. ^ a b 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. ^ a b Appearance(s) in EFL Trophy

International

[edit]
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 [31]

Honours

[edit]

KuPS

Individual

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Club list of registered players: As at 17th May 2025" (PDF). English Football League. Retrieved 1 July 2025.
  2. ^ a b c "Ilmari Niskanen". worldfootball.net. Retrieved 26 September 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "KuPS:n Ilmari Niskanen kuukauden pelaajaksi". www.veikkausliiga.com (in Finnish).
  4. ^ Ilmari Niskanen pelasi taas täydet minuutit – sai 20 maaottelua täyteen, kiuruvesilehti.fi, 10 June 2024
  5. ^ Tilastot | Niskanen, Ilmari at Veikkausliiga. Retrieved 11 July 2020.
  6. ^ Tulospalvelu Palloliitto, Finnish FA
  7. ^ Tässä on Veikkausliigan kauden 2019 mestarijoukkue! IS esittelee kulta-KuPSin pelaaja pelaajalta, Ilta-Sanomat, 19 October 2019
  8. ^ a b Ilmari Niskanen Veikkausliigan kuukauden pelaaja, JPY, 11 September 2019
  9. ^ "Ilmari Niskanen kommt auf die Schanz". fcingolstadt.de (in German).
  10. ^ "On aina valtava kunnia päästä edustamaan Suomea": Ilmari Niskanen uskoo pääsevänsä takaisin Huuhkajien vahvuuteen piakkoin, suomifutis.com, Joakim Nordström, 23 September 2021
  11. ^ Woodger, Calum. "EXCLUSIVE: Work permit holding up Ilmari Niskanen transfer as Dundee United agree deal for Finnish winger".
  12. ^ "Dundee Utd land Levitt & Niskanen" – via www.bbc.co.uk.
  13. ^ "On aina valtava kunnia päästä edustamaan Suomea": Ilmari Niskanen uskoo pääsevänsä takaisin Huuhkajien vahvuuteen piakkoin, suomifutis.com, Joakim Nordström, 23 September 2021
  14. ^ "Exeter sign Niskanen from Dundee United". BBC Sport. 15 August 2023. Retrieved 15 August 2023.
  15. ^ a b 23/24 Awards: The Winners, exetercityfc.co.uk, 29 April 2024
  16. ^ Ilmari Niskanen pens contract extension, exetercityfc.co.uk, 15 May 2024
  17. ^ a b Ilmari Niskanen Named Your RGB Recruitment Player Of The Month!, exetercityfc.co.uk, 4 November 2024
  18. ^ Ilmari Niskasella loistopäivä – palkinto, maali ja voitto, Etelä-Suomen Sanomat, 26 April 2025
  19. ^ a b c d e Ilmari Niskanen at Soccerway. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  20. ^ a b c "Ilmari Niskanen". National Football Teams. Benjamin Strack-Zimmermann. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  21. ^ Huuhkajatuomio: Suomen floppipelaajaa nöyryytettiin Lontoon illassa, Ilta-Sanomat, 11 September 2024
  22. ^ Englanti rankaisi Huuhkajia vaihtopelaajan virheistä – asiantuntija tyrmäsi Markku Kanervan perustelut, Yle, 11 September 2024
  23. ^ "Immulla oli vähän vaikeuksia" – Markku Kanerva perusteli Ilmari Niskasen vaihtoa Ylelle, suomifutis.com, 11 September 2024
  24. ^ Maajoukkueessa pelannut Ilmari Niskanen jäi kiinni rattijuopumuksesta Englannissa, Yle, 19 February 2025
  25. ^ Exeter City footballer says he'll take a bus to training after being banned from driving, itv.com, 24 February 2025
  26. ^ "Games played by Ilmari Niskanen in 2021/2022". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  27. ^ "Games played by Ilmari Niskanen in 2022/2023". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  28. ^ a b "Games played by Ilmari Niskanen in 2023/2024". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 25 August 2023.
  29. ^ "Games played by Ilmari Niskanen in 2024/2025". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 10 September 2024.
  30. ^ "Games played by Ilmari Niskanen in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 13 August 2025.
  31. ^ "Poland 5-1 Finland (7 Oct, 2020) Final Score". ESPN. Retrieved 2023-08-15.
[edit]