Ademola Lookman

Ademola Lookman Olajade Alade Aylola Lookman (born 20 October 1997) is a Nigerian professional footballer who plays as a winger or second-striker for La Liga club Atlético Madrid. Born in England, he plays for the Nigeria national team.

Lookman made his senior debut in 2015, playing as a forward for Charlton Athletic of the Championship. He signed for Everton in January 2017, where he played mainly as a winger. After joining Italian club Atalanta in 2022, he won the UEFA Europa League in 2024, scoring a hat-trick in the final against Bayer Leverkusen and subsequently being named the African Footballer of the Year, becoming the seventh Nigerian international to win the award. In 2026 he joined Atlético.

Having represented England from under-19 to under-21 levels, Lookman made his senior debut for Nigeria in 2022. He was part of the squad that finished runners-up at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and 3rd place at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations .

Early life

Ademola Lookman Olajade Alade Aylola Lookman was born on 20 October 1997 in Wandsworth, Greater London, to Nigerian parents. He attended St Thomas the Apostle College in Nunhead where he achieved three A*s and five As in his GCSEs.

Club career

Charlton Athletic

Lookman joined Charlton Athletic's academy in 2014 after signing from Waterloo, a youth football club based in the London Borough of Lambeth. His goalscoring record for Charlton's U18 and U21 teams led to him making a rapid ascent through the Charlton academy ranks and he made his first-team debut for the Addicks on 3 November 2015. He scored his first goal for the club in a 3–2 defeat at Brighton & Hove Albion on 5 December 2015, and then followed that up with both Charlton's goals in a 2–2 draw with Bolton Wanderers ten days later.