Erik Vardanyan (; born 7 June 1998) is an

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

former professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby lea ...

who played as a

midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an Glossary of association football terms#O, outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in t ...

Career

Pyunik

On 24 October 2019, Vardanyan extended his contract with Pyunik. On 27 October 2019, Vardanyan was sent off in a 4–2 defeat away to

Ararat Yerevan Football Club Ararat Yerevan (), commonly known as Ararat Yerevan, is an Armenia, Armenian professional Association football, football club based in Yerevan that plays in the Armenian Premier League. Since 1999 the club has been owned by the Sw ...

, pushing the referee Henrik Nalbandyan and swearing at the opposition fans in the process. As a result, on 1 November 2019, Vardanyan was handed a six-month suspension until 30 April 2020.

Sochi

On 5 November 2019, Pyunik and

PFC Sochi Football Club Sochi (), is a Russian professional football club based in Sochi. The club is playing its home matches at the 47,000-capacity Fisht Stadium. History FC Sochi was founded on 4 July 2018 after the relocation of FC Dynamo Saint Pete ...

announced the transfer of Erik Vardanyan, with the transfer to be finalised on 1 January 2020. Erik was considered one of the most promising Armenian football talents at the time, and earned call ups to Armenia's senior national team. Even though his contract with Sochi was technically not active until 2020, he was not eligible to play for Pyunik due to disqualification, and therefore joined Sochi and started training with the squad immediately upon signing. The disqualification applied to the

Russian Premier League The Russian Premier League (RPL; , ''Rossiyskaya premyer-liga''; РПЛ), also written as Russian Premier Liga, is a professional association football league in Russia and the highest level of the Russian football league system. It was establis ...

Pyunik loan

On 10 July 2021, Pyunik announced the return of Vardanyan to the club on loan from

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...

Urartu

On 17 February 2022, Vardanyan signed with

Urartu Urartu was an Iron Age kingdom centered around the Armenian highlands between Lake Van, Lake Urmia, and Lake Sevan. The territory of the ancient kingdom of Urartu extended over the modern frontiers of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Armenia.Kleiss, Wo ...

. On 29 December 2022, Vardanyan announced his retirement from football due to a knee injury, and that he would become a football scout for

. Since 2024, Vardanyan has held the post of sports director of Urartu.

Career statistics

Club

International

''Statistics accurate as of match played 29 March 2022''

International goals

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Vardanyan, Erik 1998 births Living people Armenian men's footballers Men's association football midfielders Armenia men's under-21 international footballers 21st-century Armenian sportsmen Armenia men's youth international footballers FC Pyunik players FC Mika players PFC Sochi players FC Urartu players Armenian Premier League players Russian Premier League players Armenia men's international footballers Armenian expatriate men's footballers Expatriate men's footballers in Russia Armenian expatriate sportspeople in Russia