Thom Jan Marinus Haye (born 9 February 1995) is a professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

er who plays 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 ...

, he is currently a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...

player. Born in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, he represents

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania, between the Indian Ocean, Indian and Pacific Ocean, Pacific oceans. Comprising over List of islands of Indonesia, 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, ...

at international level. A product of AZ's academy, Haye made his first-team debut in 2014, before moving on to clubs such as Willem II,

Lecce Lecce (; ) is a city in southern Italy and capital of the province of Lecce. It is on the Salentine Peninsula, at the heel of the Italian Peninsula, and is over two thousand years old. Because of its rich Baroque architecture, Lecce is n ...

in Italy,

ADO Den Haag Alles Door Oefening Den Haag (), commonly known by the abbreviated name ADO Den Haag (), is a Dutch association football club from the city of The Hague. They play in the Eerste Divisie, the second tier of Dutch football, following relegation ...

NAC Breda NAC Breda (), often simply known as NAC, is a Dutch professional football club, based in Breda, Netherlands. NAC Breda play in the Rat Verlegh Stadium, named after their most important player, Antoon 'Rat' Verlegh. They play in the Eredivisi ...

, and

Heerenveen Heerenveen (, ) is a town and Municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Netherlands, province of Friesland (Fryslân), in the Northern Netherlands. In 2021, the town had a population of 29,790 (1 January) while the m ...

. Haye represented the Netherlands at various youth levels from under-15 to under-21, becoming European under-17 champions twice in

2011 The year marked the start of a Arab Spring, series of protests and revolutions throughout the Arab world advocating for democracy, reform, and economic recovery, later leading to the depositions of world leaders in Tunisia, Egypt, and Yemen ...

and

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, before switching his international allegiance to Indonesia in 2024 through

naturalization Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-national of a country acquires the nationality of that country after birth. The definition of naturalization by the International Organization for Migration of the ...

Club career

AZ

Haye was born in

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

and is a youth exponent from AZ. He signed his first contract for AZ in February 2011. On 23 February 2014, he made his full debut for AZ in the

Eredivisie The Eredivisie (; "Honour Division" or "Premier Division") is a professional association football league in the Netherlands and the highest level of the Dutch football league system. The league was founded in 1956, two years after the start o ...

against

Ajax Ajax may refer to: Greek mythology and tragedy * Ajax the Great, a Greek mythological hero, son of King Telamon and Periboea * Ajax the Lesser, a Greek mythological hero, son of Oileus, the king of Locris * Ajax (play), ''Ajax'' (play), by the an ...

in a 4–0 away defeat, coming on as a 70th-minute substitute for Celso Ortíz. Haye scored his first professional goal in 24 September 2014, securing his club's advancement in the

KNVB Cup The KNVB Beker (; ), branded as the TOTO KNVB Beker for sponsorship reasons, is a competition in the Netherlands organised by the Royal Dutch Football Association (KNVB) since 1898. It was based on the format of the English FA Cup. Outside the N ...

in a 1–0 away win over EVV. He became a starter in the 2015–16 season, before making his debut in the

UEFA Europa League The UEFA Europa League (UEL), usually known simply as the Europa League, is an annual association football, football club competition organised since 1971 by the UEFA, Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) for eligible European footb ...

in the 2016–17 season.

Willem II

On 19 June 2016, Haye signed a two-year deal with Willem II, after his contract with AZ expired. He made his debut on 6 August in a 4–1 home loss to Vitesse.

Lecce

On 31 May 2018, Haye signed a two-year contract with Italian

Serie B The Serie B (), officially known as Serie BKT for sponsorship reasons, is the second-highest division in the Italian football league system after the Serie A. It has been operating for over ninety years since the 1929–30 season. It had b ...

club

. He made his debut on 7 August, in the

Coppa Italia Coppa Italia () is the annual domestic cup of Italian football. The knockout competition was organized by the DDS and the Lega Calcio until the 2009–10 season and by Lega Serie A ever since. Juventus is the competition's most successf ...

match against Feralpisalò, which ended in a 1–0 win after extra time. He made his Serie B debut on 25 September, when he came on as a substitute in the second half of the 3–0 win against

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 152,916 residents as of 2025. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn ...

. Haye would go on to make 13 appearances in Serie B that season, which ended in promotion to

Serie A The Serie A (), officially known as Serie A Enilive in Italy and Serie A Made in Italy abroad for sponsorship reasons, is a professional association football league in Italy and the highest tier of the Italian football league system. Establish ...

. On 2 September 2019, after having failed to make an appearance in the top flight, he terminated his contract by mutual agreement.

ADO Den Haag

On 12 September 2019, Haye returned to the Netherlands to join

side

on a two-year deal. He made his first appearance upon his return in a 3–0 away loss to Emmen on 27 September, coming on as a late substitute for John Goossens. He mostly appeared as a substitute during his six months with ADO.

NAC Breda

In January 2020, Haye was sent on a six-month loan to

in the second-tier

Eerste Divisie The Eerste Divisie (; ) is the second-highest tier of football in the Netherlands. It is linked with the top-level Eredivisie via promotion/relegation systems. It is also known as the Keuken Kampioen Divisie due to sponsorship reasons, while ...

. He made his debut on 31 January in a 2–2 away draw against

Excelsior Excelsior may refer to: Arts and entertainment Literature and poetry * "Excelsior" (Longfellow), an 1841 poem by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow * "Excelsior", an 1877 picture book in verse by Bret Harte, published as an advertisement for the Sa ...

. Haye signed a permanent deal with NAC on 1 July 2020, penning a three-year contract.

Heerenveen

On 31 January 2022, Haye signed for

for an undisclosed fee, on a contract until summer 2024. He made his debut for the club on 5 February as a starter in the 2–0 loss to

Fortuna Sittard Fortuna Sittard (; ) is a professional football club from the municipality of Sittard-Geleen, Netherlands. The club currently plays its football in the 12,500 capacity Fortuna Sittard Stadion and features in the Eredivisie. The club was establi ...

. He immediately impressed, growing into a key player in his first six months at the club. In 16 league appearances, he recorded five assists. Haye and Heerenveen could not agree to a new contract at the end of the 2023–24 season, as he preferred a move abroad. He ended his stint at the club with seven goals and 13 assists in 86 appearances.

Almere City

On 13 September 2024, Haye signed for Almere City, on a contract until summer 2025. He made his debut for the club on 15 September as a substitute in the 0–0 draw to

Heracles Heracles ( ; ), born Alcaeus (, ''Alkaios'') or Alcides (, ''Alkeidēs''), was a Divinity, divine hero in Greek mythology, the son of ZeusApollodorus1.9.16/ref> and Alcmene, and the foster son of Amphitryon.By his adoptive descent through ...

International career

Haye was a Netherlands youth international, having appeared for the national team between under-15 and under-21 level. He was part of the team that won the

and

2012 UEFA European Under-17 Championship The 2012 UEFA European Under-17 Championship was the eleventh edition of UEFA's European Under-17 Football Championship under its current age grouping. Slovenia hosted the tournament between 4 and 16 May. An appeal by the Hungarian Football Feder ...

, as well as participating at the

2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup The 2011 FIFA U-17 World Cup was the 14th edition of the FIFA U-17 World Cup, the biennial international men's youth association football, football championship contested by the under-17 national teams of the member associations of FIFA. It was h ...

. In January 2024, Haye confirmed that he had decided to represent Indonesia at international level. On 7 March 2024, Haye was called up to the Indonesia national team for two

2026 FIFA World Cup qualification The 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification will decide the 45 teams that will join hosts Canada men's national soccer team, Canada, Mexico national football team, Mexico, and the United States men's national soccer team, United States at the 2026 FIFA ...

matches against

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

. He made his debut in the second match on 26 March 2024, providing an assist for Jay Idzes in an eventual 3–0 win. Then, on 11 June 2024, he scored his first international goal against the

Philippines The Philippines, officially the Republic of the Philippines, is an Archipelagic state, archipelagic country in Southeast Asia. Located in the western Pacific Ocean, it consists of List of islands of the Philippines, 7,641 islands, with a tot ...

, a match Indonesia won 2–0 at home.

Style of play

Haye started his career as an

attacking midfielder In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

but adapted to various positions as he progressed. During his two seasons with Willem II, he frequently operated as a

left winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

, utilising his strong and accurate right foot to cut inside from the flank. His versatility made him an exceptional utility player. As his career advanced, he transitioned to a more defensive role, primarily playing as a

central 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 ...

YouTube

Haye has a podcast YouTube channel called "The Haye Way", co-hosted with Dutch journalist Neal Petersen. The first season of the podcast commenced with its inaugural episode on 13 November 2024, focusing on Haye's profile beyond the football pitch. , the channel has amassed over 200,000 subscribers and over 3.1 million views.

Personal life

Born in the Netherlands, Haye is of Indonesian descent. On 18 March 2024, Haye officially obtained Indonesian citizenship.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Indonesia score listed first, score column indicates score after each Haye goal''

Honours

Netherlands U17 *

UEFA European Under-17 Championship The UEFA European Under-17 Championship, or simply the Euro Under-17, is an annual Association football, football competition contested by the men's under-17 national teams of the UEFA member associations. Spain national under-17 football team, ...

Individual *UEFA European Under-17 Championship Team of the Tournament: 2012

References

External links

Profile
at the

Football Association of Indonesia The Football Association of Indonesia (; 'All-Indonesian Football Association'; abbreviated as PSSI) is the governing body of Football soccer, football in Indonesia. It was founded on 19 April 1930. The PSSI joined FIFA in 1952 and the Asian F ...