{{Short description|Iranian footballer}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2022}} {{Infobox football biography | name = Aria Yousefi | image = YousefiCropped.jpg | caption = Yousefi in 2025 | fullname = | height = 1.81 m | position = Right-back | birth_date = {{birth date and age|2002|04|22|df=y}} | birth_place = Bandar-e Mahshahr, Iran | currentclub = Sepahan | clubnumber = 14 | youthyears1 = | youthclubs1 = Naft Ahvaz | youthyears2 = 2020–2021 | youthclubs2 = Sepahan | years1 = 2021– | clubs1 = Sepahan | caps1 = 77 | goals1 = 6 | nationalyears1 = 2022– | nationalteam1 = Iran U23 | nationalcaps1 = 10 | nationalgoals1 = 2 | nationalyears2 = 2024– | nationalteam2 = Iran | nationalcaps2 = 13 | nationalgoals2 = 1 | medaltemplates = {{MedalCountry|{{fb|IRN}}}} {{Medal|Competition|CAFA Nations Cup}} {{Medal|RU|2025 Tajikistan–Uzbekistan|Team}} | pcupdate = 1 January 2026 | ntupdate = 29 May 2026 }}
'''Aria Yousefi''' ({{langx|fa|آریا یوسفی}}; born 22 April 2002) is an Iranian football defender who plays for Sepahan in the Persian Gulf Pro League and the Iran national team.
==Career== Yousefi was born in Bandar-e Mahshahr, and is a youth product of Naft Ahvaz and Sepahan. He debuted in the Persian Gulf Pro League with Sepahan in 2021.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.beytoote.com/sport/athletic/biography2-aria-yousefi.html|title=بیوگرافی آریا یوسفی، فوتبالیست ماهشهری|website=www.beytoote.com|access-date=13 April 2024}}</ref>
==International career== Yousefi debuted with the Iran national team in a friendly 2–1 win over Burkina Faso on 5 January 2024.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.national-football-teams.com/matches/report/37863/Iran_Burkina_Faso.html|title=Iran vs. Burkina Faso|first=Benjamin|last=Strack-Zimmermann|website=www.national-football-teams.com|access-date=13 April 2024}}</ref> He was included in the final squad in the Iranian senior team to compete for the 2023 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar in January 2024.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://footballi.net/news/r/850617/%D8%AF%D9%84%D8%A7%DB%8C%D9%84-%D9%85%D9%84%DB%8C-%D9%BE%D9%88%D8%B4-%D8%B4%D8%AF%D9%86-%DB%8C%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%81%DB%8C-%D8%A7%D8%B2-%D8%B2%D8%A8%D8%A7%D9%86-%D9%85%D8%AD%D9%85%D8%AF%D8%AD%D8%B3%DB%8C%D9%86-%D9%85%DB%8C%D8%AB%D8%A7%D9%82%DB%8C|title=دلایل ملیپوش شدن یوسفی از زبان محمدحسین میثاقی!|date=1 January 2024|website=فوتبالی|access-date=13 April 2024}}</ref>
On the 8th of September 2025, in a CAFA Nations Cup match against Uzbekistan, Yousefi obtained a red card and was sent off. It was the first red card of his international career.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.teammelli.com/ten-man-iran-collapses-at-the-death-handing-uzbekistan-historic-cafa-cup-triumph/|title=Ten-Man Iran Collapses at the Death, Handing Uzbekistan Historic CAFA Cup Triumph|date=8 September 2025|website=Team Melli|access-date=16 February 2025}}</ref>
==Career statistics== {{updated|1 January 2026}} {|class="wikitable"style="text-align:center;" |- !rowspan="2"|Club !rowspan="2"|Division !rowspan="2"|Season !colspan="2"|League !colspan="2"|Cup !colspan="2"|Asia ! colspan="2" |Other !colspan="2"|Total |- ! Apps !! Goals !! Apps !! Goals !! Apps !! Goals !Apps !Goals!! Apps !! Goals |- |rowspan="6"|Sepahan |rowspan="5"|Pro League |2021–22 |4||0||1||0||0||0 |colspan="2"|—||5||0 |- |2022–23 |14||0||2||0||colspan="2"|— |colspan="2"|—||16||0 |- |2023–24 |17||4||4||0||6||0 |colspan="2"|—||27||4 |- |2024–25 |28||1||3||0||6||1||1||0||38||2 |- |2025–26 |14||1||2||0||5||1||colspan="2"|—||21||2 |- !colspan="2"|Total !77!!6!!12!!0!!17!!2!!1!!0!!107!!8 |- !colspan="3"|Career totals !77!!6!!12!!0!!17!!2!!1!!0!!107!!8 |}
===International=== {{updated|match played 29 May 2026}}<ref name="teammelli">{{cite web|title=Statistics: Iran [Team Melli]|url=https://www.teammelli.com/matchdata/details/player.php?id=700}}</ref><ref name="NFT">{{cite web|url=http://www.national-football-teams.com/player/93294/Aria_Yousefi.html|title=Yousefi, Aria|website=National Football Teams|access-date=25 March 2025}}</ref> {|class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" |+ Appearances and goals by national team and year |- !National team!!Year!!Apps!!Goals |- |rowspan="3"|Iran |2024||5||0 |- |2025||6||0 |- |2026||2||1 |- !colspan="2"|Total!!13!!1 |}
:''Scores and results list Iran goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Yousefi goal''
{| class="wikitable sortable" |+ List of international goals scored by Aria Yousefi |- !scope="col"|No. !scope="col"|Date !scope="col"|Venue !scope="col"|Opponent !scope="col"|Score !scope="col"|Result !scope="col"|Competition |- | style="text-align:center"|1 || 29 May 2026 || Mardan Sports Complex, Antalya, Turkey || {{fb|GAM}} || style="text-align:center"|1–1 || style="text-align:center"|3–1 || Friendly |}
==Honours== '''Sepahan''' *Iranian Hazfi Cup: 2023–24 *Iranian Super Cup: 2024
==In the media== One of the Iranian news agencies wrote about him with the headline "The Angel Who Saves Teams": "With exceptional positioning and creating goal opportunities with short passes, deep runs and quick comebacks, Aria Yousefi has managed to become the angel who saves teams in defense and attack.<ref>[https://www.chtn.ir/news/1403070200089/%D8%A2%D8%B1%DB%8C%D8%A7-%DB%8C%D9%88%D8%B3%D9%81%DB%8C-%D9%81%D8%B1%D8%B4%D8%AA%D9%87-%D9%86%D8%AC%D8%A7%D8%AA-%D8%AA%DB%8C%D9%85-%D9%87%D8%A7-%D8%AF%D8%B1-%D8%AF%D9%81%D8%A7%D8%B9-%D9%88-%D8%AD%D9%85%D9%84%D9%87/ «آریا یوسفی» فرشته نجات تیم ها در دفاع و حمله]</ref>
It seems that Aria Yousefi is one of the country's football phenomena whose name will be heard with greater fame in Iran and the world in the future." He has also been referred to as a young phenomenon in some news and media.<ref>[https://us.soccerway.com/players/aria-yousefi/798847/ درخشش پدیده جوان سپاهان ادامه دارد؛ آریا، عصای دست مورایس]</ref>
An international media outlet published a news item with the headline "Rising Star Aria Yousefi Shines for Sepahan, Iran" to praise his performance and stated: "His impressive skills on the field have not gone unnoticed; he is emerging as a football phenomenon whose name is expected to gain worldwide recognition soon. With his contributions in both defense and attack, Aria Yousefi is poised to become one of the leading figures in Iranian football, captivating fans and analysts alike with his talent and determination."<ref>[https://iranpress.com/rising-star-aria-yousefi-shines-for-sepahan--iran Rising Star Aria Yousefi Shines for Sepahan, Iran]</ref>
==References== <references/>
==External links== *{{NFT|93294}} *{{Soccerway|aria-yousefi/798847}}
{{Sepahan S.C. squad}} {{Navboxes |title = Iran squads |bg = white |fg = #DA0000 |bordercolor = #239F40 |list1= {{Iran squad 2023 AFC Asian Cup}} {{Iran squad 2026 FIFA World Cup}} }}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yousefi, Aria}} Category:2002 births Category:Footballers from Khuzestan province Category:Living people Category:21st-century Iranian sportsmen Category:Men's association football full-backs Category:Iranian men's footballers Category:Iran men's youth international footballers Category:Iran men's international footballers Category:Sepahan S.C. footballers Category:Persian Gulf Pro League players Category:2023 AFC Asian Cup players Category:2026 FIFA World Cup players