Peter Pekarík (; born 30 October 1986) is a Slovak former professional footballer who played as a right-back for the Slovakia national team, for which he is the joint most capped player with 138 caps.
Club career MŠK Žilina Born in Žilina, Pekarík played football at the youth section of his local club. His Corgoň Liga debut came for ZŤS Dubnica. In his first season, he played 27 matches and came back to MŠK Žilina in summer 2005. Pekarík won the Corgoň Liga in the 2006–07 season, playing 35 matches.
Germany and loan to Kayserispor Following great performances in the 2008–09 Slovak Superliga, Pekarík and signed a four-and-a-half-year contract for Bundesliga side VfL Wolfsburg in January 2009. On 31 January 2009, he made his Bundesliga debut during a 1–1 draw against 1. FC Köln, only to be replaced by Cristian Zaccardo at half-time. Except for one game, Pekarík played in all matches of the second half as Wolfsburg won its first Bundesliga title.
In August 2011, Pekarík joined Turkish Süper Lig club Kayserispor for the 2011–12 season on loan.
After a loan in Turkey, Pekarík returned to Germany, signing for Hertha BSC. On 31 March 2017, in his eighth season in Germany, he scored his first Bundesliga goal in a 3–1 loss against 1899 Hoffenheim which was his 151st Bundesliga match.
Return to MŠK Žilina On 26 September 2024, Pekarík returned to his hometown club MŠK Žilina after 15 years of playing abroad, signing a contract until 30 January 2025.
Dynamo České Budějovice On 10 February 2025, Pekarík signed a contract with Dynamo České Budějovice until the end of the season as a free agent.
Return to Germany In August 2025, Pekarík returned to Berlin to join Hertha BSC II.
International career Early international career On 10 December 2006, Pekarík debuted for the Slovak senior squad in a friendly match against United Arab Emirates. He scored his first international goal in a 7–0 home victory over San Marino.
Pekarík was included the Slovakia squad for the 2010 FIFA World Cup. After being an unused substitute in the opening match against New Zealand, he started the second and third Group F matches, assisting Kamil Kopúnek's decisive third goal in the 3–2 win over Italy that qualified Slovakia for the knockout stage. He went on to start in the team's round of 16 match against the Netherlands, where they lost 2–1.
Pekarík played in all four of Slovakia's matches at UEFA Euro 2016, where the team reached the round of 16, losing to Germany and all three of their matches at UEFA Euro 2020.
2020s On 1 June 2021, Pekarík played his 100th match for Slovakia in a friendly 1–1 draw against Bulgaria. He was named in Slovakia's squad for UEFA Euro 2024 and played in all four of the team's matches at the tournament. This made him one of two players, along with the Juraj Kucka, to play in all eleven of Slovakia's matches in UEFA European Championships as an independent nation.
On 5 June 2026, he made his final international appearance in a 2–2 friendly draw against Montenegro, earning his 138th cap and equaling Marek Hamšík's record for the most appearances for Slovakia.
Style of play British newspaper The Guardian praised Pekarík for his important leadership qualities as a centre-back.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueCupContinentalOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsMFK Dubnica (loan)2004–05Slovak Superliga270–––270Žilina2005–06Slovak Superliga272–40–3122006–07350–––3502007–08310–40–3502008–09183–100–283Total1115–180–1295VfL Wolfsburg2008–09Bundesliga16020––1802009–101600070–2302010–1123011––241Total5503170–651Kayserispor (loan)2011–12Süper Lig27020––290Hertha BSC2012–132. Bundesliga19000––1902013–14Bundesliga31000––3102014–1530020––3202015–1612010––1302016–173113020–3612017–181701050–2302018–193000––302019–209000––902020–2123311––2442021–2227120–203112022–235000––502023–242. Bundesliga5000––50Total212510170202315Žilina2024–25Slovak First Football League7110––81České Budějovice2024–25Czech First League90–––90Hertha BSC II2025–26Regionalliga Nordost160–––160Career total491111623202054013
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsSlovakia20061020070020085020091212010100201180201280201360201480201551201610020177020185020196020206020211202022602023902024100202520202620Total1382
Scores and results list Slovakia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Pekarík goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Peter PekaríkNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition1 6 June 2009 Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia 2–0 7–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification2 27 March 2015 Štadión pod Dubňom, Žilina, Slovakia 3–0 3–0 UEFA Euro 2016 qualifying
Honours MŠK Žilina Fortuna Liga: 2006–07 Slovak Super Cup: 2007
VfL Wolfsburg Bundesliga: 2008–09
Hertha BSC 2. Bundesliga: 2012–13
Slovakia King's Cup: 2018
See also List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
References
External links