Guðlaugur Victor Pálsson (born 30 April 1991) is an Icelandic professional footballer who plays as a defensive midfielder or defender for Danish Superliga club Horsens. He has previously played for Liverpool, Dagenham & Redbridge, Hibernian, New York Red Bulls, NEC, Helsingborgs IF, Esbjerg fB, Zürich, Darmstadt 98, Schalke 04, D.C. United, Eupen and Plymouth Argyle.
Club career Early career Guðlaugur was born in Reykjavík to an Icelandic mother and a Portuguese father. His paternal grandfather was a native of Mozambique. He played for Fjölnir but he decided to move to the neighbouring club Fylkir to get a chance to play on higher level. He then moved to Danish side AGF Aarhus in 2007.
Guðlaugur joined Premier League team Liverpool in 2009. He played for Liverpool reserves and served as team captain but failed to make the breakthrough into the first-team. He went on loan to Dagenham & Redbridge in November 2010, making his debut for the Daggers in the 1st round of the FA Cup in a 1–1 draw with Leyton Orient. He made three appearances for the club, including an FA Cup tie, before returning to Liverpool.
Hibernian On 28 January 2011, Guðlaugur signed an 18-month contract with Scottish Premier League club Hibernian. Guðlaugur was given squad number 91, since 1991 was his birth-year. He made his debut in a 3–0 defeat against Dundee United two days later. Guðlaugur scored his first goal for the club with a penalty in a 2–1 win against Kilmarnock on 12 February. Guðlaugur played regularly under the management of Colin Calderwood, but featured less regularly after Calderwood was replaced by Pat Fenlon. On 10 January 2012, Hibernian announced that Victor had left the club with immediate effect after an agreement was reached to cancel his contract.
New York Red Bulls Sky Sports reported on 24 January 2012 that Guðlaugur was close to agreeing to terms with Major League Soccer club New York Red Bulls. The signing was confirmed by New York on 10 February 2012. Guðlagur did not command a regular starting place in the New York starting lineup during the 2012 season.
Later career
In August 2012, the club loaned Guðlaugur to Eredivisie club NEC until May 2013, including an option for permanent signing. On 31 December 2012, he was signed by NEC permanently on a free transfer. He signed a contract until the summer of 2016.
After the relegation of NEC, Guðlaugur left the club and signed a contract in August 2014 with Swedish side Helsingborgs IF. He made his league debut for the club on 10 August 2014 in a 0–0 home draw with Norrköping. He came on as a substitute for Arnór Smárason in the 75th minute.
Guðlaugur signed a four-year contract with Danish side Esbjerg fB on 31 August 2015. He made his league debut for the club on 14 September 2015 in a 4–2 home victory over Odense BK. He scored his first goal for the club in the 30th minute of this match.
In July 2017 he signed a three-year contract with Swiss side FC Zürich. He made his league debut for Zürich in a 2–1 home victory over Thun on 30 July 2017. He came on as a substitute for Sangoné Sarr in the 85th minute. He was captain of the 2017–18 Swiss Cup winning team.
On 9 January 2019, Guðlaugur Victor signed a three-and-a-half-year deal with 2. Bundesliga side SV Darmstadt 98.
On 25 May 2021, he agreed to join FC Schalke 04, newly relegated from Bundesliga, for the 2021–22 season, signing a two-year contract.
On 27 July 2022, he joined Major League Soccer club D.C. United on a contract until the end of 2024 with an option for a further year.
On 28 July 2023, Guðlaugur Victor returned to Europe when he joined Belgian Pro League club Eupen on a three-year deal, but the Pandas were relegated at the end of his first season there.
On 25 July 2024, Guðlaugur Victor signed for EFL Championship club Plymouth Argyle. He reunited with former D.C. United manager Wayne Rooney, who had recommended his signing despite not being responsible for transfers at the club. Affected by injury and lack of form, he played only eight games before Rooney's resignation on 31 December. He departed the club in August 2025 after having his contract terminated by mutual consent.
Following his departure from Plymouth Argyle, Guðlaugur Victor signed with Danish 1st Division club Horsens on 25 August 2025.
International career Guðlaugur has represented Iceland at Under-17, Under-19, Under-21, and full international levels. He helped Iceland qualify to the 2011 UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship. He scored his first goal for the senior team in a 4–1 win against Liechtenstein on 31 March 2021.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupEuropeOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsLiverpool2010–11Premier League0000—00—00Dagenham & Redbridge2010–11League One2010———30Hibernian2010–11Scottish Premiership161————1612011–12Scottish Premiership1500030——180Total3110030——341New York Red Bulls2012Major League Soccer16010———170NEC Nijmegen2012–13Eredivisie27210———2822013–14Eredivisie23220——20272Total50430——20554Helsingborgs IF2014Allsvenskan12241———1632015Allsvenskan21110———221Total33351———384Esbjerg fB2015–16Danish Superliga5110———612016–17Danish Superliga30220——30352Total35330——30413FC Zürich2017–18Swiss Super League33161———3922018–19Swiss Super League14010—51—201Total47171—51—593Darmstadt 982018–192. Bundesliga150————1502019–202. Bundesliga31320———3332020–212. Bundesliga21320———233Total67640———716Schalke 042021–222. Bundesliga28020———300D.C. United2022Major League Soccer100————1002023Major League Soccer18000———180Total280————280Eupen2023–24Belgian Pro League35210———362Plymouth Argyle2024–25Championship2502000——2702025–26League One300010—0040Total28020100000310Career total4002029240515044323
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsIceland2014102015302016002017202018502019402020802021612022202023110202451202593202661Total626
Scores and results list Iceland's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Victor goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Victor PálssonNo.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition131 March 2021Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz, Liechtenstein263–04–12022 FIFA World Cup qualification29 September 2024Gürsel Aksel Stadium, İzmir, Turkey451–11–32024–25 UEFA Nations League B36 June 2025 Hampden Park, Glasgow, Scotland493–13–1Friendly45 September 2025Laugardalsvöllur, Reykjavík, Iceland511–05–0 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification513 October 2025541–02–2629 September 2026Stade de Luxembourg, Luxembourg City, Luxembourg603–03–02026–27 UEFA Nations League C
Honours FC Zürich Swiss Cup: 2017–18
Schalke 04 2. Bundesliga: 2021–22
References
External links
V. Pálsson at Voetbal International (archived)