John Hou Sæter (born 13 January 1998), also known as Hou Yongyong () in China, is a Chinese professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Chinese Super League club Yunnan Yukun.
Club career Early career John Hou Sæter started his football career when he joined Rosenborg's youth academy in 2013. He made his debut for the club on 24 April 2014 in a 3–0 win against Orkla FK in the 2014 Norwegian Football Cup, becoming the youngest player ever to make his debut for Rosenborg aged 16 years and 101 days. He made his league debut on 28 September 2014 in a 3–0 win against Aalesund, coming on as a substitute in the 81st minute. He became the youngest player ever to make his league debut for the club aged 16 years and 258 days.
In August 2016, Hou Sæter signed a new two-year contract with Rosenborg before being loaned to Norwegian First Division side Ranheim until the end of the 2016 season. In July 2017, Hou Sæter transferred to fellow Tippeligaen side Stabæk.
Beijing Guoan In January 2019, Hou Sæter obtained Chinese citizenship and joined Chinese Super League club Beijing Guoan. He made his debut for the club on 23 February 2019 in a 2–0 loss against Shanghai SIPG in the 2019 Chinese FA Super Cup, coming on as a substitute for Chi Zhongguo in the 71st minute. This made Hou Sæter the first naturalised Chinese player in China's professional leagues. On 29 May 2019, Hou scored his first goal for Guoan in a 3-1 home win against Changchun Yatai in a Chinese FA Cup fifth round match.
On 12 August 2020, Hou scored his first Chinese Super League goal in a 3-1 win against Hebei China Fortune.
Hou Sæter left the club at the end of the 2022 season and returned to Ranheim, after his contract with Guoan had ended.
Yunnan Yukun On 26 January 2025, Hou Sæter returned to Chinese Super League by joining the new promoted club Yunnan Yukun.
Personal life Born to a Norwegian father and a Chinese mother from Luoyang, Henan, Hou Sæter's Chinese name is Hou Yongyong.
When Hou Sæter was 10 years old, he participated in an international football competition arranged by Manchester United. He was chosen as one of 37 from a group of about 20,000 participants to come attend the finale in Manchester. He finished second in the competition and received an award from Bobby Charlton, only beaten by a boy who was a year older than him.
He renounced his Norwegian passport in 2019 to receive the Chinese citizenship.
On 12 February 2025, FIFA approved his change of association from Norway to China.
Career statistics . + Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational CupContinentalOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsRosenborg2014Tippeligaen1010––202015304030–100Total405030–120Ranheim (loan)2016Norwegian First Division9300––93Stabæk2017Eliteserien9121––112201823020––250Total32141––362Beijing Guoan2019Chinese Super League1612100101922020820000–822021000000–0020221000––10Total253210010284Ranheim2023OBOS-ligaen15100––1512024291920––3119Total442020––4620Yunnan Yukun2025Chinese Super League3053000003352026181200000201Total486500000436Career total16232182301018434
Honours Rosenborg Tippeligaen: 2015 Norwegian Football Cup: 2015
Individual Norwegian First Division Player of the Month: September 2024 Norwegian First Division Golden Boot: 2024 Norwegian First Division Player of the Year 2024
See also List of Chinese naturalized footballers
References
External links Profile at RBK.no (archived 21 February 2015)