Leo Onni Artturi Väisänen (born 23 July 1997) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a centre back for BK Häcken in Allsvenskan and the Finland national team. Väisänen was born in Helsinki, Finland. He began his senior club career playing for HJK and RoPS, before signing with Den Bosch at age 21 in 2018.
Väisänen made his international debut for Finland in June 2019, at the age of 21.
Club career
HJK
Väisänen made his Veikkausliiga debut for HJK on 14 April 2016 in a game against RoPS.
RoPS
In November 2016 he signed a two-year contract with RoPS. He made his debut on 12 April 2017, playing the full 90 minutes of a 6–2 defeat at Inter Turku.
Den Bosch
In August 2018, Väisanen was signed by Dutch side FC Den Bosch for an undisclosed fee. He made his debut for the club on 21 September 2018, in an Eerste Divisie match against Almere; he was substituted on in the 61st minute for Stefano Beltrame.
Elfsborg On 12 January 2020 Väisänen joined Swedish club IF Elfsborg on a 3.5-year contract, for a transfer fee of €150,000.TERVETULOA LEO VÄISÄNEN, elfsborg.se, 12 January 2020Maajoukkuetoppari Leo Väisäsellä onnistunut kauden alku Ruotsissa – vastustajan törkeä temppu puhutti: "En edes tajunnut", Yle, 14 June 2020Ruotsalaislähde: Leo Väisänen on siirtymässä Elfsborgiin, suomifutis.com, 11 January 2020Huuhkajien pakit yhä tutumpi näky Keravalla – Leo Väisänenkin viihtyy valkosipulikaupungissa: "Nyt on hyvä ottaa vähän happea", keski-uusimaa.fi, 20 December 2020
Austin FC On 4 January 2023, it was announced Väisänen had signed with Major League Soccer (MLS) side Austin FC on a four-year deal, with an option for a further year. The transfer fee was reported to be €1.8 million. He scored his first goal in MLS on 7 October 2023, in a 2–4 home defeat to LAFC.
BK Häcken On 24 March 2025, Väisänen signed for BK Häcken until the summer of 2028. On 2 April, he suffered a knee injury in his first match with Häcken and was estimated to miss several months.Leo Väisäselle musertava tieto, Ilta-Sanomat, 2 April 2025
International career He made his Finland national football team debut on 11 June 2019 in a Euro 2020 qualifier against Liechtenstein, as an 86th-minute substitute for Jukka Raitala.
Väisänen was called up in the UEFA Euro 2020 pre-tournament friendly match against Sweden on 29 May 2021. On 1 June 2021 Markku Kanerva published the national team for the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament and Väisänen was named as one of the defenders. On 12 June 2021 Väisänen came in as a 90th-minute substitute for Jukka Raitala in a UEFA Euro 2020 match against Denmark.
Personal life He is the younger brother of Sauli Väisänen. Their mother Anna-Liisa Tilus-Väisänen is a television presenter for Yle and Miss World 1984 semi-finalist.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupContinentalOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsKlubi 042015Kakkonen171–—––1712016Kakkonen22–—––22Total19300000000193HJK2015Veikkausliiga00100000–102016Veikkausliiga30211000–51Total303110000071PK-35 Vantaa (loan)2016Veikkausliiga91––— –91RoPS2017Veikkausliiga22100— ––2212018Veikkausliiga24050— ––290Total55250000000602Den Bosch2018–19Eerste Divisie28330— ––3132019–20Eerste Divisie17310— ––183Total45640000000496Elfsborg2020Allsvenskan26050— ––3102021Allsvenskan23300–61–2942022Allsvenskan27060–1Appearance(s) in UEFA Europa Conference League0–340Total763110007100944Austin FC2023MLS21120–1Appearance(s) in CONCACAF Champions League0–2412024MLS13000––1Appearance(s) in Leagues Cup0140Total34120001010381Häcken2025Allsvenskan1000— ––10Career total2331525110811026815 Notes
International
.
National teamYearCompetitiveFriendlyTotalAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsFinland20192Appearances in the UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying.0002020202Appearances in the 2020–21 UEFA Nations League.0204020217Six appearances in the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification, one appearance in UEFA Euro 2020.0209020225Appearances in the 2022–23 UEFA Nations League.0308020233Appearances in the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying.00030202400101020251Appearances in the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification. 0001020261Appearances in the 2026–27 UEFA Nations League C. 00010Total21080290 Notes
Honours
Club
Klubi 04 Kakkonen Eastern Group: 2015
Individual Veikkausliiga Team of the Year: 2018 Elfsborg Player of the Year: 2021
References
External links
IF Elfsborg official profile Leo Väisänen – SPL competition record