Marko Seufatu Nikola Stamenić (; born 19 February 2002) is a New Zealand professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for club Swansea City and the New Zealand national team.
Born in Wellington and raised in Stokes Valley, Stamenić graduated from the Olé Football Academy and signed for FC Copenhagen in September 2020 following extended trials. Following sporadic appearances for the club, including in the UEFA Champions League, Stamenić departed to join Red Star Belgrade in 2023.
Club career Western Suburbs Born in Wellington, Stamenić attended St Patrick's College, Silverstream, Wellington. and came through the ranks of the Olé Football Academy. During this time, Stamenić played for Olé-affiliated club Western Suburbs in the Central Premier League, making his debut in 2017 and reaching the final of the 2018 Chatham Cup.
Team Wellington Following Olé's affiliation with ISPS Handa Premiership side Team Wellington, Stamenić signed for them on 2 October 2019. He made seven league appearances, scoring one goal on 15 December 2019 against Southern United.
Copenhagen Following his standout performances for New Zealand in the 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup, and despite interest from Brazilian Série A club Flamengo, Stamenić was invited for a three-week trial at Danish Superliga side FC Copenhagen in March 2020. However, following an order from the New Zealand Government for all foreign-based New Zealand citizens to urgently return to the country in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, he was forced to abort the trial. FC Copenhagen retained their interest, and Stamenić eventually returned to Denmark, signing for the club's under-19 team on 1 September 2020.
Stamenić made his debut for the first team on 23 November 2020, starting in a 2–1 Superliga loss to Randers FC.
On 9 January 2023, Copenhagen announced they would not be extending his contract, which expired in June 2023, as Stamenić had elected to explore other opportunities.
Red Star Belgrade On 6 February 2023, Red Star Belgrade (Crvena zvezda) announced that they had signed Stamenić on a four-year deal beginning the next season.
Nottingham Forest On 21 June 2024, Stamenić signed for English Premier League side Nottingham Forest on a five-year deal, immediately joining Super League Greece side Olympiacos on a season-long loan deal.
Swansea City On 20 August 2025, Stamenić departed Nottingham Forest without making a competitive appearance, joining EFL Championship club Swansea City for an undisclosed fee, reported to be over £2 million. On 6 December 2025, he scored his first goal for the club at home to Oxford. On 31 January 2026, Stamenić scored and got an assist in a 2–0 win away to Watford.
International career Under-17 Stamenić made his first appearance for the New Zealand U-17 team coming off the bench in their 0–5 loss to the Solomon Islands at the 2018 OFC U-16 Championship. He then followed that up starting in New Zealand's next matches against Papua New Guinea in the last pool game, Tahiti in the semi-finals and in the final which saw a rematch against the Solomon Islands that New Zealand won 5–4 on penalties.
Stamenić played all three games for New Zealand in their 2019 FIFA U-17 World Cup campaign, finishing third in their group.
Senior
On 25 June 2021, Stamenić was called up to the New Zealand squad for the delayed 2020 Summer Olympics.
Stamenić made his international debut with the senior New Zealand national team in a 2–1 friendly win over Curaçao on 9 October 2021.
On 14 May 2026, Stamenić was selected in the 26-man squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Personal life Stamenić was born in New Zealand to a Serbian father from Novi Sad and a Samoan mother.
Career statistics
Club
+Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupLeague cupEurope TotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsTeam Wellington2019–20NZ Premiership71———71Copenhagen2020–21Danish Superliga1000—00102021–220000—00002022–2315010—40200Total160100040210HB Køge (loan)2021–22Danish 1st Division23200——232Red Star Belgrade2023–24Serbian SuperLiga27140—41352Premier League000000—00Olympiacos (loan)2024–2514050—40230Swansea City2025–26Championship3631010—3832026–27Championship300010—40Total393102040420Career total1267110101211518
International
Scores and results list New Zealand's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Stamenić goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Marko StamenićNo.DateVenueOpponentScoreResultCompetition— 19 June 2023 Sonnensee Stadium, Ritzing, Austria 1–0 1–0 Friendly1 18 November 2024 Mount Smart Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand 5–0 8–0 2026 FIFA World Cup qualification2 10 June 2025 BMO Field, Toronto, Canada 1–1 1–2 2025 Canadian Shield3 1 October 2026 Nissan Stadium, Yokohama, Japan 1–0 1–1 2026 Kirin Cup Soccer
Honours Western Suburbs Central League: 2017, 2019 Chatham Cup runner-up: 2018
Copenhagen Danish Superliga: 2022–23 Danish Cup: 2022–23
Red Star Belgrade Serbian SuperLiga: 2023–24 Serbian Cup: 2023–24 Olympiacos Super League Greece: 2024–25 Greek Football Cup: 2024–25
References
External links