Luka Zahović

Early career

Born in Guimarães, Portugal, Zahović began his career at Spanish club Valencia before moving to Portuguese club Benfica. When Zahović was twelve years old, his family returned to Slovenia, and he joined Maribor's youth selections in the 2007–08 season after his father Zlatko became a new director of football at the club.

Maribor

He made his professional debut in the final round of the 2012–13 season during a match against Aluminij when he came on as a late substitute. In the following year he spent part of the season playing on loan at the Slovenian Second League squad Veržej, scoring three goals in ten matches, until being given more opportunities by Maribor's coach Ante Šimundža during the second part of the season, eventually making 11 appearances during the 2013–14 PrvaLiga season. The 2014–15 was his breakthrough season. He made his PrvaLiga season debut in the second round when he came on as a late substitute in the 78th minute during a match against Radomlje. Maribor was struggling at home against the PrvaLiga newcomers with the score being 1–1 and less than ten minutes of regulation left. However, after only spending seven minutes on the pitch Zahović scored his first official goal for The Violets. He increased the lead three minutes later, securing all three points for the home side. He scored his third goal of the season in late August against Zavrč and continued his good form in early September when he netted a hat-trick for Maribor…

Zahović was eligible to represent Portugal and Slovenia at the international level. In 2014, he claimed that he would probably choose Portugal over Slovenia if he received a call-up from both teams.

Youth level

Zahović made his youth international debut for Slovenia in June 2010, when he played for the under-16 team in a friendly match against Slovakia. He represented the under-17 team at the 2012 UEFA European Under-17 Championship, where he played in all three group stage matches. Zahović also scored the only goal for Slovenia in a 3–1 defeat against the Netherlands, who later won the competition. He debuted for the under-21 team on 2 June 2015 in a friendly match against Greece, where he scored Slovenia's first goal in an eventual 3–0 victory. Zahović was capped eight times for the team during the 2017 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualifiers, and also scored one goal against Andorra in the first round.

Senior team

On 23 May 2018, Zahović was included in the senior squad for a friendly match against Montenegro. He made his debut on 16 October 2018 in a game against Cyprus.

Club

As of match played 18 July 2026

International

Zahović was born in the Portuguese city of Guimarães where his father Zlatko, a former professional footballer and the all-time top goalscorer of the Slovenia national team, was at the time playing for Vitória Guimarães. He holds both Portuguese and Slovenian citizenship. Zahović and Maja Žnuderl have a son named Filip (born 2019).