Santiago Arias

La Equidad

Arias was a youth product of the La Equidad academy. He was moved into the senior squad during 2009 making his professional debut that same year against Deportes Tolima. He soon became a regular for the Bogotá based club and racked up 28 appearances. His notable performances earned him the opportunity to represent his nation at the 2011 FIFA U-20 World Cup hosted in Colombia. After a successful spell at his club and internationally, he soon moved to Portugal to join the ranks of Lisbon team Sporting CP.

Sporting CP

While representing the U20 national Colombian side in 2011, Arias attracted the scouts of Sporting CP. On 1 July 2011, Arias was ultimately signed by Sporting on a 5-year contract for a transfer free of €300,000. He made his debut in Portugal on 6 November replacing Matías Fernández in the 80th minute against U.D. Leiria. Despite making his first team debut, Arias spent most of his playing time with the B-Squad where he scored a goal in 28 appearances. He occasionally made appearances with the first squad, but never broke in for a permanent spot.

PSV

In early 2013, Arias was linked to the Dutch club PSV but nothing was finalized. In July 2013, Arias was once again linked to the club where both parties agreed on finalizing a deal. It was then reported that Arias signed a four-year contract and PSV paid Sporting €1.6 million for a package deal including fellow Sporting teammate Stijn Schaars. Upon his arrival, Arias was handed…

Youth

Arias was part of the Colombia U17 team that finished fourth in the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup, playing all matches (except third place match, making a total of 6 appearances) and scoring the first penalty during the quarter-final penalty shoot-out against Turkey. In 2011, Arias played all 9 matches for the Colombia U-20 team when they finished sixth in the 2011 South American Youth Championship. Eduardo Lara, Colombia's coach, also called him for the 2011 Toulon Tournament where Arias, who started all 5 matches, was part of Colombia's team that won the final.

Senior

In September 2013, Arias received his first call up for Colombia's senior team to dispute the 2014 World Cup qualifying matches against Chile and Paraguay, following first choice Camilo Zúñiga's injury. He made his debut against Paraguay and played the entire match in a 1–2 away victory at Asunción. Arias was included in Colombia's 23-man squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. He made three appearances in the tournament, coming on as a substitute in all of Colombia's group stage matches. The following year, Arias was included in the final squad for the 2015 Copa America. He appeared twice at the tournament, including the quarter-final 0–0 draw against Argentina where Colombia were eliminated 5–4 on penalties. He was a part of the Colombian squad that finished third place at the Copa América Centenario. Arias was selected in José Pékerman's 23-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in…

Club

As of match played 10 May 2026

International

As of match played 27 June 2026

PSV

Eredivisie: 2014–15, 2015–16, 2017–18 Johan Cruijff Shield: 2015, 2016 Atlético Madrid

UEFA Super Cup: 2018 FC Cincinnati

Supporters' Shield: 2023 Colombia U20

Toulon Tournament: 2011 Colombia

Copa América third place: 2016 Individual

Eredivisie Player of the Year: 2017–18 Eredivisie Star XI: 2017–18 Eredivisie Player of the Month: March 2018