Stefan de Vrij

Feyenoord

De Vrij played for local Ouderkerk aan den IJssel club VV Spirit for five seasons. At the age of 10, he attended a Feyenoord talent day. After various training sessions and a friendly match against ARC, De Vrij was officially asked to join Feyenoord's youth division. At VV Spirit, De Vrij often played as a central midfielder, but at Feyenoord he got turned into a defender. The youngster developed himself rapidly. After playing for Feyenoord U15, De Vrij was one of the players to skip the U16 team to play in the U17 immediately.

On 17 July 2009, De Vrij signed his first professional contract with Feyenoord until summer 2012. De Vrij made his official debut for Feyenoord's first team on 24 September 2009, when he replaced Kelvin Leerdam in the 58th minute in the KNVB Cup away match against Harkemase Boys (0–5). On 6 December 2009, De Vrij made his Eredivisie debut in the home match against Groningen (3–1), when he replaced Denny Landzaat in the 89th minute. Aged 18 by its end, his first professional season saw him make 21 appearances, 17 of which were in the league. During the 2012–13 season, De Vrij replaced Ron Vlaar as team captain. However, after a poor run of form in the following campaign, De Vrij was stripped of his armband as it was given first to star striker Graziano Pellè and then to vice-captain Jordy Clasie after the former struggled with disciplinary issues.

Lazio

On 30 July 2014, De Vrij joined Serie A club Lazio for an undisclosed…

Youth teams

De Vrij's strong development at Feyenoord did not pass by unnoticed, as he quickly received his first invitation for a national youth team. On 21 November 2007, the Netherlands U16 won the friendly match against Ukraine U16 (1–0), with De Vrij's first appearance in the starting line-up. De Vrij was active on the 2009 UEFA European Under-17 Football Championship in Germany. The Dutch team, aided by a strong contingent of seven Feyenoord players in the squad, finished second after losing the final to Germany in extra-time (2–1). De Vrij was paired up with Dico Koppers in central defence and participated in every match the Oranje played without getting substituted, making a notable contribution. With a second place on the European Championship, the Netherlands U17 qualified for the 2009 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Nigeria.

Senior team

In May 2012, De Vrij was named in the provisional list of 36 players for UEFA Euro 2012 but was cut from the final 23-man squad. On 15 August 2012, De Vrij made his debut under new manager Louis van Gaal in the Netherlands' 4–2 loss against Belgium in a friendly match. De Vrij was a member of the Netherlands' squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup, where he scored his first international goal in a 5–1 win over defending champions Spain in the team's opening group match on 13 June. He went on to play in all of the Netherlands' matches as they eventually finished in third place. He and Arjen Robben were the two Dutch players…

De Vrij grew up in Ouderkerk aan den IJssel. He is the youngest son of Jan de Vrij, who played for local club VV Spirit, where Stefan de Vrij started his career. His older brothers Niels and Eric played football in their youth and continued to different career paths.

In May 2024, De Vrij married Doina Turcanu, a Moldovan woman. They started dating in 2017 and have a son together.