Kubilay Aktaş

Kubilay Aktaş — Biography

Kubilay Aktaş was born on 29 January 1995 in Saint-Priest, near Lyon, to a Turkish family that had emigrated to France. A midfielder who is best known in the holding role in front of the defence, he holds both French and Turkish citizenship and stands 1.82 m tall.

He began playing in 2004 in the youth system of Olympique Lyonnais. In 2009 he moved to Saint-Priest, in 2011 he turned out for Evian Thonon Gaillard, and at the start of 2012-13 he signed for Saint-Étienne, where he played in every league match of the under-19 side. Before the 2013-14 season he joined the Süper Lig club Kasımpaşa. His first top-flight appearance came on 6 October 2013, in the final minutes of the match against Elazığspor, and in the Turkish Cup he started against Fatih Karagümrük and İnegölspor. He has also played for Boluspor.

Although he held a French passport, he chose to represent Turkey: in the summer of 2013 he was part of the under-19 side at the Mediterranean Games, and he later played for the under-21s as well. His later career took him to Denizlispor in January 2021, Manisa FK in June 2021 and Altınordu in January 2022; in July 2023 he left Altınordu for Adanaspor, and in July 2024 he moved on to Ümraniyespor.