Ameen Al-Dakhil (; born 6 March 2002) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club VfB Stuttgart. Born in Iraq, he plays for the Belgium national team.
Al-Dakhil was born in Iraq, and moved to Belgium with his family at the age of 5, as a refugee during the Iraq War. He began playing football with the youth academies of Kortenaken, Hoegaarden-Outgaarden, Tienen, Anderlecht and Standard Liège. Originally a striker, Al-Dakhil was then converted to a centre-back.
Al-Dakhil made his professional debut for Standard Liège on 23 July 2021, in a 1âÂÂ1 Belgian First Division A tie with Genk.
On 31 January 2022, Al-Dakhil moved to fellow Belgian side Sint-Truiden on a permanent deal.
On 13 January 2023, Al-Dakhil joined English side Burnley for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-and-a-half-year contract with the club. On 31 January 2024, he scored his first goal for Burnley against Manchester City in a 3âÂÂ1 defeat, becoming the first player born in Iraq to score in the Premier League.
On 27 August 2024, Al-Dakhil signed for Bundesliga club VfB Stuttgart on a four-year deal.
Born in Iraq, Al-Dakhil was raised in Belgium and France and holds both Belgian and French citizenship. He has been a youth international for Belgium, having represented the under-17, under-18 and under-21 national teams.
In October 2020, he was called up to represent the Iraqi squad at the AFC U-19 Championship, but the tournament was eventually cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In June 2023 he was called up to the senior Belgium squad for the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Austria and Estonia on 17 and 20 June 2023 respectively.