Mats Rits (born 18 July 1993) is a Belgian professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Challenger Pro League club Beerschot.
Rits made his professional debut at age 16 at Germinal Beerschot, where he was formed. He then moved to the famed Ajax academy system before moving back to his native Belgium to play in the Belgian Pro League.
Career
Germinal Beerschot Rits made his debut at the highest level of Belgian football in a 3–1 win over VC Westerlo. He came on the pitch in the 30th minute as a replacement for the injured Daniel Cruz. Mats Rits scored the equalizer and the last goal of the match.
During his youth career, several bigger clubs showed interest in the Belgium youth international, who had captained his country at the Under-17 level. RSC Anderlecht, Real Madrid, and Ajax were all clubs that expressed an interest in Rits.
Ajax On 28 June 2011, Rits signed a contract with Ajax.Ajax contracteert Mats Rits He scored his first goal for Ajax in a friendly match against VV Buitenpost on 2 July 2011 in the 75th minute, with the match ending in a 4–0 away win for Ajax. Four days later on 6 July 2011, Rits scored an additional two goals in the 64th and 70th minutes in a friendly fixture against AZSV Aalten. The match ended in a 11–0 away win for the Amsterdam side. Suffering a back injury during practice, Rits was sidelined for the entire 2011–12 season, and for the first half of the 2012–13 season. He appeared in a couple more friendly fixtures for Ajax while recuperating, but was unable to find his way back into the A-Selection. On 9 October 2012, Rits scored the only goal for Ajax in a 1–1 draw at home, in the 76th minute, in a friendly match against Slovakia club AS Trenčín.
KV Mechelen Unable to break through into the first team in Amsterdam following his injury, Rits returned to Belgium, signing a 2.5-year contract with KV Mechelen during the Winter transfer window, on 6 January 2013.Mats Rits ruilt Ajax voor KV Mechelen
Club Brugge In the 2018 Summer transfer window, Rits was transferred to Club Brugge.
Anderlecht On 15 August 2023, Rits was transferred from Club Brugge to Anderlecht, signing a 3-year contract.
Career statistics
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupEuropeOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsGerminal Beerschot2009–10Belgian Pro League12210——1322010–11Belgian Pro League11010——120Total23220——252Ajax2011–12Eredivisie00000000002012–13Eredivisie0000000000Total0000000000K.V. Mechelen2012–13Belgian Pro League12000——1202013–14Belgian Pro League25120——2712014–15Belgian Pro League24230——2722015–16Belgian Pro League28430——3142016–17Belgian Pro League37510——3852017–18Belgian Pro League29420——314Total15516110——16616Club Brugge2018–19Belgian Pro League3931070104832019–20Belgian Pro League20541110003562020–21Belgian Pro League3722050004422021–22Belgian Pro League3375062104592022–23Belgian Pro League2020010002122023–24Belgian Pro League2000210041Total151191213232019723Anderlecht2023–24Belgian Pro League35020——3702024–25Belgian Pro League2915090—4312025–26Belgian Pro League30—00—30Total6717090—831RSCA Futures2025–26Challenger Pro League20———20Career total397383214132047242
Honours Club Brugge Belgian First Division A: 2019–20, 2020–21, 2021–22 Belgian Super Cup: 2018, 2021
References
External links Player info at the official Germinal Beerschot website Player info at sporza.be