Ibrahim Maza (; born 24 November 2005) is a professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder for club Bayer Leverkusen. Born in Germany, he plays for the Algeria national team.
The product of Hertha BSC's academy, Maza debuted professionally with Hertha in 2023, spending two years in second tier of German football, before moving to Bayer Leverkusen in 2025.
Maza represented Germany at youth level, before changing to represent Algeria. He represented them at 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, where he scored two goals and the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
Club career Maza is a youth product of Reinickendorfer Füchse, before moving to the youth academy of Hertha BSC in 2018. He started his senior career with the Hertha reserves in 2022. On 27 April 2023, he signed his first professional contract with Hertha until 2026. He made his professional debut with Hertha BSC as a substitute in a 2–0 Bundesliga loss to Bayern Munich on 30 April 2023. With Hertha having already been relegated the previous week, Maza came on as a substitute and scored his first senior goal, equalising in a 2–1 away win against VfL Wolfsburg on 27 May 2023.
On 1 May 2025, it was announced that Maza would join Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen at the end of the season. He was transferred for a reported fee of €12 million, and he signed a contract until 2030. As the year progressed, he scored his first goals for the club on 8 November by netting a brace in a 6–0 win over Heidenheim. Later that month, on 25 November, he provided his first assist in the UEFA Champions League in a 2–0 away win over Manchester City.
International career Born in Germany, Maza is of Algerian and Vietnamese descent. He holds Algerian and German passports. He is a former youth international, having played for Germany at the U18, U19, and U20 level.
In October 2024, Maza was called up to the Algeria national football team for the first time for a pair of 2025 Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Togo. He made his debut in the 89th minute of the match. He was included in the squad for the 2026 FIFA World Cup and made his World Cup debut in the first group stage match against Argentina. He started the match as a midfielder and played for 82 minutes. Maza is nicknamed "Mazadona" within Algeria, named after Maradona.
Personal life Maza was born in Germany and is of Algerian-Kabyle and Vietnamese descent. His father, Sofiane, immigrated to Germany from Algiers, and met his mother. He reportedly vacationed in Algeria over several summers with his family.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueDFB-PokalEuropeTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsHertha BSC II2022–23Regionalliga Nordost72——722023–24Regionalliga Nordost20——20Total92——92Hertha BSC2022–23Bundesliga2100—212023–242. Bundesliga13100—1312024–252. Bundesliga33532—367Total48732—519Bayer Leverkusen2025–26Bundesliga283421204452026–27Bundesliga41100051Total32452120496Career total89138412010917
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsAlgeria20241020251022026111Total223
Algeria score listed first, score column indicates score after each Maza goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Ibrahim MazaNo.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition124 December 2025Moulay El Hassan Stadium, Rabat, Morocco93–03–02025 Africa Cup of Nations231 December 2025Moulay El Hassan Stadium, Rabat, Morocco113–03–12025 Africa Cup of Nations325 September 2026Hocine Aït Ahmed Stadium, Tizi Ouzou, Algeria222–13–12027 Africa Cup of Nations qualification
References
External links
DFB Profile Bundesliga Profile