Anton Popovitch

Anton Popovitch (; born 11 July 1996) is a Finnish professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Veikkausliiga club Ilves.

Club career Haka Born in Valkeakoski, Popovitch played in the youth sector of his hometown club Haka, before he was promoted to the club's senior squad for the 2015 season in the second-tier Ykkönen. After the 2019 season, which has been considered his breakthrough season, Haka won the Ykkönen title and earned a promotion back to Finland's premier league Veikkausliiga.

KuPS Popovitch transferred to fellow Veikkausliiga club Kuopion Palloseura (KuPS) ahead of the 2021 season. He was named a vice-captain of his team in March 2022. Popovitch left the club after the 2023 season, after having spent three years with KuPS and having won two Finnish Cup titles and finished three times as Veikkausliiga runner-up. Popovitch also represented KuPS in the UEFA Europa Conference League qualifiers in his every season with the club.

Ilves On 16 January 2024, fellow Veikkausliiga side Ilves announced the signing of Popovitch on a three-year deal. On 23 May 2024, Popovitch scored his first goal for Ilves in the league, in a 3–0 home win over Inter Turku. On 31 May 2024, in a home match against KuPS, Popovitch made his 100th appearance in Veikkausliiga. At the end of his first season with Ilves, the club finished as the league runner-up, falling two points short to KuPS. Popovitch was named in the Team of the Year, for the second time in his career after 2022.

Personal life Popovitch holds a dual Finnish-Russian citizenship. He is the son of former professional footballer Valeri Popovitch, who is the all-time leading goalscorer of Haka and of the whole Finnish top-tier league Veikkausliiga. His brother Sasha is also a footballer. Their mother is Finnish.

Career statistics

Honours FC Haka Ykkönen: 2019

Kuopion Palloseura Veikkausliiga runner-up: 2021, 2022, 2023 Finnish Cup: 2021, 2022

Ilves Veikkausliiga runner-up: 2024

Individual Veikkausliiga Team of the Year: 2022, 2024 Ykkönen Player of the Month: May 2019