Dipo Akinyemi

Afolabi Oladipo Christopher "Dipo" Akinyemi (born 10 June 1997) is a professional footballer who plays as a forward for club York City.

Akinyemi began his career in the youth academy at Potters Bar Town in 2011, progressing to the first team in 2014. He joined Stevenage's academy later that year and made his first-team debut at the start of the 2015–16 season. While at Stevenage, Akinyemi spent time on loan at Aldershot Town, St Neots Town, Dulwich Hamlet on two occasions, St Albans City, Billericay Town and Bishop's Stortford. Akinyemi joined Dulwich on a permanent basis in March 2018, and contributed to the club's promotion to the National League South during the remainder of the 2017–18 season.

He had a loan spell at Cheshunt in August 2019, before leaving Dulwich to join Braintree Town in November 2019. A month later, he signed for divisional rivals Welling United, where he spent three seasons. In June 2022, Akinyemi signed for Ayr United of the Scottish Championship, finishing the 2022–23 season as the division's top goalscorer. He subsequently joined York City of the National League for an undisclosed fee in July 2023, scoring 20 goals in 71 appearances over two seasons. He signed for League of Ireland Premier Division club Derry City in July 2025 before returning to York City in June 2026.

Career Potters Bar Town Akinyemi began his career at Potters Bar Town's youth set-up in 2011 after impressing youth manager John Gibbs playing Sunday league football. He was part of the Potters Bar under-18 team that defeated full-time academy teams in consecutive years in the FA Youth Cup. He made seven league appearances in the Southern League Division One Central over the next two months.

Stevenage After gaining first-team experience at Potters Bar, Akinyemi joined the academy of League Two club Stevenage at the end of 2014. Akinyemi signed his first professional contract that summer, He scored his first goal for the club in his third appearance, finishing off a counterattack in a 2–2 draw away at Newport County on 15 August 2015. Akinyemi made 16 appearances during the season, predominantly in its opening months, and scored once.

Loan spells Akinyemi joined National League club Aldershot Town on a one-month loan on 10 November 2015, intended to aid his development through regular first-team football. He scored on his debut the following day in a 2–1 home defeat to Lincoln City. Akinyemi made four appearances during the loan, scoring once in six appearances. He subsequently joined Isthmian League Premier Division club Dulwich Hamlet on loan on 25 March 2016, for the remainder of the season. Akinyemi scored on his debut in a 2–2 draw away at Enfield Town on 27 March 2016 and registered five goals in seven matches, as Dulwich missed out on promotion via the play-offs. He scored on his debut in a 2–0 home victory against Concord Rangers at Clarence Park. He was recalled by Stevenage at the end of November 2016, having made 21 appearances in all competitions, 11 of which as a substitute, and scoring five goals. Stevenage confirmed their intention to loan Akinyemi out again, and on 6 December 2016, he joined Isthmian League Premier Division club Billericay Town on a one-month loan. He made seven appearances at Billericay, scoring one goal. Akinyemi scored four goals in 14 minutes in Dulwich's 7–1 victory against Barkingside in the London Senior Cup on 21 February 2017. He finished the loan with 10 goals in 19 appearances in all competitions. The move reunited him with manager Kevin Watson, formerly assistant manager at Stevenage during Akinyemi's debut season. Akinyemi scored his first goal for the club in a 5–0 away victory against Dunstable Town on 26 September 2017. He registered 10 goals in 36 appearances in all competitions during the 2017–18 season, including four goals in his final four games for the club before being recalled by Stevenage in March 2018.

Dulwich Hamlet Upon his recall, Akinyemi signed for Isthmian League Premier Division club Dulwich Hamlet on a permanent basis on 6 March 2018, having previously had two loan spells at the South London club. Stevenage allowed him to depart on a free transfer in exchange for a "significant percentage of any future sale". Akinyemi scored the decisive penalty in the final as Dulwich defeated Hendon 4–3 on penalties following a 1–1 draw after extra-time. He remained a regular during the club's first season at National League South level, scoring 16 goals in 41 appearances. He made his debut the following day in the club's 1–1 draw with Corinthian Casuals and scored his first goal in a 2–1 home defeat to Bognor Regis Town on 14 September 2019. Akinyemi scored five times in 10 appearances during the loan spell. After three appearances at Braintree, He scored four goals in 12 appearances during the remainder of the 2019–20 season, which was curtailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020. He scored his first two goals for the club in a 3–2 league victory away at Queen's Park on 5 August 2022, including a 92nd-minute penalty to win the match. The goals served as the catalyst for a run of 14 goals in 16 matches, which included Akinyemi's first career league hat-trick in a 5–0 victory against Queen's Park on 8 October 2022.

York City Akinyemi signed for National League club York City for a club-record fee on 15 July 2023, undisclosed but reported to be between £250,000 and £340,000. He scored on his debut in a 2–1 defeat to Wealdstone and finished the 2023–24 season as York's leading goalscorer, with 15 goals in 42 appearances in all competitions. His goals were credited with contributing to York's survival, with the club avoiding relegation by one point. In the 2024–25 season, he scored five goals in 29 appearances, with a partial anterior cruciate ligament tear limiting his involvement during the second half of the season.

Derry City Akinyemi signed for League of Ireland Premier Division club Derry City on a multi-year contract on 9 July 2025. He scored his first goal for the club on his league debut in a 1–1 draw with Bohemians on 25 July 2025. After scoring three goals in nine appearances, he suffered a thigh injury against Shelbourne on 19 September 2025, which sidelined him for five months. He made 17 appearances during the 2026 season, 11 as a substitute, and scored three goals.

Style of play Deployed as a centre forward throughout his career,

Personal life Born in England, Akinyemi is of Nigerian descent.

Career statistics + Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Division!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals!!Apps!!Goals Potters Bar Town 2014–15 |Southern League Division One Central

2014–15 |League Two

2015–16 |Isthmian League Premier Division

St Albans City (loan) 2016–17 |National League South

Billericay Town (loan) 2016–17 Isthmian League Premier Division

Dulwich Hamlet (loan) 2016–17 Isthmian League Premier Division

Bishop's Stortford (loan) 2017–18 Southern League Premier Division

2017–18 LOI Premier Division

2026 LOI Premier Division

York City 2026–27