Ismajl Beka

Ismajl Beka (born 31 October 1999) is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Swiss Super League side Grasshopper. Born in Switzerland, he plays for the Kosovo national team.

Club career Rapperswil-Jona On 10 February 2020, Beka signed a one-and-a-half-year contract with Swiss Promotion League club Rapperswil-Jona. After the transfer, his debut and the league was postponed due to COVID-19 pandemic. His debut with Rapperswil-Jona came on 6 August in the 2019–20 Swiss Cup quarter-final against Sion after being named in the starting line-up. His league debut with Rapperswil-Jona came nine days later in a 1–1 away draw against Bellinzona after being named in the starting line-up. Four days after league debut, he scored his first goal for Rapperswil-Jona in his third appearance for the club in a 2–1 home win over Breitenrain Bern in Swiss Promotion League.

Return to Wil On 10 June 2022, Beka signed a two-year contract with Swiss Challenge League club Wil. His debut with Wil came on 17 July in a 2–0 home win against Neuchâtel Xamax after being named in the starting line-up. Fourteen days after debut, he scored his first goal for Wil in his third appearance for the club in a 2–0 home win over Vaduz in Swiss Challenge League.

Luzern On 31 August 2022, Beka signed a three-year contract with Swiss Super League club Luzern and received squad number 30. His debut with Luzern came four days later in a 0–2 home defeat against Servette after coming on as a substitute at 69th minute in place of Leny Meyer. He made two further appearances from the bench in 2022. The club later confirmed that he had ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament and would miss the remainder of the season. Despite the injury, his contract was renewed on 15 December 2023 until summer 2026.

He returned to Luzern's matchday squad more than a year later in December 2024, but remained an unused substitute. He finally made his return in the final games of the 2024–25 season, making three appearances. He was nominated to the starting lineup in the first league match after the winter break. Unfortunately, his debut for the Swiss record champions ended with him being sent off following a high-boot challenge in the 90th minute of a 1–3 home loss to FC Thun.

International career Youth On 1 October 2017, Beka was named as part of the Kosovo U19 squad for 2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualifications. His debut came two days later in a 2018 UEFA European Under-19 Championship qualification match against Austria U19 after being named in the starting line-up.

On 4 October 2018, Beka received a call-up from Kosovo U21 for the 2019 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification match against Israel U21, he was an unused substitute in that match.

Senior In August 2023, Beka received his first call-up to the Kosovo senior national team by head coach Primož Gliha, for two UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying matches against Switzerland and Romania.