José María Giménez
Uruguayan footballer (born 1995)

José María Giménez
Giménez with Uruguay at the 2018 FIFA World Cup
Personal information
Full name José María Giménez de Vargas[1]
Date of birth (1995-01-20) 20 January 1995 (age 30)[1]
Place of birth Toledo, Uruguay
Height 1.85 m (6 ft 1 in)[1]
Position Centre-back
Team information
Current team
 Atlético Madrid
Number 2
Youth career
Danubio
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2012–2013 Danubio 16 (0)
2013– Atlético Madrid 259 (6)
International career‡
2013 Uruguay U20 13 (0)
2013– Uruguay 97 (8)
Medal record
Representing  Uruguay
Men's Football
Copa América
Third place 2024 United States
FIFA U-20 World Cup
Runner-up 2013 Turkey
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 2 December 2025
‡ National team caps and goals as of 16 November 2025

José María Giménez de Vargas (Spanish pronunciation: [xoˈse maˈɾi.a xiˈmenes ðe ˈβaɾɣas];[α] born 20 January 1995) is a Uruguayan professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for La Liga club Atlético Madrid and captains the Uruguay national team.

After starting out his professional career with Danubio FC, Giménez signed for Atlético Madrid, where he would spend over a decade and play more than 350 games. He won five major titles with the latter, including the La Liga title 2013–14 and 2020–21, as well as the UEFA Europa League in 2017–18.

At international level, Giménez made his Uruguay debut in 2013, and has since represented the nation at three FIFA World Cups and five editions of the Copa América.

Club career

Danubio

Born in Toledo, Giménez made his professional debut for Danubio F.C. in the Uruguayan Primera División on 17 November 2012 (when the manager was Juan Ramón Carrasco) against River Plate in which he started and played the full 90 minutes as Danubio lost the match 2–0.[2]

Atlético Madrid

2013–2016

On 24 April 2013, it was confirmed that Giménez had signed on a five-year deal with Spanish side Atlético Madrid, and would join the club in the pre-season of the 2013–14 season.[3] On 14 September, Giménez made his Atleti – and La Liga – debut, starting in a 4–2 home win over UD Almería.[4] It was his only appearance of a league-winning season.[5][6] Giménez's appearances were initially limited by competition from compatriot Diego Godín, as well as Miranda and Toby Alderweireld.[7]

In August 2014, Giménez won the Supercopa de España against rivals Real Madrid, though he did not leave the substitutes' bench in either game.[5] He scored his first goal for the club on 6 December 2014, opening a 2–0 win away to Elche CF to move Atlético into second place.[8] He played more often in 2014–15 due to Alderweireld's departure,[9] and the club then sold Miranda to Inter Milan, with Giménez having achieved higher averages per game of tackles and interceptions than the Brazilian veteran.[10] Giménez was a regular starter the following season, until losing his place to Stefan Savić for the last third of the campaign.[9]

2016–2019

Giménez with Atlético in 2018

In July 2016, Giménez was naturalised as a citizen of Spain, thereby freeing up one of Atlético's three spots for players from outside the European Union.[9] He struggled for appearances in 2016–17, due to injuries and the form of Godín, Savić and Lucas Hernandez.[11] On 27 September 2017, he made his 100th appearance in a Champions League group 2–1 home loss to Chelsea, and was honoured with a plaque on the "Walk of Legends" at Atlético's new Metropolitano Stadium.[12] His team won the UEFA Europa League, with him partnering Godín in central defence for the 3–0 win over Olympique de Marseille in the final on 16 May.[13]

In June 2018, with 134 games to his name, Giménez signed a new five-year contract.[14] Atlético won the 2018 UEFA Super Cup on 15 August, with Giménez playing as a substitute for Diego Costa in the last 10 minutes of extra time in a 4–2 win over Real Madrid in Tallinn.[15] On 20 February 2019, he scored the opener in 2-0 home win against Italian champions Juventus to give Atlético the advantage in the first leg of the Round of 16 fixture in the UEFA Champions League.[16]

2019–

Ahead of the 2019–20 season, after Godín's departure, manager Diego Simeone named Koke as Atlético captain, followed by goalkeeper Jan Oblak, then Giménez as third-captain.[17] Atlético won the league in 2020–21, with Simeone, Giménez and Koke the only veterans of their previous triumph in 2014; Savić and Mario Hermoso were the preferred central defensive pairing.[18]

In August 2021, on 216 appearances across all competitions, Giménez's contract was extended to 2025.[19] On 6 August 2023, this was extended to 2028.[20] He made his 300th appearance for the club on 16 December that year, coming on as a substitute for Çağlar Söyüncü in a 2–0 loss at Athletic Bilbao; he became the 31st player to reach the mark.[21]

International career

Giménez (upper row, second from the right) lining up for a team photo during the 2014 FIFA World Cup

Giménez participated for Uruguay at the 2013 FIFA U-20 World Cup as the team finished as runner-up to France.[22]

He debuted for the Uruguay senior team in a 2014 FIFA World Cup qualifier against Colombia on 10 September 2013.[22]

On 2 June 2014, Giménez was named in Uruguay's squad for the 2014 FIFA World Cup finals.[23] The 19-year-old defender made his tournament debut against England in the team's second group match, deputising for the injured captain Diego Lugano in a 2–1 victory for La Celeste.[24] He went on to start in the final group match – a 1–0 win over Italy – and the 2–0 round of 16 loss to Colombia.[25]

Giménez scored his first international goal in a 1–0 friendly win against South Korea on 8 September 2014.[26] In May 2015, he was named in Uruguay's squad for the 2015 Copa América by coach Óscar Tabárez.[27] On 20 June, he scored Uruguay's goal in a 1–1 draw with Paraguay which saw both teams progress to the knockout stage.[28]

In May 2018 he was named in Uruguay's provisional 26-man squad for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia.[29] On 15 June, with the score tied at 0–0, he scored the winning goal in the final minute of Uruguay's opening game of the World Cup against Egypt.[30]

In March 2019, Tabárez included Giménez in the final 23-man Uruguay squad for the 2019 Copa América in Brazil.[31] He headed the equaliser in the 2–2 group draw with Japan in Porto Alegre,[32] and was the only Uruguayan in the Team of the Tournament despite a quarter-final exit.[33]

Personal life

Giménez married Regina Iafolla in a civil ceremony in June 2019, prior the Copa América.[34] They have three sons.[35]

Career statistics

Club

As of match played 13 January 2026[36]
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League National cup[a] Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Danubio 2012–13 Uruguayan Primera División 16 0 0 0 — — 16 0
Atlético Madrid 2013–14 La Liga 1 0 1 0 0 0 — 2 0
2014–15 La Liga 20 1 4 1 4[b] 0 — 28 2
2015–16 La Liga 27 1 2 0 8[b] 0 — 37 1
2016–17 La Liga 17 0 6 1 6[b] 0 — 29 1
2017–18 La Liga 23 1 4 1 11[c] 0 — 38 2
2018–19 La Liga 21 0 2 0 5[b] 2 1[d] 0 29 2
2019–20 La Liga 21 0 0 0 5[b] 0 1[e] 0 27 0
2020–21 La Liga 21 0 1 0 4[b] 1 — 26 1
2021–22 La Liga 24 1 1 0 7[b] 0 1[e] 0 33 1
2022–23 La Liga 28 2 3 0 5[b] 0 — 36 2
2023–24 La Liga 22 0 3 0 7[b] 0 1[e] 0 33 0
2024–25 La Liga 27 0 3 0 8[b] 1 1[f] 0 39 1
2025–26 La Liga 7 0 1 0 3[b] 1 0 0 11 1
Total 259 6 31 3 73 5 5 0 368 14
Career total 275 6 31 3 73 5 5 0 384 14
  1. ^ Includes Copa del Rey
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Appearances in UEFA Champions League
  3. ^ Four appearances in UEFA Champions League, seven appearances in UEFA Europa League
  4. ^ Appearance in UEFA Super Cup
  5. ^ a b c Appearance(s) in Supercopa de España
  6. ^ Appearance in FIFA Club World Cup

International

As of match played 15 November 2025[37]
Appearances and goals by national team and year
National team Year Apps Goals
Uruguay 2013 3 0
2014 12 2
2015 10 1
2016 5 0
2017 9 1
2018 8 3
2019 11 1
2020 2 0
2021 13 0
2022 8 0
2023 2 0
2024 9 0
2025 5 0
Total 97 8
Scores and results list Uruguay's goal tally first.[36]
List of international goals scored by José Giménez
No. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 8 September 2014 Goyang Stadium, Goyang, South Korea  South Korea 1–0 1–0 Friendly
2. 13 November 2014 Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay  Costa Rica 2–2 3–3
3. 20 June 2015 Estadio La Portada, La Serena, Chile  Paraguay 1–0 1–1 2015 Copa América
4. 4 June 2017 Aviva Stadium, Dublin, Republic of Ireland  Republic of Ireland 1–1 1–3 Friendly
5. 7 June 2018 Estadio Centenario, Montevideo, Uruguay  Uzbekistan 3–0 3–0
6. 15 June 2018 Central Stadium, Yekaterinburg, Russia  Egypt 1–0 1–0 2018 FIFA World Cup
7. 7 September 2018 NRG Stadium, Houston, United States  Mexico 1–0 4–1 Friendly
8. 20 June 2019 Arena do Grêmio, Porto Alegre, Brazil  Japan 2–2 2–2 2019 Copa América

Honours

Atlético Madrid

Uruguay U20

Uruguay

Individual

Notes

  1. ^ In isolation, Vargas is pronounced [ˈbaɾɣas].

References

  1. ^ a b c "FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™ – Squad List: Uruguay (URU)" (PDF). FIFA. 18 December 2022. p. 30. Archived (PDF) from the original on 18 December 2022. Retrieved 17 February 2025.
  2. ^ "DANUBIO VS. RIVER PLATE 0 - 2". Soccerway. Retrieved 27 April 2013.
  3. ^ Casáñez, Juan (24 April 2013). "El Atlético ficha a Giménez, defensa uruguayo de Danubio" [Atlético sign Giménez, Uruguayan Danubio defender]. Diario AS (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  4. ^ Atleti maintain perfect start Archived 23 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine; ESPN FC, 14 September 2013
  5. ^ a b c "Todos los goles y títulos de Josema Giménez con Atlético de Madrid" [All of Josema Giménez's goals and titles with Atlético Madrid] (in Spanish). ESPN. 24 April 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  6. ^ "Atletico Madrid win La Liga". Sport 24. 17 May 2014. Retrieved 29 January 2015.
  7. ^ "La trayectoria de Josema Giménez en Atlético de Madrid" (in Spanish). ESPN. 24 April 2023. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  8. ^ "Elche 0-2 Atl Madrid". BBC Sport. 6 December 2014. Retrieved 6 December 2014.
  9. ^ a b c Pettigrove, Jason (10 July 2016). "Gimenez gets dual nationality". Marca. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  10. ^ Walker, Joseph (20 June 2015). "Selling Miranda makes sense for Atletico Madrid". ESPN. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  11. ^ Barbero, Alberto R. (8 November 2016). "Gimenez to fight for place at Atletico". Marca. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  12. ^ "Giménez colocó su placa en el 'Paseo de Leyendas'" [Giménez placed his plaque on the 'Walk of Legends']. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). 14 October 2017. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  13. ^ "Godín y Josema campeones de la Europa League con el Atlético Madrid" [Godín and Josema champions of the Europa League with Atlético Madrid]. Subrayado (in Spanish). 16 May 2018. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  14. ^ "José María Giménez renueva con el Atlético de Madrid por cinco temporadas más" [José María Giménez renews with Atlético Madrid for five more seasons]. El Mundo (in Spanish). 13 June 2018. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  15. ^ Murray, Scott (15 August 2018). "Real Madrid 2-4 Atlético Madrid (aet; 2-2 after 90 mins): Uefa Super Cup – as it happened". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  16. ^ "Giménez and Godín put Atlético Madrid in charge against Juventus". The Guardian. 20 February 2019.
  17. ^ "Giménez: "Es un orgullo ser uno de los capitanes de Atlético Madrid"" [Giménez: "It's a pride to be one of the captains of Atlético Madrid"]. ESPN. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  18. ^ Lowe, Sid (24 May 2021). "Atlético Madrid win it the hard way to live up to Diego Simeone's prediction". The Guardian. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  19. ^ Gómara, Javier G. (12 August 2021). "Giménez renueva con el Atlético hasta 2025" [Giménez renews with Atlético until 2025]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  20. ^ Medina, David G. (6 October 2023). "Giménez renueva hasta 2028" [Giménez renews until 2028]. Marca (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  21. ^ Zimmermann, Walter (16 December 2023). "Giménez jugó su partido 300 saliendo desde el banquillo" [Giménez played his 300th game by coming off the bench]. Mundo Deportivo (in Spanish). Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  22. ^ a b "Jose GIMENEZ". FIFA.com. Archived from the original on 11 September 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  23. ^ "Uruguay World Cup 2014 squad". The Daily Telegraph. 2 June 2014. Retrieved 18 June 2014.
  24. ^ "Mondiali, Uruguay, Lugano ancora out: contro l'Italia (ri)tocca a baby Gimenez" [World Cup, Uruguay, Lugano still out: against Italy they will turn to baby Gimenez]. La Gazzetta dello Sport (in Italian). 21 June 2014. Retrieved 22 June 2014.
  25. ^ "José María Giménez". FIFA. Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 13 June 2015.
  26. ^ "Stakes are high in South American friendlies as players look to impress". ESPN. 12 November 2014.
  27. ^ "Uruguay confirm Copa América squad numbers as Rolán lands Suárez's No.9". Archived from the original on 12 June 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2015.
  28. ^ "Uruguay 1-1 Paraguay". BBC. 20 June 2015.
  29. ^ Tremlett, Sam (15 June 2018). "Uruguay World Cup Fixtures, Squad, Group, Guide". World Soccer. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  30. ^ Emons, Michael (15 June 2018). "Egypt 1–0 Uruguay". BBC Sport. Retrieved 15 June 2018.
  31. ^ "Uruguay Team Squads Copa America 2019". copaamerica2019.live. 7 March 2019. Archived from the original on 16 April 2021. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
  32. ^ "Gimenez Header Helps Uruguay Draw Japan in Copa America". Sports Illustrated. 20 June 2019. Retrieved 21 June 2020.
  33. ^ a b "El equipo ideal de la CONMEBOL Copa América Brasil 2019" (in Spanish). CONMEBOL.com. 9 July 2019. Archived from the original on 9 July 2019. Retrieved 10 July 2019.
  34. ^ "El casamiento de Josema Giménez y Regina Iafolla" [Josema Giménez and Regina Iafolla's wedding]. El País (Uruguay) (in Spanish). 10 June 2019. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  35. ^ "José María Giménez y su esposa, Regina Iafolla, celebraron el nacimiento de Santi" [José María Giménez and his wife, Regina Iafolla, celebrated the birth of Santi] (in Spanish). Montevideo Portal. 29 January 2024. Retrieved 25 December 2025.
  36. ^ a b José María Giménez at Soccerway
  37. ^ José María Giménez at National-Football-Teams.com
  38. ^ "Atletico Madrid win La Liga". Sport. Retrieved 27 April 2021.
  39. ^ "Spanish league ends with title finale, possible farewells". AP. 20 May 2021. Retrieved 2 June 2021.
  40. ^ "Griezmann inspires Atlético to Europa League glory". UEFA. Union of European Football Associations. 16 May 2018. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  41. ^ "UEFA Super Cup roll of honour: Atlético make it three". UEFA. Union of European Football Associations. 15 August 2018. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
  42. ^ "Madrid finally fulfil Décima dream". UEFA. 24 May 2014. Retrieved 18 May 2018.
  43. ^ "Real Madrid beat Atletico Madrid on penalties". BBC Sport. Retrieved 28 May 2016.
  44. ^ "FIFA U-20 World Cup Turkey 2013". FIFA.com. Fédération Internationale de Football Association. 13 July 2013. Archived from the original on 14 June 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2020.
  45. ^ "Uruguay beats Canada on penalties to finish CONMEBOL Copa América™ in 3rd Place". 14 July 2024. Retrieved 14 July 2024.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to José María Giménez.
  • Profile at the Atlético Madrid website
  • Profile at the Uruguayan Football Association website (in Spanish)
  • José María Giménez – FIFA competition record (archived)
  • José María Giménez – UEFA competition record (archive) 
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