Who is Sebastiaan Bornauw? Get to know Leeds United’s new big Belgian centre-back

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Sebastiaan Bornauw is another centre-back Leeds United have signed in the summer transfer window.

Leeds United are looking to add experience, strength and height in the summer transfer window and found all three in Sebastiaan Bornauw.

It looked as though Daniel Farke had concluded his centre-back recruitment following the signing of Jaka Bijol and would turn his attention towards a left-back, playmaker, striker and midfielder, after missing out on Habib Diarra.

However, Leeds instead moved to make Bornauw their third signing to provide even more competition in defence.

Here’s everything you need to know about him.

• Who is Jaka Bijol? Leeds United are closing in on the ‘intelligent’ defender, all you need to know

Who is Sebastiaan Bornauw?

Sebastiaan Bornauw is a professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Bundesliga outfit Wolfsburg.

After rising through the youth ranks at Anderlecht, Bornauw made his senior debut aged 19 and stayed in the team for the entire season.

His impressive form as a youngster diving straight into senior football grabbed attention and he was swiftly signed by German side Cologne in 2019 for around £7m.

Two years later, Cologne spun a profit by selling him to Wolfsburg for nearly £12m. At Wolfsburg, Bornauw has been teammates with Josuha Guilavogui and Lukas Nmecha.

Now, after making close to 100 appearances, he has moved to Elland Road.

Sebastiaan Bornauw to Leeds United transfer news

Leeds are making a habit of signing players on the quiet, with hardly any speculation in the wild before the deal is all but done.

That’s what happened with Nmecha and now Bornauw, too, who first became a known target when a fee was already agreed.

Leeds agreed a £5.1m fee to sign Bornauw and a medical was quickly sorted. The signing was confirmed on July 1.

Farke is familiar with Bornauw already, as he wanted to sign him when in charge of Norwich City. Guilavogui recommended Bornauw move to Leeds.

How old and tall is Sebastiaan Bornauw?

Bornauw was born in Wemmel, Belgium, on March 22, 1999. As of June 2025, he is 26 years old and has plenty of years left in his career.

Bornauw stands at 6’3″ tall, making him a commanding and aerially dominant defender.

Sebastiaan Bornauw wages

According to SalarySport, Bornauw earned £39,000 a week at Wolfsburg, which equals over £2m a year.

That would put him among Leeds’ top earners but it’s not yet clear how much he is on at the club.

Sebastiaan Bornauw stats

Bornauw’s career stats so far for club and country.

Sebastiaan Bornauw Instagram and X/Twitter accounts

Bornauw has an official Instagram account with over 33k followers, you can find @sebbornauw.

He also has an X, formerly Twitter, account @SebBornauw3.