Paulo Santamaría

Paulo Santamaría
Personal information
Full name Paulo José Santamaría Rodríguez
Date of birth (2001-05-24) 24 May 2001
Place of birth San Ramón, Costa Rica
Height 1.87 m (6 ft 2 in)[1]
Position Central midfielder
Team information
Current team
 Persijap Jepara
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2019–2022 Alajuelense 2 (0)
2020 → Escazuceña (loan) 15 (0)
2021–2022 → Pérez Zeledón (loan) 23 (0)
2022 → Sporting (loan) 18 (1)
2023–2025 Sporting 50 (8)
2025 → Herediano (loan) 3 (0)
2025–2026 Guadalupe 11 (1)
2026– Persijap Jepara 0 (0)
International career
2023 Costa Rica U23 2 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 23 April 2026

Paulo José Santamaría Rodríguez[2] (born 24 May 2001), commonly known as Paulo Santamaría, is a Costa Rican professional footballer who plays as a central midfielder for Super League club Persijap Jepara.[3]

Club career

Born in San Ramón, Costa Rica, Santamaría represented Alajuelense as a youth.[4] He made his first-team debut on 27 January 2019, coming on as a substitute in a 1–1 draw over Limón.[5] In the following year, he moved on loan to Escazuceña.[6] Santamaría returned to Alajuelense but subsequently served another loans at Pérez Zeledón[7] and Sporting.[8] Santamaría then left Alajuelense and officially extended his contract with Sporting, before being loaned out for a season to Herediano in early 2025.[4][9]

After playing for Sporting and Herediano, Santamaría continued his career by joining Guadalupe in June 2025.[10] He made his club debut on 24 July 2025, coming on as a substitute in a 0–0 draw over his former club Herediano.[11] He established himself within the first-team options, accumulating domestic experience and featuring as a primary utility choice in the central core before seeking a move abroad.[12]

Persijap Jepara

In August 2026, Santamaría completed a transfer to Southeast Asia, officially signing with Indonesian top-flight side Persijap Jepara ahead of the 2026–27 Super League campaign.[13] He was introduced as one of the club's eight new foreign signings brought in under manager Juan Cortés to strengthen the structural engine room of the squad.[14]

International career

In May 2023, he was named to the 22-man Costa Rica U23 squad for the 2023 Maurice Revello Tournament.[15] Then, he made two appearances against France U23 and Qatar U23 in that tournament.[16]

References

  1. ↑ "Paulo Santamaria: Profile". www.worldfootball.net. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  2. ↑ "Paulo Santamaria Profile and Statistics". Flashscore.com. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  3. ↑ "Statistik dan rating Paulo Santamaria". Sofascore. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  4. 1 2 "Herediano se dejó a jugador al que Alajuelense nunca supo aprovechar". www.lateja.cr (in Spanish). 4 January 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  5. ↑ "Alajuelense rescata un empate, pero Limón le mantiene las dudas y dolores de cabeza". www.nacion.com (in Spanish). 27 January 2019. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  6. ↑ "La genialidad de Alajuelense al darle horas fútbol a su cantera en la Segunda División". www.nacion.com (in Spanish). 16 November 2020. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  7. ↑ "Talentoso "cachorro" del León continuará prestado en Pérez Zeledón". www.amprensa.com (in Spanish). 18 June 2021. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  8. ↑ "Sporting FC se niega a morir y derrota a Grecia para meterse en pelea por clasificar". www.amprensa.com (in Spanish). 8 May 2022. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  9. ↑ "Herediano anuncia salida de defensor de experiencia". elmundo.cr (in Spanish). 10 January 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  10. ↑ "Guadalupe sigue reforzándose y contrata a futbolista que militó en Alajuelense y Herediano". www.nacion.com (in Spanish). 17 June 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  11. ↑ "Guadalupe y Herediano no encontraron la brújula del gol en arranque del Apertura". everardoherrera (in Spanish). 24 July 2025. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  12. ↑ "Indonesia se convierte en un destino inesperado que ya tiene cuatro legionarios ticos". www.nacion.com (in Spanish). 19 August 2026. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  13. ↑ "A new chapter begins in Jepara. Welcome to Persijap, Paulo Rodriguez. From Guadalupe FC to Persijap. Let's make it count". Instagram (in Indonesian). 16 August 2026. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  14. ↑ "Persijap Jepara optimistis hadapi musim baru seusai uji coba". Antara News (in Indonesian). 23 August 2026. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  15. ↑ "Costa Rica squad for the 2023 Maurice Revello Tournament". www.tournoimauricerevello.com. 31 May 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
  16. ↑ "Paulo Santamaría Stats - Soccerway". www.soccerway.com. 31 May 2023. Retrieved 24 August 2026.
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