# Joakim Mæhle

Joakim Mæhle Pedersen (born 20 May 1997) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a full-back for Bundesliga club VfL Wolfsburg and the Denmark national team.

## Club career
### AaB

Born in Østervrå, Vendsyssel, Mæhle started playing football with local club Østervrå IF and moved to the AaB youth academy as a 12-year-old. At the age of 19, Mæhle was promoted into the first team squad on 10 June 2016 and also signed a full-time senior contract with AaB. He made his debut for AaB on 7 August 2016. He started on the bench, but replaced Thomas Enevoldsen in the 89th minute in a 2–1 victory against FC Nordsjælland in the Danish Superliga.
On 11 November 2016, Mæhle earned a new contract until 2020. In April 2017, AaB confirmed that they were in negotiations with a foreign club about Mæhle.

### Genk

On 9 May 2017, AaB confirmed that they had sold Mæhle to Belgian club Racing Genk for an undisclosed fee, starting from 1 July 2017. He was signed to succeed right-back Timothy Castagne, who had moved to Atalanta. Mæhle made his debut for Genk on 29 July 2017 in the first league match of the season against Waasland-Beveren as a substitute for Amine Khammas. In his first season with the club, he was not a fixed starter, competing with Clinton Mata for his position. In his second season, after Mata's departure to Club Brugge, he won a permanent starting position. That season, Mæhle grew into a key player in the Genk starting eleven. At the end of the season, Genk won the Belgian championship.
On 11 September 2019, Mæhle extended his contract until June 2023.

### Atalanta

Genk announced on 22 December 2020 that Mæhle had signed for Atalanta on a five-year contract for a fee of €10 million. His transfer was made official on 4 January 2021. He made his Serie A debut for Atalanta on 6 January in the club's 3–0 win over Parma. On 28 February, Mæhle provided an assist in Atalanta's 2–0 win over Sampdoria. Mæhle scored his first goal for Atalanta in a 6–2 Serie A victory over Udinese on 9 January 2022.

### VfL Wolfsburg

In August of 2023, Mæhle joined VfL Wolfsburg for a fee of reportedly around €12 million. On 6 September 2023 he scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 win against 1. FC Union Berlin.

## International career

Mæhle made his Denmark national team debut on 5 September 2020 in a Nations League game against Belgium; he substituted Martin Braithwaite in the 72nd minute of a 2–0 home loss. He scored his first international goal in a friendly against the Faroe Islands on 7 October 2020.
In June 2021, he was included in the national team's bid for 2020 UEFA Euro, where the team reached the semi-finals.
On 12 October 2021, Maehle scored the only goal as Denmark defeated Austria to secure a place at the World Cup in Qatar.

## Career statistics
### Club

    As of match played 8 March 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | National cup | National cup | Europe | Europe | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| AaB | 2016–17 | Danish Superliga | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | – | – | 25 | 1 |
| Genk | 2017–18 | Belgian Pro League | 25 | 0 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 27 | 0 |
| Genk | 2018–19 | Belgian Pro League | 39 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 54 | 4 |
| Genk | 2019–20 | Belgian Pro League | 25 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 33 | 1 |
| Genk | 2020–21 | Belgian Pro League | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 16 | 1 |
| Genk | Total | Total | 105 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 19 | 0 | 128 | 6 |
| Atalanta | 2020–21 | Serie A | 20 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 25 | 0 |
| Atalanta | 2021–22 | Serie A | 26 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 1 | 35 | 3 |
| Atalanta | 2022–23 | Serie A | 34 | 3 | 2 | 0 | – | – | 36 | 3 |
| Atalanta | Total | Total | 80 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 96 | 6 |
| VfL Wolfsburg | 2023–24 | Bundesliga | 30 | 2 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 33 | 2 |
| VfL Wolfsburg | 2024–25 | Bundesliga | 17 | 2 | 3 | 0 | – | – | 20 | 3 |
| VfL Wolfsburg | Total | Total | 47 | 4 | 6 | 0 | – | – | 53 | 5 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 256 | 13 | 17 | 3 | 29 | 1 | 302 | 18 |
* ↑ Includes Danish Cup, Belgian Cup, Coppa Italia, DFB-Pokal
* ↑ Appearances in UEFA Europa League
* 1 2 Appearances in UEFA Champions League
* ↑ Five appearances in UEFA Champions League, three appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa League

### International

    As of match played 15 October 2024
Appearances and goals by national team and year :
| National team | Year | Apps | Goals |
| Denmark | 2020 | 6 | 1 |
| Denmark | 2021 | 17 | 7 |
| Denmark | 2022 | 11 | 1 |
| Denmark | 2023 | 8 | 2 |
| Denmark | 2024 | 8 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 50 | 11 |
    Scores and results list Denmark's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Mæhle goal.
List of international goals scored by Joakim Mæhle :
| No. | Date | Venue | Cap | Opponent | Score | Result | Competition |
| 1 | 7 October 2020 | MCH Arena, Herning, Denmark | 2 | Faroe Islands | 3–0 | 4–0 | Friendly |
| 2 | 31 March 2021 | Ernst-Happel-Stadion, Vienna, Austria | 8 | Austria | 2–0 | 4–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 3 | 21 June 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 13 | Russia | 4–1 | 4–1 | UEFA Euro 2020 |
| 4 | 26 June 2021 | Johan Cruyff Arena, Amsterdam, Netherlands | 14 | Wales | 3–0 | 4–0 | UEFA Euro 2020 |
| 5 | 1 September 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 17 | Scotland | 2–0 | 2–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 6 | 9 October 2021 | Zimbru Stadium, Chișinău, Moldova | 20 | Moldova | 4–0 | 4–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 7 | 12 October 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 21 | Austria | 1–0 | 1–0 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 8 | 12 November 2021 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 22 | Faroe Islands | 3–1 | 3–1 | 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification |
| 9 | 29 March 2022 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 25 | Serbia | 1–0 | 3–0 | Friendly |
| 10 | 7 September 2023 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 38 | San Marino | 2–0 | 4–0 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |
| 11 | 17 November 2023 | Parken Stadium, Copenhagen, Denmark | 42 | Slovenia | 1–0 | 2–1 | UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying |

## Honours

Genk
* Belgian First Division A: 2018–19
Atalanta
* Coppa Italia runner-up: 2020–21