# Luka Racic

Luka Racic (born 8 May 1999) is a Danish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for Eliteserien club Rosenborg.
Racic is a graduate of the F.C. Copenhagen academy and began his senior career in England with Brentford in 2018. Following his promotion into the first team squad in 2019, he appeared sparingly before returning to Denmark to join Sønderjyske in 2022. Following short-lived spells with Slaven Belupo and Volos, Racic returned to Scandinavia with Rosenborg in 2024. Racic represented Denmark at youth level.

## Club career
### F.C. Copenhagen

A central defender, Racic began his youth career with Rosenhøj. He transferred to the F.C. Copenhagen academy in 2014 and was an unused substitute during two first team matches in the 2016–17 season. He departed the Parken Stadium in July 2018.

### Brentford

On 5 July 2018, Racic moved to England to join the B team at Championship club Brentford on a two-year contract, with the option of a further year. He was a part of the B team's 2019 Middlesex Senior Cup-winning squad and injuries in the first team squad allowed him to make two late-season first team appearances. In October 2019, Racic signed a new four-year contract and was promoted into the first team squad. He finished the 2019–20 season with seven appearances and one goal, but he did not feature during Brentford's unsuccessful playoff campaign.
Down the central defensive pecking order, Racic joined newly-promoted League One club Northampton Town on a loan for the duration of the 2020–21 season. He made 10 appearances before a back injury led to the termination of the loan in January 2021. Racic returned to match play with the B team in mid-April, but he did not win a call into a matchday squad before the end of Brentford's promotion-winning season. Despite being named in Brentford's 25-man Premier League squad for the first half of the 2021–22 season, Racic played exclusively for the B team during the first half of the campaign. He joined Danish 1st Division club HB Køge on loan in January 2022 and made 14 appearances and scored two goals during the remainder of the 2021–22 season.
Returning to the Community Stadium for the 2022–23 pre-season, Racic made one first team friendly appearance, but was not given a squad number ahead of the start of the regular season. He departed the club following the cancellation of his contract on 1 September 2022. Racic made 9 appearances and scored one goal during four years with Brentford.

### Sønderjyske

On 1 September 2022, Racic transferred to Danish 1st Division club Sønderjyske for an undisclosed fee and signed a contract running until the end of the 2022–23 season. He made 27 appearances and scored two goals during a 2022–23 season in which the club narrowly missed promotion back to the Superliga. Racic was unable to agree to a contract extension and departed the club when his contract expired.

### Slaven Belupo

On 26 June 2023, Racic signed a two-year contract with Croatian League club Slaven Belupo. He made 11 appearances prior to the termination of his contract by mutual consent on 9 January 2024.

### Volos

On 9 January 2024, Racic signed an undisclosed-length contract with Super League Greece club Volos. He made just seven appearances during the remainder of the 2023–24 season, in which the club narrowly avoided relegation. In June 2024, it was reported that Racic had negotiated with the club to make himself available on a free transfer during the off-season transfer window.

### Rosenborg

On 13 August 2024, Racic signed an 18-month contract with Norwegian Eliteserien club Rosenborg on a free transfer. He made seven appearances during the remainder of the 2024 season.

## International career

Racic was capped by Denmark between U16 and U21 level. He was a part of the Danish 2016 UEFA European U17 Championship squad and made three appearances at the tournament.

## Personal life

Racic is of Montenegrin descent and his uncle's brother is goalkeeper Filip Đukić.

## Career statistics

    As of match played 1 December 2024
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition :
| Club | Season | League | League | League | National cup | National cup | League cup | League cup | Europe | Europe | Other | Other | Total | Total |
| Club | Season | Division | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| F.C. Copenhagen | 2016–17 | Danish Superliga | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 |
| Brentford | 2018–19 | Championship | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 |
| Brentford | 2019–20 | Championship | 4 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 7 | 1 |
| Brentford | Total | Total | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | 0 | 0 | 9 | 1 |
| Northampton Town (loan) | 2020–21 | League One | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | 1 | 0 | 10 | 0 |
| HB Køge (loan) | 2021–22 | Danish 1st Division | 14 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 14 | 2 |
| Sønderjyske | 2022–23 | Danish 1st Division | 25 | 2 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 27 | 2 |
| Slaven Belupo | 2023–24 | Croatian League | 9 | 0 | 2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 11 | 0 |
| Volos | 2023–24 | Super League Greece | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | 8 | 0 |
| Rosenborg | 2024 | Eliteserien | 7 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 7 | 0 |
| Career total | Career total | Career total | 74 | 5 | 8 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 86 | 5 |
* ↑ Includes Danish Cup, FA Cup, Croatian Cup
* ↑ Includes EFL Cup
* ↑ Appearance in EFL Trophy

## Honours

Brentford B
* Middlesex Senior Cup: 2018–19