Ester Sokler

Ester Sokler (born 4 June 1999) is a Slovenian professional footballer who plays as a striker for Serbian SuperLiga club Radnički 1923, on loan from Scottish Premiership club Aberdeen.

Ester Sokler

Personal information
Date of birth	(1999-06-04) 4 June 1999 (age 26)
Place of birth	Krško, Slovenia
Height	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)[1]
Position	Striker
Team information
Current team	Radnički 1923 (on loan from Aberdeen)
Number	19
Youth career
2007–2016	Krško[2]
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2016–2020	Krško	55	(5)
2020–2021	Brežice 1919	11	(6)
2021–2022	Celje	44	(9)
2022–2023	Radomlje	30	(10)
2023–	Aberdeen	49	(3)
2025–	→ Radnički 1923 (loan)	11	(6)
International career
2016	Slovenia U17	3	(0)
2017	Slovenia U18	7	(1)
2017	Slovenia U19	2	(0)
2019	Slovenia U21	1	(0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 19:14, 17 December 2025 (UTC)

Club career

Born in Krško,^[3] Sokler started his playing career at the age of six, at the football school Nogobikci, before joining the youth sector of his hometown club Krško.^[2] He came through the club's youth ranks, as he won the under-13 and under-15 national championship in 2012 and 2014, respectively.^[2]

Having been promoted to the senior squad in 2016, aged 17,^[2] Sokler made his Slovenian PrvaLiga debut on 26 November 2016, in a 4–0 defeat against Maribor.^[4]

In July 2020, Sokler joined Slovenian Second League side Brežice 1919,^[5] where he spent six months,^[6] before returning to PrvaLiga in December 2020, having signed a contract with Celje until 2023.^[7][8]

After two seasons at Celje,^[6] Sokler joined fellow Slovenian top-tier club Radomlje on a permanent deal in July 2022.^[3][9] He scored 10 goals in 31 games in his first season with Radomlje,^[6] as they finished seventh in the league.^[10]

On 16 June 2023, Sokler joined Scottish Premiership club Aberdeen for an undisclosed fee, signing a three-year deal.^[6][10][11]

At the beginning of September 2025, he went on a season-long loan to Serbian SuperLiga club Radnički 1923.^[12]

International career

Sokler was a Slovenian youth international,^[13] and earned one cap for the under-21 national team in 2019.^[1]

Personal life

Sokler hails from the small village of Brestanica, near Krško.^[2] He cited Wayne Rooney as his football idol while growing up.^[2]

In 2023, he claimed that he has often been mistaken for a woman, as Ester is actually a female given name in many countries, including Slovenia itself.^[14] According to him, his parents likely chose to name him after Mi2's 1998 song "Moja teta Estera".^[14]

Career statistics

As of 28 August 2025^[15][16]

Appearances and goals by club, season and competition

Club	Season	League			National cup[a]		League cup[b]		Other		Total
		Division	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals	Apps	Goals
Krško	2016–17	Slovenian PrvaLiga	3	0	0	0	—		—		3	0
	2017–18		12	1	0	0	—		—		12	1
	2018–19		24	0	2	0	—		—		26	0
	2019–20	Slovenian Second League	16	4	1	0	—		—		17	4
	Total		55	5	3	0	0	0	0	0	58	5
Brežice 1919	2020–21	Slovenian Second League	11	6	1	3	—		—		12	9
Celje	2020–21	Slovenian PrvaLiga	14	3	4	0	—		—		18	3
	2021–22		30	6	2	1	—		—		32	7
	Total		44	9	6	1	0	0	0	0	50	10
Radomlje	2022–23	Slovenian PrvaLiga	30	10	1	0	—		—		31	10
Aberdeen	2023–24[17]	Scottish Premiership	26	1	3	1	4	1	7[c]	1	40	4
	2024–25	Scottish Premiership	21	2	0	0	7	5	0	0	28	7
	2025–26	Scottish Premiership	2	0	0	0	0	0	2[d]	1	4	1
	Total		49	3	3	1	11	6	9	2	72	12
Career total			189	33	14	5	11	6	9	2	223	46

1. Includes Slovenian Football Cup, Scottish Cup
2. Includes Scottish League Cup
3. Two appearances in UEFA Europa League, five appearances and one goal in UEFA Europa Conference League
4. Appearances in UEFA Europa League