Léo Scienza

In this Portuguese name, the first or maternal family name is Weschenfelder and the second or paternal family name is Scienza.

Léo Scienza
Scienza with Southampton in 2025
Personal information
Full name Leonardo Weschenfelder Scienza
Date of birth (1998-09-13) 13 September 1998
Place of birth Venâncio Aires, Brazil
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)[1]
Position(s)
Team information
Current team
 Southampton
Number 13
Youth career
2014 Avenida
2015 Chapecoense
2016 Lajeadense
2017 Defensor Sporting
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2018 Lajeadense 2 (0)
2019–2020 Fanna 21 (12)
2020–2022 Schalke 04 II 59 (15)
2022–2023 1. FC Magdeburg 11 (0)
2023 1. FC Magdeburg II 10 (13)
2023–2024 SSV Ulm 34 (12)
2024–2025 1. FC Heidenheim 27 (4)
2025– Southampton 16 (3)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 15:46, 20 December 2025 (UTC)

Leonardo "Léo" Weschenfelder Scienza (born 13 September 1998) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as winger or attacking midfielder for EFL Championship club Southampton.[2]

Club career

Born in Venâncio Aires, Scienza had spells with the youth teams of Avenida, Chapecoense and Defensor Sporting,[3] before beginning his senior career with Lajeadense.[4]

Aged 20, Scienza moved to Sweden, having been promised trials with professional clubs by his agent.[5] This did not materialise, and he instead signed for Swedish fifth tier side Fanna BK ahead of the 2019 season.[6] He helped Fanna win promotion to the fourth tier in his only full season at the club, registering 10 goals and 22 assists in 18 league games.[7]

On 16 September 2020, Scienza signed for Schalke 04 II in the German fourth tier.[8] He spent two seasons at the club, scoring 15 goals in 59 appearances in the Regionalliga West, as well as playing once in a friendly for Schalke's first team.[9]

In 2022, he signed for 2. Bundesliga club 1. FC Magdeburg.[10] On 16 July 2022, Scienza debuted for Magdeburg during a 2–1 loss to Fortuna Düsseldorf.[11]

On 5 July 2023, Scienza moved to 3. Liga side SSV Ulm.[12] In the 2023–24 season, he finished as the club's top scorer with 12 goals and won the 3. Liga Player of the Season award, as Ulm won the league title.[13]

On 23 May 2024, Scienza signed a three-year contract with Bundesliga club 1. FC Heidenheim, beginning in July 2024.[14] On 22 August, he scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 away win over BK Häcken in the UEFA Conference League qualifying phase.[15] On 1 September, he netted his first Bundesliga goal in a 4–0 victory over Augsburg.[16] On 26 May 2025, he scored a stoppage-time winner in a 2–1 away victory against Elversberg in the second leg of the relegation play-offs, ensuring his club's survival in the top flight.[17]

On 1 September 2025, Scienza joined Southampton on a four-year contract.[18] He made his debut for the club on 14 September in a 0–0 draw with Portsmouth.[19][20] On 25 October, Scienza scored his first goal for the club in a 2–1 away defeat against Blackburn Rovers.[21]

International career

Scienza, of Luxembourgian descent, holds a Luxembourgian passport, yet he is not eligible to represent Luxembourg internationally, having not lived in Luxembourg for five years.[22][23]

Career statistics

As of match played on 20 December 2025
Appearances and goals by club, season and competition
Club Season League State league National cup Continental Other Total
Division Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals Apps Goals
Lajeadense 2018 Campeonato Gaúcho — 2 0 — — — 2 0
Fanna 2019 Division 3 18 10 — 0 0 — — 18 10
2020 Division 2 3 2 — 0 0 — — 3 2
Total 21 12 — 0 0 — — 21 12
Schalke 04 II 2020–21 Regionalliga West 23 4 — — — — 23 4
2021–22 Regionalliga West 36 11 — — — — 36 11
Total 59 15 — — — — 59 15
1. FC Magdeburg 2022–23 2. Bundesliga 11 0 — 1 0 — — 12 0
1. FC Magdeburg II 2022–23 Verbandsliga Sachsen-Anhalt 10 13 — — — — 10 13
SSV Ulm 2023–24 3. Liga 34 12 — 0 0 — — 34 12
1. FC Heidenheim 2024–25 Bundesliga 25 3 — 2 0 8[a] 2 2[b] 1 37 6
2025–26 Bundesliga 2 1 — 1 2 — — 3 3
Total 27 4 — 3 2 8 2 2 1 40 9
Southampton 2025–26[24] Championship 16 3 — 0 0 — 1[c] 0 17 3
Career total 178 59 2 0 4 2 8 2 3 1 195 64
  1. ^ Appearances in UEFA Conference League
  2. ^ Appearances in Bundesliga promotion/relegation playoffs
  3. ^ Appearance in EFL Cup

References

  1. ^ Léo Scienza at WorldFootball.net
  2. ^ Léo Scienza at kicker (in German)
  3. ^ "Eingebürgert / Holtz denkt an einen Schalke-Brasilianer" (in German). tageblatt.lu (Archived). Archived from the original on 27 July 2022.
  4. ^ Miller, Ben (2 September 2025). "Southampton sign winger Scienza from Heidenheim". BBC Sport.
  5. ^ Rees-Julian, George (16 November 2025). "How Scienza overcame false promises to become Southampton FC favourite". Southern Daily Echo.
  6. ^ "Formstarker Scienza hofft auf Profi-Debüt in dieser Saison" (in German). reviersport.de.
  7. ^ "Quem é o venâncio-airense que atua no futebol alemão" (in Portuguese). folhadomate.com.
  8. ^ "Weitere Neuverpflichtung – Leonardo Weschenfelder Scienza wird Teil der U23". Schalke 04 (in German). 16 September 2020.
  9. ^ "Schalke: Keine Zukunft für Leo Scienza - so erklärt Schröder den Abgang". WAZ (in German). 13 May 2022.
  10. ^ "De casa nova, Léo Scienza projeta próximos desafios no futebol alemão" (in Portuguese). vavel.com. 13 July 2022.
  11. ^ "FCM verliert zum Auftakt gegen Fortuna Düsseldorf 1:2" (in German). volksstimme.de.
  12. ^ "Spatzen verpflichten Léo Scienza vom 1. FC Magdeburg". SSV Ulm 1846 (in German). 5 July 2023.
  13. ^ Asmussen, Erik (23 May 2024). "Leo Scienza wechselt nach Mega-Saison mit Ulm in die Bundesliga". RevierSport (in German).
  14. ^ "Nächster Neuzugang fix – Léo Scienza ab Sommer beim FCH!" [Next new signing confirmed – Léo Scienza at FCH from summer!] (in German). 1. FC Heidenheim. 23 May 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  15. ^ "Historischer Sieg: Heidenheim jubelt bei 2:1-Conference-League-Debüt gegen den BK Häcken" (in German). Heidenheimer Zeitung. 22 August 2024.
  16. ^ Deibert, Edgar (2 September 2024). "Wie Leo Scienza Shootingstar Paul Wanner vom 1. FC Heidenheim doppelt adelt" (in German). Heidenheimer Zeitung.
  17. ^ Huber, Stefan (26 May 2025). "Last-Minute-Wahnsinn in Elversberg! Scienza hält Heidenheim in der Bundesliga" (in German). focus.de.
  18. ^ "Scienza arrives on deadline day". Southampton FC. 1 September 2025. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
  19. ^ "Report: South coast derby ends in goalless draw". Southampton FC. 14 September 2025. Retrieved 17 September 2025.
  20. ^ George, Dan (14 September 2025). "Southampton 0–0 Portsmouth". BBC Sport. Retrieved 17 September 2025.
  21. ^ "Blackburn Rovers 2–1 Southampton". BBC Sport. 25 October 2025. Retrieved 26 October 2025.
  22. ^ Hemmen, Bob (2 September 2024). "Ein Luxemburger verzaubert ganz Deutschland und steht an der Bundesliga-Spitze" (in German). Luxemburger Wort. Archived from the original on 3 September 2024.
  23. ^ Hemmen, Bob (25 September 2024). "Bundesliga-Star Leonardo Scienza: „Ich würde sofort für Luxemburg spielen"" (in German). Luxemburger Wort.
  24. ^ "Games played by Léo Scienza in 2025/2026". Soccerbase. Centurycomm. Retrieved 1 September 2025.
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