Rauno Sappinen (born 23 January 1996) is an Estonian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Olympiakos Nicosia and the Estonia national team.
Club career Flora Sappinen came through the youth system at Flora and made his debut in the Meistriliiga on 2 March 2013, in a 4–1 home win over Tallinna Kalev. He won his first Meistriliiga title in the 2015 season. Sappinen's performances in 2015 also saw him voted Estonian Young Footballer of the Year. He was Flora's top goalscorer in the league for three consecutive seasons from 2015 to 2017, and joint top scorer in the Meistriliiga in 2017, alongside Albert Prosa. Sappinen won his second Meistriliiga title in the 2017 season, and was named Meistriliiga Player of the Year.
Loan to Beerschot Wilrijk On 31 January 2018, Sappinen joined Belgian club Beerschot Wilrijk on loan until the end of the season. He made his debut for the club on 9 February 2018, in a 0–0 home draw against Westerlo.
Loan to Den Bosch On 13 August 2018, Sappinen joined Dutch club Den Bosch on loan until the end of the season. He made his debut in the Eerste Divisie on 17 August 2018, and scored the winning goal in a 2–1 away victory over Volendam.
Loan to Domžale On 14 August 2019, Sappinen penned a three-year loan deal with Slovenian club Domžale.
Return to Flora On 6 July 2021, Sappinen scored both goals in Flora's win over Hibernians in the first leg of their UEFA Champions League first qualifying round match. He would score again in the second leg a week later as Flora won 5–0 on aggregate and progressed to the second qualifying round for just the third time in club history.
Poland On 22 December 2021, Sappinen signed a three-and-a-half-year contract with Polish Ekstraklasa club Piast Gliwice, effective from 1 February 2022.
On 24 January 2023, Sappinen joined Stal Mielec on loan until the end of the season with an option to buy.
Hapoel Jerusalem
In July 2023, Sappinen signed a one-year contract with Hapoel Jerusalem with an option for a two-year extension. Already on 19 August in a derby game against Beitar in the League Cup, Sappinen got a serious injury that meant his season was over. On 8 September 2023, his contract was terminated by mutual consent.
Olympiakos Nicosia
On the 18th of August 2026 he signed a one-year contract with a one-year extension option with Cypriot side Olympiakos Nicosia.
International career Sappinen began his international career for Estonia in 2011 with the under-16 national team, and has captained the under-19 and under-21 national sides.
Sappinen made his senior international debut for Estonia on 11 November 2015, in a 3–0 home victory over Georgia in a friendly. He scored his first international goal on 19 November 2016, in a 1–1 away draw against Saint Kitts and Nevis in a friendly.
Career statistics Club
+ Appearances and goals by club, season and competitionClubSeasonLeagueNational cupContinentalOtherTotalDivisionAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsAppsGoalsFlora III2012II liiga129———129Flora II2012Esiliiga10120——1212013Esiliiga8000——802014Esiliiga14500——145Total32620——346Flora2013Meistriliiga2355010—2952014Meistriliiga12234—101662015Meistriliiga32163220—37182016Meistriliiga321963211141242017Meistriliiga352710201039272018Meistriliiga20003100512020Meistriliiga282630321135292021Meistriliiga3023311211114636Total1941182410251553248146Beerschot Wilrijk (loan)2017–18Belgian First Division B1000—1020Den Bosch (loan)2018–19Eerste Divisie30610—10326Domžale (loan)2019–20Slovenian PrvaLiga10210——112Piast Gliwice2021–22Ekstraklasa8010——902022–23Ekstraklasa11120——131Total19130——221Stal Mielec2022–23Ekstraklasa14300——143Hapoel Jerusalem2023–24Israeli Premier League0000—5151Flora2024Meistriliiga51—41—922025Meistriliiga36200021003821Total41210062004723Career total35316631103117124427198
International
+ Appearances and goals by national team and yearNational teamYearAppsGoalsEstonia2015202016912017512018202019702020742021112202262202342202420202585202620Total6517
Scores and results list Estonia's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Sappinen goal.
+ List of international goals scored by Rauno SappinenNo.DateVenueCapOpponentScoreResultCompetition119 November 2016Warner Park, Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis111–11–1Friendly212 November 2017National Stadium, Ta' Qali, Malta131–03–0Friendly311 October 2020A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia281–13–32020–21 UEFA Nations League C42–1514 October 2020A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia291–11–12020–21 UEFA Nations League C615 November 2020National Arena Toše Proeski, Skopje, North Macedonia311–11–22020–21 UEFA Nations League C724 March 2021Arena Lublin, Lublin, Poland331–02–62022 FIFA World Cup qualification84 June 2021Helsinki Olympic Stadium, Helsinki, Finland371–01–0Friendly923 September 2022A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia461–02–12022–23 UEFA Nations League D1026 September 2022Olympic Stadium, Serravalle, San Marino473–04–02022–23 UEFA Nations League D1127 March 2023Raiffeisen Arena, Linz, Austria511–01–2UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying1217 June 2023Dalga Arena, Baku, Azerbaijan521–01–1UEFA Euro 2024 qualifying1325 March 2025Zimbru Stadium, Chișinău, Moldova562–03–22026 FIFA World Cup qualification1411 October 2025A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia601–31–32026 FIFA World Cup qualification1518 November 2025Alphamega Stadium, Limassol, Cyprus632–24–2Friendly163–2174–2
Honours Flora Meistriliiga: 2015, 2017, 2020, 2025 Estonian Cup: 2012–13, 2015–16, 2019–20 Estonian Supercup: 2014, 2016, 2020, 2021
Individual Estonian Footballer of the Year: 2020, 2021 Estonian Young Footballer of the Year: 2015, 2018 Meistriliiga Player of the Year: 2017, 2020, 2021, 2025 Meistriliiga Fans' Player of the Year: 2015, 2017, 2020, 2025 Meistriliiga Team of the Season: 2020 Meistriliiga Top Scorer: 2017, 2020, 2025 Meistriliiga Player of the Month: October 2015, June 2017, October 2025
References
External links
Rauno Sappinen – UEFA competition record