From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

Ken Sema

Kenneth Nlata Sema (born 30 September 1993) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a left midfielder for Cypriot First Division club Pafos and the Sweden national team.

Column 1	Column 2	Column 3
Sema in 2019 with Sweden
Kenneth Nlata Sema
(1993-09-30) 30 September 1993
Norrköping, Sweden
1.80 m (5 ft 11 in)
.mw-parser-output .hlist dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul{margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt,.mw-parser-output .hlist li{margin:0;display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist.inline ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist dl ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ol ul,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul dl,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ol,.mw-parser-output .hlist ul ul{display:inline}.mw-parser-output .hlist .mw-empty-li{display:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dt::after{content:": "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li::after{content:"\a0 · ";font-weight:bold}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li:last-child::after{content:none}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:first-child::before{content:" (";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dd li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt li:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dd:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li dt:last-child::after,.mw-parser-output .hlist li li:last-child::after{content:")";font-weight:normal}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol{counter-reset:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li{counter-increment:listitem}.mw-parser-output .hlist ol>li::before{content:" "counter(listitem)"\a0 "}.mw-parser-output .hlist dd ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist dt ol>li:first-child::before,.mw-parser-output .hlist li ol>li:first-child::before{content:" ("counter(listitem)"\a0 "}Midfielderwing-back
Pafos
12
IFK Norrköping
Team	Apps	(Gls)
IFK Norrköping	0	(0)
→ IF Sylvia (loan)	22	(4)
Ljungskile SK	60	(11)
Östersunds FK	58	(8)
Watford	159	(11)
→ Udinese (loan)	32	(2)
Pafos	39	(0)
Sweden Olympic	4	(1)
Sweden	32	(5)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of 18:24, 16 May 2026 (UTC)‡ National team caps and goals as of 19:38, 20 November 2025 (UTC)

Kenneth Nlata Sema (born 30 September 1993) is a Swedish professional footballer who plays as a left midfielder for Cypriot First Division club Pafos and the Sweden national team.

Sema got promoted to the IFK Norrköping first team as a 19-year old in 2013. However, he spent the entire season on loan to IF Sylvia and did not get his contract renewed after it expired at the end of the season.

In 2014, he signed for second-tier team Ljungskile SK.

In January 2016, Sema signed for Östersunds FK in the Allsvenskan, where he would have his major breakthrough. Sema won the 2016–17 Svenska Cupen with Östersund, assisting three of their four goals in the final, and later played a major role in their 2017–18 UEFA Europa League campaign. On 22 February 2018, Sema scored a goal in a 2–1 win against Arsenal in the round of 32. Despite this, Östersund were eliminated from the Europa League after losing 2–4 on aggregate.

On 4 July 2018, Östersunds FK chairman Daniel Kindberg revealed that Sema was close to signing for Premier League club Watford on a five-year contract. The next day, Watford confirmed the signing. He scored his first goal against Bournemouth on 2 January 2019 in a 3–3 draw.

He was integral in helping Watford get promoted back to the Premier League in the 2020–21 season, registering six goals and adding a further six assists.

On 6 February 2024, Sema made his 150th appearance for Watford in their FA Cup fourth round replay defeat to Southampton.

On 29 January 2025, Sema departed Watford having had his contract terminated by mutual consent.

On 22 August 2019, Udinese Calcio signed Sema on a season-long loan from Watford. He made his Serie A debut for Udinese on 25 August 2019 in a 1–0 win against AC Milan.

On 31 January 2025, Sema signed a contract with Cypriot First Division club Pafos. Sema was part of the Pafos side that won the club's first Cypriot league title during the 2024–25 season.

On 5 November 2025, Sema provided the assist for Derrick Luckassen's goal in a 1–0 win over Villarreal in the UEFA Champions League. It was the club's first ever win in the Champions League proper.

In 2016, Sema was a part of the Sweden Olympic team that played in Brazil, and scored his first U23 goal in a match against South Korea Olympic. In January 2017, he debuted for the Sweden senior team in a friendly 6–0 win over Slovakia.

Sema was an unused substitute in the two-legged playoff against Italy in November 2017, which Sweden won, and therefore qualified for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. Despite featuring in commercials with the rest of the Sweden squad before the World Cup, Sema was eventually left out of the World Cup squad.

Sema made his competitive international debut in a UEFA Euro 2020 qualifying game against the Faroe Islands national football team which Sweden won 3–0.

He was part of Sweden's squad at UEFA Euro 2020 that reached the round of 16 before being eliminated by Ukraine.

On 15 June 2025 he scored a hat-trick in an international friendly against Algeria which Sweden won 4–3.

Sema is known for his hard work, a trait that has made him very popular with Watford fans. He likes to dribble past opponents to get into good crossing positions. He is mainly a winger but has occasionally been used at left back or wing back, due to his ability to work hard and track back defensively. He is affectionately known as King Ken by Watford fans.

Sema was born in Sweden to Congolese parents, and his brother Maic Sema is also a footballer. He speaks with a stammer, and after a video went viral of him doing a post match interview with Watford TV, he was praised as a role model for children and adults with speech impediments.

As of match played 16 May 2026

As of match played on 18 November 2025

National team	Year	Apps	Goals
Sweden	2017	1	0
2018	5	0
2019	1	0
2020	2	0
2021	4	0
2022	1	0
2023	4	0
2024	6	1
2025	8	4

Scores and results list Sweden's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Sema goal.

No.	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	11 October 2024	Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia	Slovakia	2–0	2–2	2024–25 UEFA Nations League
2.	25 March 2025	Strawberry Arena, Solna, Sweden	Northern Ireland	3–0	5–1	Friendly
3.	10 June 2025	Strawberry Arena, Solna, Sweden	Algeria	1–0	4–3	Friendly
4.	2–0
5.	3–0

Östersund

Svenska Cupen: 2016–17

Pafos

Cypriot First Division: 2024–25
Ken Sema at the Swedish Football Association (in Swedish)
Ken Sema club team profile at SvFF (in Swedish) (archived)
Ken Sema national team profile at SvFF (in Swedish) (archived)

Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about Ken Sema — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report