Joël Zwarts

Joël Zwarts needed only a matter of months in Bulgaria to force his next move. Signed by Lokomotiv Plovdiv in February 2026 on a free transfer, he finished the season as the club's top scorer in the Bulgarian championship, with eight goals in fifteen First League appearances. He joined the capital club on a three-year deal and kept scoring at the same rate, with five goals from his first five league appearances by August.

Zwarts came through the Feyenoord academy and was part of the first-team squad that won the Johan Cruyff Shield in 2018, though he did not play in the final. A loan at Dordrecht brought six goals in fourteen games, and a return to Excelsior produced nineteen goals across two seasons.

In 2021 he moved to Germany, joining Jahn Regensburg for around €350,000, a club-record fee at the time. His spell in the 2. Bundesliga produced two goals in twenty-four appearances. He then played in the 3. Liga for 1860 Munich and VfL Osnabrück, scoring six and four goals respectively; his contract at Osnabrück was not renewed at the end of that season.

Zwarts won two caps for the Netherlands under-19s in 2017, without scoring.