Stefan de Vrij was born on 5 February 1992 in Ouderkerk aan den IJssel, Netherlands. He started at local club Spirit before joining Feyenoord's academy at age 10, where he was converted from midfielder to centre-back and progressed to make 135 league appearances and briefly captain the side as a young senior player.
In 2014 he joined Lazio for around €8 million, spending four seasons in Serie A and developing his game positionally and tactically. He moved to Inter Milan as a free agent in 2018 and has since been a constant in the back three, winning three Serie A titles (2020-21, 2023-24, 2025-26), two Coppa Italia trophies and multiple Supercoppa Italiana editions, plus reaching two Champions League finals. He was named Serie A Best Defender in 2019-20 and selected for the league's Team of the Year.
For the Netherlands he debuted under Louis van Gaal in 2012 and became a regular at international level, finishing third at the 2014 World Cup, where he earned a Team of the Tournament selection, and going on to play at Euro 2020 and Euro 2024. At Euro 2024 he scored the equaliser against Turkey in the quarter-final to help send the Dutch through to the semi-finals.
A calm, positionally smart centre-back with strong duelling, aerial ability and clean distribution, de Vrij's longevity at the very top of Italian football and consistent international relevance underline why he is considered one of his generation's best Dutch defenders.