Faiq Bolkiah

Faiq Jefri Bolkiah (born 9 May 1998) is a member of the Bruneian Royal Family and a Bruneian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Thai club Chonburi. He has served as the captain of the Brunei national team.

A Welcome Note

I want to personally welcome you all to my official website. Here, you will find the most reliable information about me, my activities on and off the pitch, and links to my (approved) Social Media Profiles.

Thanks a lot for being there!

Career In Numbers

Minutes Played

Career Clubs

National Caps

Journey to Stardom

My Career Path As a Professional Footballer

Faiq Bolkiah’s football career began in England at the Newberry youth training camp, where he left a favourable impression on Coach Paul Morgan of Newbury’s youth side, who said in an interview: “When they filled out the documents to be admitted to the academy, Faik’s representatives had to indicate their place of residence.

“They entered a residence built on the former site of the Hollington House Hotel. His family just purchased the hotel and transformed it into a residence. It was extremely apparent. It was evident from the beginning that they were linked to the royal family of Brunei.

“However, these men were well-prepared and courteous. They were not at all haughty. Faiq seemed to be an average youngster.”

In 2009, Faiq Bolkiah transferred to Southampton, and four years later, he underwent a trial with Arsenal before returning.
His new teammates only learned that he was a member of the royal family from the reactions of the locals on a team visit to Singapore, which made it evident that he was not the average earthling.

Rugare Musendo, a former young player for Arsenal, recalls Faiq’s attributes:

“He was an excellent right-footed footballer. He was the team’s quickest and most clever member. His playing technique was reminiscent of Theo Walcott’s.

“The most incredible thing is that we had no idea he was a prince or whatever. He was a modest individual. Through a visit to Singapore, we learnt about his fortune.”

With his performance at the Singapore Youth Trials in 2014, Faiq Bolkiah won a two-year contract with Chelsea and the opportunity to play with talents like Tammy Abraham and Ruben Loftus-Cheek.

Former Chelsea youth player Ruben Sammut was not short on praise for Faiq Bolkiah:

“He was a shy guy who exercised daily. We made fun of the fact that he did not need to do anything since he was already wealthy.

“We all knew, though, how much he wanted to play football, so we seldom indulged in such jokes.”

Faiq Bolkiah left Chelsea in 2015 and signed his first deal with Leicester City. His move to the Foxes was motivated by the Srivaddhanaprabha family, Leicester City’s Thai owners, who had a good relationship with the Bolkiah royal family.

At the King Power, he spent three years as a reserve, appearing five times in the UEFA Youth League and witnessing the club’s 2016 title triumph.

However, Faiq Bolkiah did not receive any preferential treatment on-pitch, eventually leaving England for Maritimo on a free transfer in 2020 without making a senior appearance.

He was welcomed with open arms in Portugal, and Maritimo fullback, Claudio Wink spoke highly of him, “He came to Portugal seeking opportunity, and I believe he is a very talented player. This individual trains well and strives to improve,” said the Brazilian.

“As he is still young, I hope he will have a prosperous future. He is a genuinely modest and diligent individual. We are very close and spend considerable time together.

“I speak a little bit of English, and his Portuguese is not yet very excellent, but we can communicate. Faiq has everything necessary for a successful career,” ended the gaffer.

While playing for Maritimo, Faiq Bolkiah resided in Madeira, the hometown of football’s first billionaire, Cristiano Ronaldo, making only one appearance for the B team before mutually terminating his contract in December 2021.

Faiq Bolkiah is currently a left winger for Chonburi FC in the Thai League as of May 2022, where he wears the number 11. There, on his home continent, he is playing the best football of his professional career, assisting on a handful of goals in over a dozen matches.

After a two-year pursuit, Faiq Bolkiah agreed to play for Chonburi in order to acquire experience as a result of the strong ties between the Thai and Brunei royal families.

Despite being a young player for Tebuan, Faiq has already captained the Brunei national team six times. In 2016, he scored a goal in a 3–2 triumph over Laos.

On the field of play, the family’s riches are useless to Bolkiah, who understands that money cannot purchase his goal.

In an interview, he said, “I’ve played football for as long as I can remember, and I’ve always liked being on the pitch with the ball at my feet.”