Rocco Vata (born 18 April 2005) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for EFL Championship club Watford. Born in Scotland, he is a youth international for Ireland.
Born in Glasgow, Vata followed in the footsteps of his father, former professional footballer and Celtic player Rudi Vata by joining Celtic at the age of seven. He signed his first professional contract with the club in July 2021.
He was included in pre-season training with the Celtic first team ahead of the 2022–23 season, but wa…
s assigned to the club's B team in 2022, making his debut in the Lowland League the same year. Following impressive performances for Celtic's youth and B teams, he is seen as one of Celtic and Ireland's most promising players, and was linked with Italian clubs Juventus, Roma and AC Milan, as well as English sides Arsenal and Manchester City in October 2022.
Vata made his first team debut for Celtic on 28 December 2022, coming on as a substitute for Matt O'Riley as Celtic beat Hibernian 4–0 away at Easter Road. He scored his first senior goal in a 5–0 rout of Buckie Thistle on 21 January 2024 in the 2023–24 Scottish Cup.
Rocco is the son of former footballer Rudi Vata.
Vata is eligible to represent Albania through his father (who played for the Albania national team), the Republic of Ireland through his grandmother on his mother's side, Scotland through his mother and by virtue of being born there, and Montenegro.
On 31 August 2023, Vata received his first call up to the Republic of Ireland U21 squad for their 2025 UEFA European Under-21 Championship qualification fixtures against Turkey U21 and San Marino U21 on 8 and 12 September 2023. He made his U21 debut in the San Marino game, scoring twice in a 3–0 win at Turners Cross. On 22 March 2024, he scored a hat-trick on his second appearance for the side, in a 7–0 win away to San Marino U21.
