West Ham United is delighted to announce that Academy of Football defender Airidas Golambeckis has signed a new contract with the Club, until the summer of 2029.
The young centre-back celebrates his 18th birthday today by committing his future to the Club he has supported all his life.
Golambeckis becomes the fifth U21s development squad player to extend their contract at Rush Green in recent weeks, following Ezra Mayers, Mohamadou Kanté, Josh Landers and Preston Fearon.
Born and raised in East Ham to Lithuanian parents, Golambeckis grew up over the road from West Ham United’s former ground at Upton Park. He joined the West Ham United Foundation’s football development schools in Beckton at five years old, before making the switch to Chadwell Heath at U9s and has proudly represented the Academy of Football ever since.
“I’ve supported West Ham all my life, so to sign my second professional contract with them, for my 18th birthday, is very special,” he smiled. “This means a lot not just to me, but also my family. I know how hard they’ve worked to help me get to where I am.
“It gives me that extra hunger to push towards the first team. I want to stay fit, keep progressing and impress any time I do get the opportunity to go over to the first team.”
Playing above his age group with the U21s, Golambeckis is one of a select group of players to have captained the development squad before turning 18.
“This is my first time captaining an age group at the Academy,” he explained. “I have to shout out the staff who have supported me and believed in me to be able to captain such a talented Under-21s team at such a young age.
“There’s an extra responsibility every time I step out onto the pitch with the armband as a West Ham player and it’s something I’m really proud to do.”
Golambeckis made his U18s debut while still a schoolboy in 2023, and that same week played 120 minutes in the FA Youth Cup third round as the young Hammers beat Southampton on penalties. Later that season, he made his U21s debut in a 2-0 win over Norwich City at Carrow Road.
A Premier League Cup winner with our U18s in 2024/25, Golambeckis is also an England youth international. He switched his allegiance from his parents’ native Lithuania, who he had represented at U16s, and has been a regular feature for the 2007-born Young Lions since making his U18s debut in September 2024.
As someone who knows exactly what it takes to play above your age group at Academy level and make it in the Premier League, Sporting Director Mark Noble hopes Golambeckis continues his upward trajectory towards the first team.
“It's a credit to all departments in the Academy to have another player who has come through every single age group,” Noble said. “We identified how good he was pretty quickly and the fact he played in the FA Youth Cup as a schoolboy is a great indicator on his potential.
“He's a great kid and a top player. Being captain of our U21s team at such a young age is a real honour, but he's still got loads to learn. He’s another one that we've got real high hopes for. We would like to see him in our first team squad soon and I really believe he's got a chance.”
Everyone at West Ham United would like to congratulate Airidas on signing his first professional contract and wish him continued success in Claret and Blue.
