Ivory Coast striker Oumar Diakite joins Sturm Graz on loan from Stade Reims

Ivory Coast striker Oumar Diakite has joined Austrian Bundesliga club Sturm Graz on loan from Stade Reims until 30 June 2027.

The 22-year-old centre-forward moves to Austria after returning to Reims from a loan spell at Cercle Brugge at the end of the 2025-26 season. Diakite spent the previous campaign with the Belgian club before switching back to the French side in June.

Diakite’s move to Sturm Graz represents his latest step in a career that has already taken him across France, Belgium and Austria. He originally joined Reims from Salzburg in July 2023 in a transfer worth €2.5m.

The Bingerville-born forward began his senior career in Ivory Coast with ASEC Mimosas before moving to Salzburg in January 2022. He subsequently spent time on loan with FC Liefering, Salzburg’s associated club, during the second half of the 2021-22 season.

Diakite made four appearances in the 2026 World Cup, playing seven per cent of Ivory Coast’s available minutes, and also had a place in the nation’s squad during their successful 2024 Africa Cup of Nations campaign. Ivory Coast won the tournament, giving Diakite an international honour at senior level.

His most recent club record came at a difficult stage of the 2026-27 campaign with Reims, where he did not make an appearance before completing his move to Sturm Graz. The transfer was registered on 2 September, with the Austrian side agreeing to take him for the season.

Diakite is listed at 1.82m and favours his right foot. His arrival gives Sturm Graz a centre-forward who has previously played in the Austrian, French and Belgian football systems, while his contract with the club runs until the end of June 2027 under the terms of the loan.

The move also returns Diakite to Austria, where he previously played for Salzburg and FC Liefering before establishing himself in French football. He now joins Sturm Graz from Reims on a loan transfer completed on 2 September 2026.