Robin van Persie was born on August 6, 1983 in Rotterdam, Netherlands. The son of two artists, Van Persie was encouraged to follow in his parents' footsteps, but he preferred football and joined SBV Excelsior's youth squad. He made his breakthrough at his hometown club Feyenoord, where he spent three seasons and won the UEFA Cup in 2002.
Van Persie moved to Arsenal for £2.75 million in 2004, winning the FA Community Shield and the FA Cup in his first season with the club.
On September 24, 2011, Van Persie scored twice against Bolton Wanderers to reach 100 goals or Arsenal, becoming the 17th Gunners player to reach this milestone.
In the summer of 2012, however, he announced that he did not want to sign a new contract with Arsenal and in August, he joined Manchester United for £24 million. He scored for United with his first touch, a superb goal against Fulham, and went on to win the Premiership in his first season with the club. His incredible volley in a 3-1 victory against Aston Villa all but sealed the title.
Van Persie made his senior international debut in 2005 in a friendly match against Romania. One month later, he bagged his first senior international goal in a 4-0 win over Finland.
Van Persie has already won over 60 caps and has scored 25 goals for Holland. He represented his country in the 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cups and the UEFA Euro 2008. He picked up a runners-up medal as Holland lost 1-0 to Spain in the 2010 World Cup final.
On April 23, 2012 he was named as the Professional Footballers' Association's Player of the Year.