Brazilian World Cup winner Ronaldinho has retired from football, according to his agent and brother Roberto Assis. The 37-year-old has not played for a professional team since leaving Brazilian side Fluminense in July 2015.
“He has stopped, it is ended,” Assis wrote in a column for Brazilian newspaper O Globo. Let’s do something pretty big and nice after the Russia World Cup, probably in August. We will do various events in Brazil, Europe and Asia and, of course, we are arranging something with the Brazilian team as well.”
Ronaldinho began his career with Gremio in Brazil before joining PSG in 2001. It was his time at Barcelona that came to define his career, winning two La Liga titles, one Champions League trophy and one Ballon d’Or in a five-year stay at the Nou Camp. Lionel Messi recently identified Ronaldinho as the one person who helped him adjust to playing for the senior Barcelona team.
“Everyone welcomed me into the dressing room, and [Ronaldinho] welcomed me in a spectacular way,” he said. “To go into that dressing room was not easy but he made it all so much easier.”
Ronaldinho then spent three years with AC Milan, winning one Serie A title in an illustrious team that included David Beckham, Andrea Pirlo and Zlatan Ibrahimovic. He returned to his native Brazil in 2011 with a spell at Atletico Mineiro before rounding off his career with Queretaro in Mexico and finally Fluminense.