Ronaldinho is the only player ever to have won a World Cup, a Copa America, a Confederations Cup, a Champions League, a Copa Libertadores and a Ballon d'Or.
75 Facts About Ronaldinho
2.
Ronaldinho captained the Brazil Olympic team to a bronze medal in men's football at the 2008 Summer Olympics.
3.
Ronaldinho's mother, Miguelina Eloi Assis dos Santos, was a salesperson who studied to become a nurse.
4.
Ronaldinho's father, Joao de Assis Moreira, was a shipyard worker and a footballer for the local club Esporte Clube Cruzeiro.
5.
Ronaldinho developed an interest in futsal and beach football, which later expanded to organized football.
6.
Ronaldinho was identified as a rising star at the 1997 U-17 World Championship in Egypt, in which he scored two goals on penalty kicks.
7.
Ronaldinho is the father of a son, Joao, born on February 25,2005, to Brazilian dancer Janaina Mendes and named after his late father.
8.
In March 2018, Ronaldinho joined the Brazilian Republican Party, which has links to the Universal Church of the Kingdom of God.
9.
Ronaldinho endorsed presidential candidate Jair Bolsonaro in the 2018 Brazilian presidential election.
10.
But, with due respect to the others, Ronaldinho was a cut above the rest.
11.
Ronaldinho made his senior side debut during the 1998 Copa Libertadores.
12.
Ronaldinho achieved further success with Gremio, winning the inaugural Copa Sul.
13.
In 2001, Arsenal expressed interest in signing Ronaldinho, but the move collapsed after he could not obtain a work permit because he was a non-EU player who had not played enough international matches.
14.
Ronaldinho considered playing on loan with Scottish Premier League side St Mirren, which never happened due to his involvement in a fake passport scandal in Brazil.
15.
Ronaldinho recorded impressive goals against Monaco, Rennes, Lens and Lorient.
16.
Ronaldinho suffered from injury during the first half of the campaign, and Barcelona slumped to 12th in the league standings midway through the season.
17.
On 1 May 2005, Ronaldinho made the assist for Lionel Messi's first goal for Barcelona, executing a scooped pass over the Albacete defence for Messi to finish.
18.
Ronaldinho won the inaugural FIFPro World Player of the Year in September 2005, in addition to being included in the 2005 FIFPro World XI, and being named the 2005 European Footballer of the Year.
19.
Also that year, Ronaldinho was voted the FIFA World Player of the Year for the second consecutive year.
20.
Ronaldinho became only the third player to win the award more than once, after three-time winners Ronaldo and Zinedine Zidane.
21.
Ronaldinho scored a decisive goal in the second leg, going past three Chelsea defenders on the edge of the penalty area before beating the goalkeeper, sealing Barcelona's qualification to the next round.
22.
Ronaldinho was named in the six man shortlist for the 2006 Laureus World Sportsman of the Year, and was selected in the FIFA World XI.
23.
Ronaldinho was the recipient of the Bronze Ball Award for the competition.
24.
The next day, Ronaldinho finished third in the 2006 FIFA World Player of the Year, behind 2006 World Cup-winning captain Fabio Cannavaro and Zinedine Zidane.
25.
Ronaldinho played his 200th career match for Barcelona in a league match against Osasuna on 3 February 2008.
26.
On 19 May 2008, Barcelona club president Joan Laporta stated that Ronaldinho needed a "new challenge", claiming that he needed a new club if he were to revive his career.
27.
Ronaldinho joined Barca as a toothy-grinned wizard who had the club under his spell for three glorious seasons.
28.
Ronaldinho finished with a pair of goals and two assists in what would be his last match as a Barcelona player.
29.
In preparation for the 2010 Joan Gamper Trophy, Ronaldinho sent an open letter to the fans and players of Barcelona, stating that his best years had been the five he spent in the Catalan club.
30.
Ronaldinho scored early in the game at the San Siro to give Milan the lead.
31.
Ronaldinho finished the season as the assists leader of Serie A On a less positive note he missed three penalties in the domestic season to add to one botched kick the previous season.
32.
Ronaldinho was greeted by more than 20,000 fans at his unveiling at his new club on 13 January 2011.
33.
Ronaldinho lifted his first trophy with Flamengo after curling in a right-footed shot over the wall in the 71st minute at Engenhao stadium.
34.
Ronaldinho made a move to Atletico Mineiro on 4 June 2012 in a six-month contract, just four days after leaving Flamengo.
35.
Ronaldinho wore number 49 in reference to his mother's birth year since his preferred number 10 was already assigned to Guilherme in the 2012 season.
36.
Ronaldinho led Atletico Mineiro to a good 2012 season, in which the club finished second in the 2012 Brasileirao and qualified for the 2013 Copa Libertadores.
37.
Ronaldinho won the Bola de Ouro award, selected as the best player in the league.
38.
Tim Vickery on Ronaldinho being six years past his prime, and being mobbed by opposition players at the 2013 FIFA Club World Cup.
39.
Ronaldinho scored two penalties in consecutive matches, the second giving Queretaro the classification to the Liga MX playoffs.
40.
On 11 July 2015, Ronaldinho announced his return to Brazil and signed an 18-month contract with Fluminense, but on 28 September, Ronaldinho reached a mutual agreement with the club to terminate the deal.
41.
Ronaldinho made nine appearances during his two-month stint at the club, failing to impress and being heavily criticized by the fans.
42.
Ronaldinho respectfully told us he didn't feel he was able to perform as good as he wanted and that it was a bad situation for him.
43.
Ronaldinho made a great gesture in saying he wasn't being the player he felt he could be right now.
44.
From September to early October 2017, Ronaldinho joined the Delhi Dragons from Delhi in the Premier Futsal League.
45.
Ronaldinho retired as one of just eight players to have won the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League and the Ballon d'Or.
46.
Ronaldinho appeared at the closing ceremony of the 2018 FIFA World Cup at the Luzhniki Stadium in Moscow on 15 July, performing a few bars of the Russian folk song "Kalinka" on an African drum.
47.
Ronaldinho finished with two goals and was awarded the Bronze Ball award as Brazil scored a total of 21 goals while only conceding 2.
48.
Ronaldinho won the Golden Ball award for the best player in tournament as well as the Golden Boot award for the tournament top-scorer.
49.
In 2000, Ronaldinho participated in the Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia, with the U23 national team.
50.
Ronaldinho appeared four times and scored only one goal, which came in the quarter-final defeat by Cameroon.
51.
Ronaldinho participated in his first World Cup in 2002, as part of a formidable offensive unit with Ronaldo and Rivaldo, dubbed the "Three Rs", who were on the 1999 Copa America winning squad.
52.
The World Cup was held in South Korea and Japan, and Ronaldinho appeared in five matches during the tournament and scored two goals, as well as contributing with three assists.
53.
Ronaldinho scored three goals in the tournament and is tied with Mexican forward Cuauhtemoc Blanco as the tournament's all-time scorer with nine goals.
54.
However, deemed "top heavy and unbalanced", the team finished with ten goals in five games, with Ronaldinho himself going scoreless and finishing with only one assist, as he turned in his worst collective performance in his international career.
55.
That same day, Ronaldinho, joined by Adriano, returned to the city of Barcelona and held a party at his home, which was continued into the early morning hours at a nightclub.
56.
Ronaldinho was not called up for the 2007 Copa America after asking to be excused from the tournament due to fatigue.
57.
On 7 July 2008, Ronaldinho was named in Brazil's 2008 Summer Olympics squad as one of the overage players.
58.
Ronaldinho then had solid performances in back to back friendlies against Argentina in the same month.
59.
Ronaldinho started in what was his 100th cap, and had a chance to score from the penalty kick, but his shot was saved by Joe Hart.
60.
Ronaldinho was again called up for the Selecao, being named captain of the national team for an international friendly with Chile on 24 April 2013.
61.
However, Ronaldinho was not selected for the national team for the 2013 Confederations Cup and he was omitted from Scolari's 2014 World Cup finals squad.
62.
Ronaldinho is regarded as one of the greatest and most skilful players of all time.
63.
Ronaldinho is a rare case of an assist man who can provide the ball from anywhere.
64.
In spite of his performances at his peak, a period of dedication and focus which saw him named the FIFA World Player of the Year twice and receive the Ballon d'Or, Ronaldinho was criticised on occasion in the media for his lack of discipline in training, as well as his hedonistic lifestyle off the pitch, which some pundits believed had an impact on the overall longevity of his career.
65.
Ronaldinho has had endorsements with many companies, including Nike, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, EA Sports and Danone.
66.
Ronaldinho has featured in EA Sports' FIFA video game series, appearing on the cover of FIFA Football 2004, FIFA Street, FIFA 06, FIFA 07, FIFA Street 3, FIFA 08 and FIFA 09.
67.
At the beginning of his career Ronaldinho signed a lucrative 10-year deal with sportswear company Nike.
68.
Ronaldinho has appeared in Nike commercials, including the 2002 "Secret Tournament" commercial directed by Terry Gilliam.
69.
Ronaldinho has had an official role with UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund, since February 2006.
70.
In March 2015, Ronaldinho was the sixth most popular sportsperson on Facebook, behind Cristiano Ronaldo, Messi, Beckham, Neymar and Kaka, with 31 million Facebook fans.
71.
On 2 February 2017, Barcelona announced that Ronaldinho signed a 10-year deal to become an ambassador for the club at institutional events.
72.
On 25 October 2020, Ronaldinho announced that he tested positive for COVID-19 and was asymptomatic and self-isolating in Belo Horizonte.
73.
Ronaldinho attempted to appeal the detention order but was ordered to remain under house arrest with his brother.
74.
Ronaldinho made 853 appearances and scored 328 goals for club and country combined, with a goalscoring average of 0.38.
75.
Ronaldinho chose the number 49 as an homage to his mother, born in 1949.