Roberto Carlos da Silva Rocha (born 10 April 1973), often recognized asRoberto Carlos and sometimesRC3,[note 1] is a Brazilia former professionalfootballer.[4] He has been described as the "most offensive-minded left-back in the history of the game,"[5] and one of the greatest full-backs in history.[6][7][8] In 1997, he was runner-up in theFIFA World Player of the Year and in 2002, was runner-up for theBallon d'Or. He is primarily known for his long career atReal Madrid and constant presence on the Brazilian national team.
He started his career in Brazil as aforward but spent most of his career as aleft-back. At club level, Roberto Carlos joinedReal Madrid fromInter Milan in 1996 to spend 11 highly successful seasons, playing 584 matches in all competitions and scoring 71 goals. At Real, he won fourLa Liga titles and theUEFA Champions League three times. In April 2013,Marca named him in their "Best Foreign Eleven inReal Madrid's History".[9] He is one of the few players to have made over1,100 professional career appearances at clubs and international levels.
He took up management and was named as the manager ofSivasspor in the TurkishSüper Lig in June 2013.[11] He resigned as head coach in December 2014.[12] From January to June 2015, he was manager ofAkhisarspor. Although he announced his retirement from playing at the age of 39 in 2012,[13] he briefly came out of retirement in 2015 when he was appointed player/manager ofIndian Super League clubDelhi Dynamos.[14]
I owe all clubs for which I worked, even to my littleUnião São João, because we must never forget our origins. But I owe my coming to Spain toAtlético Mineiro, who gave me the opportunity to work on the team in 1992, a trip to the country. So I made a point to make it clear and I thank this important club for me to have opened the doors here in Europe.
—Roberto Carlos paying tribute in 2014 to the two Brazilian clubs whom he started his career with.[15]
Roberto Carlos began his professional career playing forUnião São João, a football club based inAraras in the state of São Paulo. In 1992, despite playing at what was seen as a lesser club and only being 19 years old, he was called up for theBrazil national team. In August 1992, aged 19, he joinedAtlético Mineiro on loan and went on the club's tour of Europe.[16][17][18] The tour consisted of the B team, as the club was prioritising the firstCopa CONMEBOL in South America at the same time. The tour served as a test for many players, and those who stood out could be integrated definitively to the main group. Roberto Carlos did not participate in the first two games in Italy but played the full match againstLleida in Spain on 27 August in a match for theCiutat de Lleida Trophy. He remained in the team for the next two games, held inLogroño, againstLogroñés andAthletic Bilbao. Before retiring from football in 2014, Roberto Carlos thanked Atlético Mineiro for the opportunity.[15]
In 1993, Roberto Carlos joinedPalmeiras, where he played for two seasons, winning two consecutiveBrazilian league titles. After almost signing forAston Villa in 1995, Roberto Carlos chose a move toInter Milan, in theSerie A, playing one season for theNerazzurri. He scored a 30-yard free-kick on his debut in a 1–0 win overVicenza[19] but hisseason at Inter was unsuccessful, with the club finishing seventh inSerie A.
In an interview withFourFourTwo in a May 2005 issue, Roberto Carlos said that the then-coach of Inter,Roy Hodgson, wanted him to play as awinger, but Roberto Carlos wanted to play as aleft back. Roberto Carlos spoke to Inter ownerMassimo Moratti "to see if he could sort things out and it soon became clear that the only solution was to leave".[20]
Roberto Carlos joinedReal Madrid in the year 1996 close season. When newly appointed managerFabio Capello learned that Roberto Carlos had become transferable he barely could believe it, and he asked chairmanLorenzo Sanz to travel to Milan immediately. An agreement had been reached 24 hours later.[21] Roberto Carlos was given the number 3 shirt and held the position as the team's first choice left-back from the1996–97 season until the2006–07 season. During his 11 seasons with Madrid, he appeared in 584 matches in all competitions, scoring 71 goals. In January 2006, he became Real Madrid's mostcapped foreign-born player inLa Liga with 370 appearances, breaking the previous record of 329 held byAlfredo Di Stéfano.[22] During his Real Madrid career, Roberto Carlos was, alongsideMilan andItaly legendPaolo Maldini, considered the greatest left-back in the world.[23][24][25] As a high-profile player and one of the most influential members of the team,[26] Roberto Carlos was considered one of Madrid'sGalácticos (which includedZinedine Zidane,Luís Figo,Ronaldo andDavid Beckham) duringFlorentino Pérez's first tenure asclub president.[27]
Roberto Carlos can cover the entire [left] wing all on his own.
—Real Madrid coachVicente del Bosque on Roberto Carlos having the ability to defend and attack the left side of the field by himself.[28]
He won fourLa Liga titles with Madrid, and played in the1998,2000 and2002UEFA Champions League finals, assisting Zinedine Zidane's winning goal in 2002, considered one of the greatest goals inChampions League history.[29][30] Roberto Carlos was named asClub Defender of the Year and included in theUEFA Team of the Year in 2002 and 2003. In the later part of his Real Madrid career, Roberto Carlos was named as one of the club's "threecaptains" alongsideRaúl andGuti.[31] Renowned for getting forward from his left-back position and scoring spectacular goals, in February 1998, he scored arguably his most memorable goal for Real Madrid with abendingvolley struck with the outside of his left foot from near thesideline in aCopa del Rey match againstTenerife in what was described as an "impossible goal".[32]
On the final day of the2002–03 season, with Madrid needing to beat Athletic Bilbao to overtakeReal Sociedad and win their 29th La Liga title, Roberto Carlos scored from a free-kick in the second minute of first halfstoppage time to putlos Blancos 2–1 ahead.[33] The team eventually ran out 3–1 winners to wrap up the title.[33] On 6 December 2003, Roberto Carlos scored the opening goal for Madrid as they beatBarcelona inEl Clásico atCamp Nou for the first time in a La Liga match in 20 years.[34]
In March 2007, in the second leg of the Champions League round of 16 againstBayern Munich, Roberto Carlos failed to control the backpass when Madrid kicked off, allowing Bayern'sHasan Salihamidžić to steal the ball and feed toRoy Makaay, who scored the quickest goal in Champions League history at 10.12 seconds.[35] Roberto Carlos bore the brunt of criticism for that mistake which led to the team's elimination from the Champions League, and, on 9 March 2007, he announced he would leave Real Madrid upon the expiration of his contract at the end of the2006–07 season.[36] His final goal for Real Madrid was a stoppage time winner againstRecreativo de Huelva with three games remaining in the2006–07 La Liga season.[37] The goal proved to be crucial to Real Madrid winning its 30th league title as they eventually finished level on points with Barcelona, becoming champions via thehead-to-head rule. Madrid clinched La Liga in Roberto Carlos's final match, a 3–1 win overMallorca at theSantiago Bernabéu Stadium.[38]
On 19 June 2007, Roberto Carlos signed a two-year contract (with one year optional) with the TurkishSüper Lig championsFenerbahçe; he was presented at the club's home ground, theŞükrü Saracoğlu Stadium, in front of thousands of fans.[39][40] In the first official match he played with the team, Fenerbahçe won theTurkish Super Cup againstBeşiktaş by a score of 2–1. During a league match againstSivasspor, he scored his first goal for Fenerbahçe on 25 August 2007 from a diving header, which was only the third headed goal of his career. He was injured during the final period of the same season and missed the title race between Fenerbahçe and rivalsGalatasaray.[41] His team eventually lost the title to their rivals, while guaranteeing a place for themselves inChampions League knockouts for the next season. He announced that he was unhappy about the final result and would do his best to carry the domestic trophy back to the Şükrü Saracoğlu Stadium.[42]
On 7 October 2009, Roberto Carlos announced that he would leave Fenerbahçe when his contract expired in December 2009. He offered to return to Real Madrid and play for free, though he also said return to the Brazilian domestic leagues was a possibility,[43] and announced his departure on 25 November. He made his last appearance for Fenerbahçe on 17 December, as a late substitute againstSheriff Tiraspol in theUEFA Europa League.[44]
After 15 years away from Brazil, Roberto Carlos returned to his country in 2010 to play forCorinthians, joining his friend and former Real Madrid teammateRonaldo.On 4 June 2010, Roberto Carlos scored a goal againstInternacional and helped Corinthians to move to the top of theCampeonato Brasileiro Série A table. TheTimão won the game 2–0.[45]On 16 January 2011, Roberto Carlos scored an impressive goal directly from a corner kick againstPortuguesa. Concerned with his safety after being threatened by fans after theCopa Libertadores da América defeat to Colombian clubTolima, Roberto Carlos requested his release by the club, which was promptly facilitated by Corinthians.[46]
On 12 February 2011, after being heavily linked with a move toNotts County, Roberto Carlos signed a two-and-a-half-year contract withRussian Premier League clubAnzhi Makhachkala,[47] worth approximately €10 million.[48] Playing in adefensive midfield position, Roberto Carlos was named captain of Anzhi on 8 March. On 25 April, he scored his first goal for Anzhi in a 2–2 draw withDynamo Moscow, converting a 58th minutepenalty.[49] On 30 April, he scored his second goal, converting a penalty in a 1–0 win overRostov, and on 10 June, he then scored his third goal on a 20th minute in a 2–0 win overSpartak Nalchik.
On 11 September 2011, Roberto Carlos scored his fourth goal in a 2–1 win overVolga Nizhny Novgorod. As of his first season for Anzhi, Roberto Carlos made 28 appearances and scored five goals. On 30 September, he became the caretaker coach of Anzhi following the sacking ofGadzhi Gadzhiyev, beforeAndrei Gordeyev assumed the role also in a caretaker capacity.[50] Roberto Carlos announced his plans to retire at the end of 2012, but continued to work behind the scenes at Anzhi.[51] In August 2012, Anzhi coachGuus Hiddink confirmed his retirement at a news conference in Moscow, also stating, "Roberto was a world class football player. Every master's career ends at some point."[13]
In March 2011, during a game away atZenit Saint Petersburg, a banana was held near Carlos by one of the fans as the footballer was taking part in a flag-raising ceremony.[52] In June, in a match away atKrylia Sovetov Samara, Roberto Carlos received a pass from the goalkeeper and was about to pass it when a banana was thrown onto the pitch, landing nearby. Carlos picked it up and threw it by the sidelines, walking off the field before the final whistle and raising two fingers at the stands, indicating this was the second such incident since March.[53][54]
On 26 March 1992, Roberto Carlos debuted for theBrazilian senior team in a 3–0 friendly victory against theUnited States.[58] He is especially famous for a bending 40-yardfree kick against France in the inaugural match ofTournoi de France 1997 on 3 June 1997. The ballcurled so much that theball boy ten yards to the right ducked instinctively, thinking that the ball would hit him.[57] Instead, much to the surprise of goalkeeperFabien Barthez – who just stood in place – it curled back on target. This particular attempt has been considered to be the greatest free kick of all time.[59][60] In 2010, a team of French scientists produced a paper explaining the trajectory of the ball.[61]
At the1998 World Cup, he played seven matches, including thefinal loss toFrance. After a qualifying game for the2002 World Cup which was held in South Korea/Japan,Paraguay goalkeeperJosé Luis Chilavert spat on Roberto Carlos, an action which causedFIFA to give Chilavert a three-match suspension and forced him to watch the first game of the World Cup from the stands. Roberto Carlos played six matches in the finals, scoring a goal from a free-kick againstChina, and was a starter in thefinal againstGermany, with Brazil winning 2–0. After the tournament, he was also included in theWorld Cup All-Star Team.[62] Roberto Carlos later referred to the 2002 World Cup winning team as a "band of brothers together", and mentioned that the squad had aWhatsApp group and still talked regularly.[63]
2006 FIFA World Cup, retirement, and desire to return
Roberto Carlos' next international tournament was the2006 World Cup. In July 2006, after Brazil's 1–0 defeat to France in the quarter-finals, he announced his retirement from the national team, saying: "I've stopped with the national team. It was my last game."[64] He said he no longer wanted to play for Brazil because of the criticism he faced from fans and Brazilian media for his failure to mark goalscorerThierry Henry on France's winning goal.[65]
Upon signing withCorinthians in January 2010, Roberto Carlos toldTV Globo that he hoped to play at the2010 World Cup and believed his return to Brazilian football may help him return to the national team, as managerDunga had yet to settle on a left-back.[65] However, he was left off the 30-man provisional squad that was submitted to FIFA on 11 May 2010, along withRonaldinho and Ronaldo.[66] Despite his deep desire to do so, Roberto Carlos was ultimately not named in Dunga's final 23-man squad for the Brazil at the World Cup. Instead, newcomerMichel Bastos earned a spot for the left-back position.[67]
Tactically, Roberto Carlos started out playing football in Brazil as a forward – usually as acentre-forward oroutside forward – but spent most of his career asdefender, usually as a left-sided full-back orwing-back. In 2006, he was described as the "most offensive-minded left-back in the history of the game", by John Carlin ofThe New York Times;[5][68][69] indeed, he was known for his forward surging runs throughout his career.[70] Roberto Carlos is also widely considered by several pundits as one of the best left backs in the history of the sport.[71][72][69][73][74] During his time at Inter, he was also used out of position as awinger in a4–4–2 formation on occasion by manager Roy Hodgson, which had a negative impact on his performances, and often saw him caught out defensively;[20][75] in his later career with Anzhi Makhachkala, he was instead deployed as adefensive midfielder in a three-man midfield, in order to compensate for his loss of pace and physical decline due to his advancing age.[70]
Roberto Carlos was nicknamedEl Hombre Bala ("The Bullet Man") throughout his career, due to his powerfulbending shots andfree kicks, which have been measured at over 105 miles per hour (169 km/h),[26] and for which he became renowned. A set-piece specialist, he is regarded as one of the foremost free kick takers of his generation, and was known for being capable of striking the ball powerfully – in particular from long range – and of producing curling shots with the outside of his left boot in dead ball situations.[68][76][77][78][79][80][81] A talented and consistent player, with gooddribbling skills at speed, as well as precise passing and crossing ability, he also possessed significant strength and excellent physical qualities, which along with his pace, work-rate, and energy, allowed him to cover the left flank effectively and assist at both ends of the pitch.[81][82] While he earned a reputation as a hard-tackler, he was also known for being a clean player throughout his career.[81][83][84] In addition to his stamina, running speed, technical skills, andcrossing ability,[85][86][87] he was also known for his longthrow ins, as well as his strong 24-inch (61 cm) thighs, despite his small stature, which allowed him to accelerate quickly and strike the ball powerfully.[26][88]
Roberto Carlos has appeared in commercials for the sportswear companyNike.[89][90] In 1998, he starred in a Nike commercial set in an airport in the buildup to the 1998 World Cup alongside a number of stars from the Brazil national team, includingRonaldo andRomário.[89] In a Nike advertising campaign in the run-up to the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan, Roberto Carlos starred in a "Secret Tournament" commercial (branded "Scopion KO") directed byTerry Gilliam, appearing alongside other star footballers, including Ronaldo,Thierry Henry,Francesco Totti, Ronaldinho,Luís Figo and the JapaneseHidetoshi Nakata, with former playerEric Cantona the tournament's "referee".[91][92]
Roberto Carlos has also starred inPepsi commercials, including a 2002 World Cup Pepsi advertisement where he lined up alongsideDavid Beckham, Raúl andGianluigi Buffon in taking on a team ofSumo players.[93]
In 2016, Roberto Carlos launched a software calledGinga Scout that connects players with coaches across the globe.[97] In April 2018, Carlos was announced as ambassador ofMorocco's candidature of the2026 FIFA World Cup.[98]
In June 2022, Roberto Carlos co-hosted (alongside Ronaldinho) an exhibition match in Miami including both current and retired players called "The Beautiful Game by R10 and RC3". Roberto Carlos' team won the match 12–10.[2][3] A rematch was held in Orlando on June 23, 2023, which was suspended after about an hour of game time due to rain and pitch invasions.[99] The score of the second match ended 4-3 for Ronaldinho's team.
On 16 June 2019, Roberto Carlos took part inSoccer Aid atStamford Bridge, London.[100] He played for the World XI team which was captained byUsain Bolt and they beat the England XI on penalties.[101]
In 2019, Roberto Carlos became the global ambassador of the international children's social programmeFootball for Friendship. Carlos attended programme's Forum and awarded the winners.[102]
In January 2022, Bull In The Barne United, an EnglishSunday League pub team, won araffle meaning that Roberto Carlos would play for them in a one-offfriendly. TheShrewsbury-based side play in Division One of the Shrewsbury & District Sunday League and paid just £5 to enter theeBay raffle.[103] On 4 March 2022, Roberto Carlos made a goalscoring debut for Bull In The Barne United during a 4–3 defeat to Harlescott Rangers in a friendly match atHanwood.[104]
On 23 February 2024, Roberto Carlos took part in the Match4Hope. He played for TeamChunkz, alongsideEden Hazard,David Villa, and various media personalities, against Team AboFlah.[105] Roberto Carlos played for the starting 8 minutes only, before beingsubstituted.
Roberto Carlos had a brief spell as interim manager at Anzhi Makhachkala in early 2012. He later criticised the club upon resigning alongside manager Guus Hiddink.[106]
Roberto Carlos was appointed manager of Turkish Süper Lig teamSivasspor in June 2013.[107] On 21 December 2014, he left the club following a defeat toİstanbul BB.[108]
In 2017, a report of investigative journalists of German broadcasting stationARD revealeddoping practices in Brazil, including physician Júlio César Alves who claims to have treated Carlos for many years. Carlos denies the allegations.[113][114]
Roberto Carlos was born in Garça, São Paulo, on 10 April 1973 to Oscar and Vera Lucia da Silva.[115]
On 24 June 2005, Roberto Carlos was robbed by two gunmen while doing a live radio interview. He was not hurt but they took his watch and the interviewer's cellular phone.[116]
On 2 August 2005, he was naturalised as a Spanish citizen. This proved important for Real Madrid, as it meant that he now counted as a European Union player, opening up one of the club's allowed three slots for non-EU players and enabling Real Madrid to sign fellow BrazilianRobinho.[117]
^ab"Roberto Carlos' brilliant Brazil free-kick against France remembered".Sky Sports. Retrieved17 December 2020.A full 40 yards from France's goal [...]. A ball-boy could be seen ducking as he braced himself for impact, but with an arcing trajectory like a banana, the ball somehow swerved back the other way, clipping the post as it whistled past the motionless Barthez and into the net.
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