Gareth Bale announced his retirement from football at the age of 33

Gareth Bale It doesn’t go in soccer anymore. The Welsh player announced his final retirement this Monday through a statement, ending an outstanding career. These were his parting words after participating in the 2022 World Cup with his country’s team.

“After careful and in-depth consideration, I announce my immediate retirement from club and international soccer,” wrote the former player for Real Madrid and Tottenham, among other teams, and currently with Los Angeles FC in the MLS, in a message posted on his social media.

“I feel incredibly lucky to have fulfilled my dream of playing the sport that I love and that has given me some of the best moments of my life,” he added. balewho played 17 seasons as a professional, in which he won, among other titles, five Champions Leagues, all with Real Madrid, in which he played from 2013 to 2021.

“From my first cap at Southampton to my last at LAFC, everything in between shaped a club career for which I feel immense pride and gratitude,” added the Welsh star, who played a record 111 appearances for his team, reaching to the semifinals in the Eurocopa-2016 and returning in Qatar to a World Cup after 58 years of absence.

His career, however, was marred in recent years by his constant physical problems that prevented him from playing regularly.