Poverty, fake injuries and a Ballon d'Or – what happened to FC Barcelona star Rivaldo?

Brazil has had many outstanding footballers in its history, and Rivaldo was certainly one of them. The left-footed playmaker had a fine career, especially with Spanish giant FC Barcelona. Let's take a look back at Rivaldo's trajectory, during and after his career.

Rivaldo was born on 19 April 1972 in Recife and grew up in poverty.

Rivaldo's youth was marked by tragedy, as he lost his father in a road accident as a teenager.

Nevertheless, Rivaldo would fulfil his footballing dream. After playing for Paulistano FC, he signed with Santa Cruz and a year later with Mogi Mirim.

Soon he was on the radar of big Brazilian clubs. In 1993, he went to Corinthians, which was followed by a move to Palmeiras in 1994.

It was with Palmeiras that Rivaldo won his first trophies, claiming the Brazilian title in 1994 and the Campeonato Paulista in 1996.

Rivaldo first ventured into Europe in 1996, when he signed for Spanish side Deportivo La Coruña. He only stayed one season in Galicia, but found the back of the net 22 times (Transfermarkt) and helped the club to a third-place finish in the league.

FC Barcelona had their eyes on Rivaldo a season later, paying €23.5 million  (Transfermarkt) to sign the Brazilian in 1997.

At Barça, Rivaldo would become a real superstar. He started well in his first season, scoring 19 league goals and winning the title and the Copa del Rey. A second title would follow in the 1998/99 season.

At the time, Rivaldo was one of the best players in the world. He received the Ballon d'Or in 1999 and was named FIFA World Player of the Year.

In total, Rivaldo scored 130 goals for FC Barcelona, including a stunning hat-trick against Valencia in 2001.

In 2002, the Brazilian left Barcelona after five years and embarked on a new adventure at AC Milan.

At Milan, his playing time was limited, but he won the Champions League and the Coppa Italia in his first season before ending his contract in 2003. He then returned to Brazil to play for Cruzeiro.

After a short spell in Brazil, he signed for Greek club Olympiakos in 2004.

At Olympiakos, he found the joy of football again and scored 43 goals, helping the club to three consecutive league titles.

In 2007, he was signed transfer-free by rivals AEK Athens, where he did not win any silverware.

Rivaldo then went on to play for Bunyodkor of Kazakhstan, several Brazilian clubs and Kabuscorp SC of Angola, adding more silverware to his already impressive record.

After a first farewell in 2014, he retired for good in 2015 at Mogi Mirim, one of the first clubs in his career. There, he briefly played together with his son Rivaldinho, and they even scored in the same match.

During his career, Rivaldo was also an integral part of the Brazilian national team.

He won several trophies with his country, not least the 2002 FIFA World Cup, where he was one of the big stars along with Ronaldo Nazario. He was also criticized, however, for taking a dive and faking an injury in a match against Turkey, which earned him a fine from FIFA.

In total, he wore the Brazilian shirt 76 times and scored 35 goals.

During his career, he also became president of Mogi Mirim in 2008, a position he held until July 2015, according to Transfermarkt. Later on, he would also become counselor of the administrative board. In 2014, he put the club up for sale, looking for new investors.

In 2023, Rivaldo made a surprising move by becoming shareholder of Rumanian club FCV Farul.

Today, Rivaldo works as an ambassador for several brands, including Betfair, to promote the game of football.