Ronaldinho
Superstar
Well-behaved, patient with the media and autograph seekers, Ronaldinho is not the spoiled rebel athlete that professional sports have become plagued with. He loves to play soccer and he shows it. In Spain, he is treated like a pop star wherever he goes. Legions of admirers follow him when he leaves Barcelona's training facility. Hysterical teenage girls swoon over his shaved head and boyish smile. Ronaldinho torments opponents with his ability to hold the ball and dribble through or past a swarm of defenders. He has been compared to legendary Pelé, but the young player can be humble even when he says that all he wants is to be the world's best soccer player today.
Peter Castle
Like all great players, he needs only one name. But unlike his style, his nickname is nothing fancy, nothing special. He is simply Ronaldinho, the 20-year-old man-child who emerged from the poverty-stricken suburbs of Rio de Janeiro to capture the heart of Brazil and turn the soccer world upside down with his dazzling moves, punishing strength, and spectacular talent.
Voted 1996's best player in the world by the International Federation of Soccer (FIFA) in January, Ronaldo is also the best-paid player in the world, earning well over $5 million a year in salary and endorsements. His superhuman abilities, which are already drawing comparisons to the immortal Pelé, are currently the property of the Spanish club Barcelona, which the Spanish press now calls "Ronaldo F.C. (Football Club)."
It was only four years ago that Ronaldo Luiz Nazário de Lima first caught the eye of Zagallo, the coach of the Brazilian national team. At sixteen, Ronaldo was the best player in the Juvenile South American Championship in Colombia, where Brazil finished fourth despite the young star's eight goals.
When he returned to Brazil, Ronaldo signed his first substantial contract, playing for the Belo Horizonte professional club Cruzeiro. His scoring proficiency with Cruzeiro impressed Zagallo, who selected the young attacker to be a part of Brazil's 1994 World Cup Championship team.
Though Ronaldo did not play during the competition, his more experienced teammates knew this baby-faced kid with the lightning-quick reflexes and powerful legs would have plenty of opportunities to lead Brazil to future Cup victories. It was during this time, among the good-natured jests of the older players who teased the adolescent about the braces he wore on his toothy grin, that "Ronaldinho" was born.
After the World Cup, the European clubs came calling, bringing their fat checkbooks and the lure of international fame. The Dutch team PSV Eindhoven paid $6 million for the rights to the Carioca scoring phenomenon, a record in Brazilian soccer at the time. Ronaldinho received nearly $1 million of this money himself.
But this is just the tip of the financial iceberg. After two successful seasons playing in relative obscurity in Holland, his rights were sold to Spain's Barcelona for the unprecedented amount of $20 million dollars. After an incredible start with the club last year, Ronaldinho's agents wasted no time in renegotiating his contract for an unbelievable $50 million over the next ten years. Absurd? Not in the eyes of several other European teams, who are reportedly considering paying $32 million in penalties alone to break Ronaldinho's contract with Barcelona. And this is before any mention of a salary offer. Evidently, no price is too high for the prized possession of Ronaldinho's talents.
Humble Beginnings
The youngest of three children, Ronaldo came of age in the poor neighborhood of Bento Ribeiro, on the outskirts of Rio. His father worked for the state phone company Telerj and brought home a monthly income of around $400. Their house had a living room, kitchen, bathroom, and one bedroom. Ronaldo's brother and sister slept on the couch in the living room while he shared the only bedroom with his parents.
His mother Sônia hoped he would continue in school and begged him not to spend all his time playing on the soccer fields with the neighborhood kids. She wanted him to be a doctor or an engineer, and like most mothers who want more for their children, she thought a good education was the only way to a better life.
But Ronaldo was simply not cut out for academics, and after flunking three times, he dropped out of school at the seventh-grade level to play indoor soccer, or futsal as they call it in Brazil. Ronaldo was a mere 13 years old then, but he was already known for his ball-handling skills, and a local juvenile club offered him bus fare, snacks, and athletic shoes in exchange for his goal-scoring services. During one game, Ronaldo made 11 of his team's 12 goals.
Ronaldo's biggest aspiration was to play for his favorite team, Flamengo, in the affluent Zona Sul (South Zone) of Rio. He tells the story of how one day in 1989 he spent two hours on two different buses to attend a tryout with 100 other kids that hoped to make the Flamengo team. The best players were told to return for final selection the next day. Ronaldo had made the cut, but had no way to pay for four more bus fares to come back. Dejected, he left the training field and boarded the bus for the long ride home. To add insult to injury, the young player was accosted on the bus by thieves who stole his watch.
But it wasn't long before Ronaldo's luck would change. The following year, while playing in a juvenile league, he decided to turn professional, signing a $7,500 agreement with the same two agents that handle his affairs today. A year later, he was picked up by Cruzeiro, and from then on, his chosen path to success presented few obstacles.
The Character Issue
Today, Ronaldinho expresses a profound gratitude to his mother for not taking soccer away from him when he was a boy. In return, his first priority has always been to take care of his family. As soon as he signed his first contract with his agents, he used some of the money to reupholster the family's battered furniture. Later, when his parents separated and his mother had to take a minimum-wage job working at an ice cream shop, the first thing Ronaldo did after signing with Cruzeiro was to go to her boss and tell him that he would pay her salary from now on.
When later he began to make big money, he would purchase apartments and cars for his closest relatives. But nothing was more important than these first gestures of giving something back to his family, especially the mother that raised him.
Sônia says her son has a good head on his shoulders, partly because he still has both a mother and father to turn to. Despite their separation (Ronaldinho's parents were never legally divorced, though both have new partners), they make it a point to spend family parties together, including the Christmas party last year. And both parents enjoy spending time with their son abroad.
Perhaps these early lessons in responsibility and family identity provide the foundation for Ronaldinho's successful approach to the game of international soccer, with all its attendant pitfalls and temptations.
His agents, Reinaldo Pita and Alexandre Martins, speak highly of their client's character, betting on his maturity and soft-spoken style. Well-behaved, receptive to the instructions of his coaches, and patient with the media and autograph seekers, he is the polar opposite of the spoiled rebel athlete that soccer and many other professional sports have become plagued with. While most players come unprepared for life, it seems that life has prepared Ronaldinho well. The lure of money and fame are considerable, he admits, but they don't outweigh his love for playing the game.
Pita and Martins have refused publicity campaigns worth millions of dollars, preferring to preserve the clean image of their client and maximize his marketing value with the most powerful brand in the world of sports, Nike. Since 1994, Ronaldinho has been sponsored by the athletic equipment giant, but only for a meager $150,000 annually. Recently, however, his agents negotiated a new contract with Nike worth a minimum of $15 million over the next ten years.
Big-Time Barcelona
Ronaldinho's ascendancy in European soccer could not have been better scripted. After making the adjustment to European life and the style of play, the ambitious scorer felt ready to make the jump from the more-sedate Dutch league to the chaotic core of the soccer world, Spain.
The deal with Barcelona was finalized during Brazil's heartbreaking performance at the Olympics last summer, where Ronaldinho played well despite being hampered by an earlier knee operation. When he returned to Europe, he would wear the Number 9 shirt for Barcelona and spearhead an offense comprised of foreign stars from all reaches of the soccer world.
In Spain, Ronaldinho no longer has the anonymity he enjoyed in Holland. He is treated like a pop star wherever he goes. Legions of admirers follow him when he leaves Barcelona's training facility. Hysterical teenage girls swoon over his shaved head and boyish smile. Security guards have to make a protective circle around him every time he has to board or get off the team bus.
Spanish soccer fans have amazed the Brazilian player, who thought he would never see a more fanatical contingent than his own countrymen. When he first arrived in Spain, there were 2,000 fans waiting to greet him at the airport.
Ronaldinho makes his regular-season home in a comfortable suburb of Barcelona, sharing a million-dollar, four-story house with his friend, secretary, and spokesman Antonio Cesar Santiago, 25, who has accompanied him since his days in Holland. Santiago says he receives about four interview requests from the media every day.
Ronaldinho's partner on the front line, the Brazilian winger Giovanni, has become both a close friend and an invaluable asset to Ronaldinho's scoring. Giovanni's sweet passes often set up the attacker's devastating finishes.
Averaging more than one goal per game with Barcelona, Ronaldinho will reach the amazing total of 50 goals to lead the league this year. Despite his stellar performance to date, the humble forward does not necessarily believe he is playing at his best in Spain, citing more media exposure of his goals as the reason for his growing legend.
There is no denying, however, that Ronaldinho torments opponents with his ability to hold the ball and dribble through or past a swarm of defenders. Opposing coaches express their admiration in frustrated tones, secretly wishing they could have this one-of-a-kind weapon in their arsenal.
Perhaps one of the most exciting goals ever witnessed occurred in a game against Compostela last October. Ronaldinho received a pass close to midfield, dribbled furiously past five adversaries, escaping from kicks and grabs all the way, and drove the ball with incredible velocity into the goal from 120 feet out. The replays are still shown regularly on TV in Spain and Brazil.
The Specter of Pelé
Admittedly, it's an unfair, if not irrelevant practice, to compare a 20-year-old at the beginning of his career to the best soccer player ever and Athlete of the Century: the legendary Pelé. But a quick look at some of the issues and statistics provides some food for thought.
In the debate, it is generally conceded that Pelé was a phenomenal scorer, had both speed and fantastic ability, showed great vision for the game, headed well, and kicked strong with both legs. Ronaldinho, meanwhile, has the rare combination of strength, ability, and speed, matched with an incredible hunger for the ball on the attack. His explosive bursts in the short and medium distances are incomparable.
In terms of scoring, Pelé averaged an unbelievable 1.10 goals per game over his career, scoring his 1,000th goal at the age of 29 in 1969. Ronaldinho, playing in an era of tougher defenses, averages 0.92 goals per game and will reach his 1,000th goal at the age of 33 if he plays approximately 70 games a year.
At the age of 17, Pelé played on the first squad for Brazil when it won the World Cup in Sweden in 1958. By the age of 20, he was already averaging 1.07 goals per game (in 316 games). Ronaldinho has played only 155 games and did not play during Brazil's World Cup victory in 1994.
Ronaldinho doesn't pay much attention to these exercises in futility. When the comparisons with Pelé began, Barcelona's goalkeeper, the Portuguese Vitor Bahia, was concerned at how it might affect the young star. But after speaking with him, Bahia reported that the ambitious Brazilian had his feet firmly on the ground. For Ronaldinho, it is enough to be the best player in the world today.
On the Home Front
I decided to ask some of my Carioca family and friends their opinions on the greatest player in the game today. Not surprisingly, most of them spoke with pride and admiration for Ronaldinho's skills and success. But they were also quick to acknowledge that Ronaldinho's history is not yet written; he is still a very young player who, believe it or not, has a lot to learn about the game.
"This is one player Brazilians can be proud of," says my friend Tom, 23, who follows the careers of Brazil's players overseas. "The quality of his technique is incomparable at this time. When he scores, the game changes and the rest of his teammates gain confidence and go on the attack."
"He's a craque [outstanding player], no doubt about it," says Reinaldo, 26, my brother-in-law, "The more I watch him play, the more I appreciate him. He has charisma, knows who he is, and shows humility, unlike many players these days."
"The Ronaldinho phenomenon has just started," my wife Leila, 28, reminds me. "But he already has those artful qualities that make a true idol. We've had many great players in Brazil, but geniuses like Pelé and Zico come along just once in a while."
Much has been said of Ronaldinho's lethal combination of speed, strength, and agility. "The ball seems to stick to his feet when he is going for the goal," says Tom. "But it's not just his speed; he sees everything that's happening around him, which is the one trait of all special players."
Reinaldo says the attacker's dribbles are fast and short because of his early experience playing futsal [indoor soccer], where the field is much smaller and the action much faster than futebol.
Rodrigo, my 12-year-old nephew, likes Ronaldinho for his awesome scoring and great dribbling, but he still thinks Zico and Pelé had better technique. Somewhat to my surprise, it is clear that he is not mesmerized by Ronaldinho's talents.
I, on the other hand, am completely mesmerized. As I'm writing this, Barcelona is playing on TV. Ronaldo handles a hard pass easily, dribbles toward the goal and two defenders, stops short, and lulls the defenders into a false sense of security. Surely, he is not yet within striking distance. Wrong. With a quick, powerful stroke, Ronaldinho rifles the ball high into the far corner of the goal, perhaps the only spot where the goalkeeper cannot reach. The goal breaks a 2-2 tie and moments later when the game ends Barcelona has another victory courtesy of Ronaldinho.
The Color of Money
"What about all that money?" I ask.
"Isn't that amazing?" answers Tom, smiling broadly. That's all he can say about it.
Reinaldo makes it plain: "The way he's playing now, he deserves the money."
Rodrigo is old enough to understand that Ronaldinho is playing in Europe because they pay the stars a lot more there. He hopes Ronaldinho will come back to play in Brazil someday, but for now he is satisfied with watching Barcelona on TV.
Ronaldinho says he just wants to be the best in the world. Well, is he? Young Rodrigo believes Ronaldo is in his best phase, but has no idea how he will play in the future.
Reinaldo thinks he has a chance to be the best player ever, but to be the best Ronaldinho needs to be less of an individualist and more consistent. "Sometimes he's a genius and sometimes he's not effective," he says. "Since he's so young, he will probably get more consistent."
Tom agrees that the main problem with his game is lack of consistency. "There's no telling when the craque will explode with multiple goals and lead his team to victory, or simply disappear from the game against tough, physical defenses."
And now, with every defender looking to "mark" the Brazilian scoring machine, Ronaldinho has to work much harder to score.
"He doesn't have the same level of confidence as Brazilian craques of the past," continues Tom, "but he has too much skill to be hindered by psychological barriers." Maturity, it seems, is something that Ronaldinho, like any other 20-year-old, will simply have to wait for.
Peter Castles is an American living in Rio de Janeiro. He can be reached by E-mail at leilacosta@ax.ibase.org.br
