Ronaldinho is back. At 46, the Brazilian great has come out of retirement and signed with Italian third-division side Ravenna FC, setting off a wave of nostalgia in football circles and giving a modest Serie C club a headline few could have imagined.
The move marks a surprise return for one of the game’s most recognisable names. Ronaldinho last played club football for Fluminense in 2015, more than a decade ago. Yet even now, his smile, his swagger and the memories of his finest years still carry the kind of pull most players can only dream of.
A new chapter
Ravenna may not be a household name outside Italy, but Ronaldinho’s arrival has changed that overnight.
The club plays in Serie C and has a stadium that holds a little over 12,000 fans. It is the sort of place where ambition is usually measured in small steps. But with Ronaldinho in the picture, Ravenna suddenly looks like a club with much bigger ambitions.
He posed in an all-white Ravenna jersey, which was first draped over the Ballon d’Or trophy he won in 2005. He later signed the shirt with club owner Ignazio Cipriani seated beside him.
Ronaldinho told Reuters that the deal came through a long friendship with the Cipriani family and that the move felt natural and straightforward.
Why he returned
For Ronaldinho, this is not only about a return to football. It is also about meaning.
He said he hopes the move has a positive impact and motivates younger players to keep chasing their dreams. The idea, he said, is to show that big goals are still possible, just as he has fulfilled his own.
That message fits neatly with the image Ronaldinho built over a glittering 17-year career. He was never just a brilliant footballer. He was a player who made the game look joyful, and that is a large part of why his comeback has struck such a chord.
A dream for Ravenna
Cipriani, who was born in Ravenna and bought the club in 2024, has his own vision for the team. He wants to take Ravenna all the way to Serie A, a bold ambition for any club, let alone one in Italy’s third tier.
For him, signing Ronaldinho is both personal and practical.
He said the Brazilian inspired him and an entire generation to fall in love with football because of his style, creativity and the way he played differently from everyone else. He also believes the arrival of such a global figure will give Ravenna a much bigger profile.
The club president said the signing will bring joy to the town and create a level of publicity the club would never have had otherwise.
What it means
Ronaldinho’s return is not just a football story. It is also a reminder of how much one player’s presence can change the mood around a club.
For Ravenna, the commercial and emotional lift could be significant. For fans, it is a chance to watch a global icon pull on a fresh shirt in a setting far removed from the biggest stadiums of Europe. And for Ronaldinho, it is another chapter in a career that has always seemed to move between spectacle and delight.
At 46, he may not be the same player he once was. But even now, his name alone is enough to turn a small Italian club into international news.
(With Reuters inputs)
