Gareth Bale announced his retirement from club and international football at the age of 33 on Monday, ending one of the greatest careers in English football history.
READ ALSO: Messi and Ronaldo will meet in a friendly between PSG and the Saudi selection
Bale, who made a record 111 appearances for Wales, led his country from the international football wilderness to two European Championships – reaching the semi-finals of Euro 2016 – and their first World Cup since 1958.
The Los Angeles FC forward, who previously played for Southampton, Tottenham and Real Madrid, made his final competitive appearance in Wales’ World Cup group stage match with England on November 29.
“After careful consideration and consideration, I announce my immediate retirement from club and international football,” Bale wrote on his social media account.
“I feel very happy because I was able to fulfill my dream of playing the sport I love.
“It has really given me some of the best moments of my life. The highest peak of 17 seasons, which cannot be replicated, no matter what the next chapter holds for me.
Bale began his career at Southampton but became a household name in the Premier League at Tottenham, before moving, for a world-record fee of £85 million ($104 million), to Real Madrid, where he won five Champions League titles.
The forward joined Los Angeles FC in June 2022 and won the MLS Cup during his short spell in the United States.
“From my first touch at Southampton to my last with LAFC and everything in between, it has been a club career that I am proud of and grateful for,” he said.
He added: “To express my gratitude to everyone who has been a part of this journey feels impossible. I feel indebted to so many people for helping to change my life and shape my career in ways I could never have dreamed of when I started at the age of nine year.
Bale scored from the penalty spot as his country drew 1-1 with the USA in Qatar but defeats to Iran and England meant Wales crashed out of the group stage.
He said after pulling out of the World Cup that he would continue “as long as I’m wanted” but the Cardiff-born striker has now decided to hang up his boots.
– The hardest decision’ –
Bale issued a separate statement to his “Welsh family”, saying his decision to retire from international football had been “the most difficult of my career”.
“My journey on the international stage was one that not only changed my life, but who I am,” he said.
“The fortune of being Welsh and being selected to play and captain Wales has given me something that is incomparable to anything I have ever experienced.
“I am honored and humbled to be a part of the history of this incredible country, to have felt the support and spirit of the red wall, and together to have gone to unexpected and amazing places.”
LAFC pays tribute to rising stars.
“We want to thank Gareth for everything he has brought to our club,” said LAFC president and general manager John Thorrington. “He came here with the goal of winning a championship in LA and, as he has done everywhere in his career, he succeeded.
“It is an honor to have one of the most talented, dynamic and exciting players of his generation finish his career with a title for LAFC.”
Tottenham tweeted: “Congratulations on an amazing career.”