Former Brazilian footballer Roberto Carlos visited Guatemala on Friday as an ambassador for Real Madrid, sharing words of encouragement with the public and anecdotes from his football career. He is remembered for his time with the Brazil national team as a left back and for wearing the Madrid jersey for most of his career.

He was a champion with the Brazil national team at the 2002 World Cup in South Korea and Japan, and a runner-up at the 1998 World Cup. He won the Copa America in 1997 and 1999, as well as the 1997 Confederations Cup in Saudi Arabia. With Real Madrid, he conquered the European Champions League titles in 1999 and 2001, as well as the Intercontinental Cup in 1998 and 2002.

“I arrived at Real Madrid at 22 and played until I was 39. I am always very grateful to Real Madrid for allowing me to experience many emotions in the shirt and for the affection of the Real Madrid fans.

Not all players have the luck to be both a player and an ambassador, so I only have words of gratitude for how they have treated me. I am a very privileged person to live great moments on the field,” Roberto Carlos said about his experience with Real Madrid.

He also shared an emotional message for the Guatemalans who attended the event and those who watched the broadcast on social media. “Sport changes people’s lives. In Brazil, children study and go out to the street to play football. They are not doing things they shouldn’t be doing. Football makes changes, and few jobs in life allow that change. It is always important to practice sports.”

The moment that marked his talk in Guatemala was when he recalled the historic goal he scored for the Brazil national team against France, beating goalkeeper Fabien Barthez with a powerful free-kick.

“Many people ask me how I did it, and I always tell children that if they want to score goals like that, they have to train a lot. Whenever Real Madrid training ended, we were always with Zidane, Beckham, and Ronaldo, for 40 minutes, shooting at the goal. One day, that goal was going to come, and I was lucky that many people talked about it.

I explain that there was a bit of wind, that my standing foot was very close to the ball, and that my eyes were set on Barthez. It was a goal that marked my history as a player a lot,” Roberto Carlos said.

Finally, he called the coaches who, day by day, focus on training children to become footballers. “Try to teach children who want to be footballers a lot. Many people believe that a footballer’s life is easy, but it is very difficult because you are practically not at home.

I started playing football at 13, and all my coaches have been good to me; they taught me to control the ball, pass it, and cross it. I ask coaches for patience, to teach children to play football with joy. I had fun on the field, and you have to have a winning mentality.”

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