Goalkeeper Rui Patrício, who made the end of his career official this Friday, December 12th, was proud of the path he built in almost two decades in football and confessed that this was the right time to ‘hang up’ his gloves.
“It’s a defining day in my life. This was the moment to do it and I’m very happy. I made the decision to leave football because that’s what I want to do now. I could have continued. I had invitations, but I wanted to finish now. I started very young, at 18, in high competition and now I want to do other things. It was a considered decision”, said Rui Patrício, 37 years old.
The now former goalkeeper, who with Portugal won Euro2016, the 2019 Nations League and became the most capped goalkeeper ever with 108 games, spoke to journalists after the ceremony that took place at Cidade do Futebol, headquarters of the Portuguese Football Federation (FPF), in Oeiras.
Rui Patrício, who at club level represented Sporting, Wolverhampton, Roma, Atalanta and Al Ain, left the boots and gloves he used in the 2016 European final in Paris at the FPF museum and received the organization’s merit medal from president Pedro Proença, as well as a trophy and a shirt marking his 108 international appearances.
“I’m going to stay connected to football, but now I want to enjoy what I didn’t have during my career, which is being with my family and children. I want to enjoy it. After being here I’m going, for example, to my children’s Christmas party, something I couldn’t do before”, he said.
For Patrício, the best moment of his career came precisely in the Euro2016 final, at the Stade de France, when he made a great save from a Griezmann header, an intervention that kept the score at 0-0 at the time, followed by Éder’s eternal goal in extra time (1-0).
“That was the most important moment for everything that followed. It was the save I made in my career that had the most impact. I finish my career proud. I played where I had to play, I played what I had to play”, he concluded.
For now, according to Pedro Proença, who called the former guardian a “legend”, Patrício will continue to be linked to the FPF “in other responsibilities”.
In Cidade do Futebol, Rui Patrício’s farewell ceremony featured videos of the best moments of the former Leiria-born player’s career and was attended by his family, but also by former teammates, such as Adrien, Daniel Carriço, Marco Caneira, Ricardo and Éder, as well as the president of Sporting, Frederico Varandas.
Side by side watching were the current coach, Roberto Martínez, Fernando Santos and Paulo Bento, who led Patrício in the national team.
Bento, when he commanded Sporting, was the coach responsible for the beginning of the former goalkeeper’s professional career and was also the one who launched Patrício in the Portugal goal.
“At the time, we knew we were dealing with someone with enormous technical, tactical, physical, emotional and mental qualities. With tremendous work capacity and professionalism. That’s what led him to build an extraordinary career”, Paulo Bento told journalists.
Fernando Santos, who with Rui Patrício won Euro2026 and the 2019 Nations League, confessed that he was one of the best goalkeepers he worked with during his coaching career.
“He had a remarkable career and was fundamental in winning the European Championship and the League of Nations as a goalkeeper. He was more important as a man and what he represented within the work group with his humility, will and spirit of sacrifice. He was one of the leaders of the team at my time”, he stated.
Rui Patrício had been without a club since the end of June, when he left Al Ain, from the United Arab Emirates, with whom he only played two games, both in the Club World Cup, after having played for Italian side Atalanta in the 2024/25 season.
The former goalkeeper trained at Sporting and represented the Lions’ main team for 12 years, between 2006/07 and 2017/18, in a total of 467 games in all competitions, without ever being national champion, but in which he won two Portuguese Cups (2007/08 and 2014/15), two Cândido de Oliveira Super Cups (2008 and 2015) and a League Cup (2017/18).