Ronaldinho return at 46 sees the Brazil legend join Ravenna, target his 300th career goal and take a stake in the ambitious Serie C club

Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho, aged 46, returned to professional football with Italian Serie C club Ravenna in Ravenna, Italy, on Thursday, August 20, 2026, eleven years after his last competitive appearance, as the former Ballon d’Or winner began an extraordinary new chapter with the ambitious third-tier side.

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The move, first announced in June, has now been formally presented to supporters, although the precise extent of Ronaldinho’s involvement on the pitch remains uncertain.

Ravenna confirmed that the Brazilian will be registered as a player, leaving open the possibility of a competitive appearance during the season.

No debut date has been announced, however, and club officials have made clear that he will not feature in Ravenna’s opening Serie C fixture against Reggiana on Monday, August 24.

The most intriguing element of the comeback is Ronaldinho’s personal ambition. The 2002 World Cup winner said he would like to score the 300th goal of his career before finally closing the door on his playing days.

“If I could net my 300th goal, that would be even more remarkable,” Ronaldinho said during his presentation in Ravenna.

The prospect of seeing one of football’s most recognisable entertainers back in competitive action has created considerable excitement around Ravenna, a club seeking to rebuild its profile and climb the Italian football pyramid.

Ronaldinho also struck a deliberately measured tone when asked whether supporters would actually see him play.

“Will you see me play? I cannot say; only the coach has that knowledge,” he said, adding that his immediate purpose was to help his teammates secure victories.

That uncertainty is an important part of the story. Although the signing has been described as a return to professional football, Ronaldinho has not promised regular appearances, and his age and lengthy absence from competitive football naturally make his potential role difficult to predict.

His last official professional match came for Fluminense in September 2015. Ronaldinho had previously enjoyed a glittering career with Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona, AC Milan and other clubs, winning the 2002 World Cup with Brazil and the 2005 Ballon d’Or. He scored 33 goals in 97 appearances for Brazil.

The return also brings Ronaldinho back to Italy, where he spent three seasons with AC Milan between 2008 and 2011.

Ravenna’s project is being driven by club owner Ignazio Cipriani, who acquired the club in 2024 and has ambitious plans for its future.

Cipriani has described Ronaldinho’s involvement as something intended to generate genuine enthusiasm around the club rather than simply produce headlines.

“His goal is sentimental, to attempt to score his final goal,” Cipriani said. “His participation is not merely a symbolic act or a marketing ploy to generate buzz about us.”

Ronaldinho is also expected to become a shareholder in Ravenna, giving the relationship a dimension beyond his possible appearances on the pitch.

The arrangement reflects Cipriani’s wider ambition to raise the club’s international profile while building a stronger connection between Ravenna and its supporters.

That ambition has already produced a visible response.

Ronaldinho was introduced to supporters during Ravenna’s team presentation at Marina di Ravenna on Thursday, where his arrival attracted thousands of fans.

The Guardian reported that more than 2,700 season tickets had already been sold, suggesting the Brazilian’s presence has generated a meaningful commercial and emotional lift around the club.

Ravenna are not simply seeking publicity. The club finished third in Group B of the previous season’s third-tier championship and are targeting promotion to Serie B.

The club have not played in Serie B since 2008, making the current campaign part of a broader effort to restore Ravenna to a higher level of Italian football.

Cipriani’s long-term ambitions go further. The owner has spoken of elevating Ravenna towards the top level of Italian football, while Ronaldinho’s global appeal offers the club an unusual bridge between local football and an international audience.

For Ronaldinho, however, the move appears to be as much about affection for the game as competitive ambition.

His playing career ended more than a decade ago, but his relationship with football has remained visible through exhibition matches and public appearances.

The Ravenna project offers something different: the possibility, however limited, of returning to an organised professional environment and perhaps scoring one final meaningful goal.

The move also carries an element of nostalgia. Ronaldinho became famous not simply for his statistics but for a style of football built around improvisation, creativity and an unmistakable smile.

His return at 46 inevitably invites comparisons with the player who dazzled audiences during his peak, even though the physical demands of Serie C are very different from the football he dominated in his prime.

For now, Ravenna supporters will have to wait.

Ronaldinho will not be involved against Reggiana in the opening fixture, and neither the club nor the player has committed to a specific number of appearances.

What is already certain is that the Ronaldinho return has transformed the atmosphere around a club with serious promotion ambitions.

Whether the Brazilian eventually walks onto a Serie C pitch, contributes a few minutes or remains primarily an ambassador and shareholder, his arrival has given Ravenna an extraordinary story at the start of a potentially important season.

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And if Ronaldinho does eventually find that elusive 300th goal, the final chapter of one of football’s most charismatic careers could have a remarkably Italian setting.