Rivaldo: left-footed wizard and 2002 World Cup winner

Rivaldo was a Brazilian attacking midfielder whose left foot was famous for long-range goals, free kicks and sudden bicycle kicks. In 1999 he won both the Ballon d’Or and FIFA’s "World Player of the Year" award¹⁴. At the 2002 World Cup he scored five goals and, together with Ronaldo and Ronaldinho, helped Brazil win their fifth World Cup².

Early life and beginnings

Rivaldo was born on 19 April 1972 in Recife, Brazil¹. After playing for local clubs in Brazil, he joined Palmeiras, one of the big clubs of São Paulo. According to Palmeiras, after a short spell at Corinthians the club signed him for the 1994 Brazilian league, and Palmeiras became national champions that season⁹.

His first match for the Brazil national team was against Mexico in Guadalajara on 16 December 1993. He scored the only goal in a 1-0 win in that match².

Club career

Rivaldo came to Europe in 1996. According to Planet Football, his deal with the Italian club Parma collapsed at the last moment, and the Spanish club Deportivo La Coruña bought him for a club record fee. In his only season he scored 21 goals in 41 matches, and Deportivo finished third behind Real Madrid and Barcelona⁵.

In 1997 Barcelona bought him to replace Ronaldo, who had left for Inter Milan. In his first league match he scored twice against Real Sociedad. He scored 28 goals in his first season and helped Barcelona win the Spanish league, the Copa del Rey and the European Super Cup. The next year Barcelona won the league again¹.

The most famous moment of his Barcelona career came on 17 June 2001. On the last day of the season, Barcelona had to beat Valencia to secure a place in the next year’s Champions League. Rivaldo scored all three goals: the first from a free kick, the second from long range, and the third in the closing minutes with a bicycle kick from the edge of the penalty area. Barcelona won and secured their Champions League place¹⁶. In five seasons he scored 130 goals in 235 official matches for Barcelona³.

After the 2002 World Cup he moved to AC Milan on a free transfer. According to UEFA, he played 22 matches there and was a substitute in the squad that won the 2003 Champions League final, but did not take the field. He terminated his contract in November 2003. In 2004 he signed for the Greek club Olympiacos⁷. He then played in Greece, Angola and Brazil¹.

International career

Rivaldo scored 35 goals in 74 matches for Brazil. At the 1998 World Cup he scored three goals, including two in the 3-2 quarter-final win over Denmark. At the 1999 Copa América he scored five goals, including two in a 3-0 win over Uruguay in Asunción, and Brazil won the tournament².

The 2002 World Cup was the peak of his career. He scored in five consecutive matches, against Turkey, China, Costa Rica, Belgium and England. An incident in the first match against Turkey also became well known. While waiting to take a corner, Turkey’s Hakan Ünsal kicked the ball at him. It hit his legs, but Rivaldo fell holding his face. Ünsal was shown a red card. FIFA later reviewed the video and fined Rivaldo 10,000 Swiss francs for play-acting⁸. In the final in Yokohama, Brazil beat Germany 2-0 to win the World Cup¹⁰. His last match for Brazil was against Uruguay on 19 November 2003².

Style of play

Rivaldo was essentially a left-footed attacking midfielder who cut in from the left to shoot. His goals include powerful long-range strikes, curling free kicks and bicycle kicks. In the hat-trick against Valencia, all three types of goal were seen in a single match¹⁶.

Statistics

Barcelona figures are taken from the club’s official database (official matches), Brazil figures from RSSSF’s match-by-match list, and Deportivo figures from Planet Football, all on 20 October 2026. Full figures for his spells at Brazilian clubs, Milan and in Greece are not included, as they could not be verified from a reliable source²³⁵.

Honours

• FIFA World Cup: 2002 [2][10]
• Copa América: 1999 [2]
• Ballon d’Or: 1999 [4]
• FIFA World Player of the Year: 1999 [1]
• Spanish league: 1998, 1999 [1]
• Copa del Rey: 1998 [1]
• European Super Cup: 1997–98 [1]
• Brazilian league: 1994 [9]
• UEFA Champions League: 2003 (part of the squad, did not play in the final) [7]

Legacy

Rivaldo is counted among the players of the late 1990s and early 2000s who scored decisive goals in big matches for both Barcelona and Brazil. In the Ballon d’Or voting he also finished in the top five in 1998 and 2000⁴. His bicycle kick against Valencia is counted among the best-known goals in Barcelona’s history¹⁶.