Kaká

Kaká with Real Madrid playing a match against CSKA Moscow in February 2012
Personal information
Full name	Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite
Date of birth	(1982-04-22) 22 April 1982 (age 30)[1]
Place of birth	Brasilia, Brazil[1]
Height	1.86 m (6 ft 1 in)[2]
Playing position	Attacking midfielder
Club information
Current club	Real Madrid
Number	8
Youth career
1994–2000	São Paulo
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
2001–2003	São Paulo	59	(23)
2003–2009	Milan	193	(70)
2009–	Real Madrid	65	(20)
National team‡
2002–	Brazil	82	(27)
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 19:04, 5 May 2012 (UTC). † Appearances (Goals). ‡ National team caps and goals correct as of 2 July 2010

Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʁiˈkaɾdu iˈzɛksõw duˈsɐ̃tus ˈlejtʃi]; born 22 April 1982), commonly known as Kaká (Portuguese: [kaˈka] ( listen)), is a Brazilian football attacking midfielder who currently plays for Spanish La Liga club Real Madrid^[3] and the Brazilian national team. Kaká started his footballing career at the age of eight, when he began playing for a local club. At the time, he also played tennis,^[4] and it was not until he moved on to São Paulo FC and signed his first professional contract with the club at the age of 15 that he chose to focus on football.

In 2003 he joined Milan for a fee of €8.5 million. While at Milan, Kaká won the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year awards in 2007. After his success with Milan, Kaká joined Real Madrid for a transfer fee of €65 million, second only to that of Zinedine Zidane, €75 million. Later Real Madrid transferred Cristiano Ronaldo for a fee of €96 million, setting a new transfer fee record, making Kaka's fee the third highest ever. In addition to his contributions on the pitch, Kaká is known for his humanitarian work. In 2004, by the time of his appointment, he became the youngest ambassador of the UN World Food Programme.^[5] Kaka is the first sportsperson to amass 10 million followers in twitter.^[6]

Early life[link]

Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite was born in Brasilia, in Brazil, to Bosco Izecson Pereira Leite (a civil engineer) and Simone dos Santos (an elementary school teacher).^[7] He had a financially secure upbringing that allowed him to focus on both school and football at the same time.^[8] His younger brother Rodrigo (best known as Digão) and cousin Eduardo Delani are also professional footballers.

When he was seven, Kaká's family moved to São Paulo.^[9] His school had arranged him in a local youth club called "Alphaville," who qualified to the final in a local tournament.^[10] There he was discovered by hometown club São Paulo FC, who offered an assignment.^[11]

At the age of 18, Kaká suffered a career-threatening and possibly paralysis-inducing spinal fracture as a result of a swimming pool accident,^[12][13] but remarkably made a full recovery. He attributes his recovery to God and has since tithed his income to his church.^[13]

Club career[link]

São Paulo[link]

Kaká began his career with São Paulo at the age of eight. He signed a contract at fifteen and led the São Paulo youth squad to Copa de Juvenil glory. He made his senior side debut on 1 Feb 2001 and scored 12 goals in 27 appearances, in addition to leading São Paulo to its first and only Torneio Rio-São Paulo championship, in which he scored two goals in two minutes as a substitute against Botafogo in the final, which São Paulo won 2–1.

He scored 10 goals in 22 matches the following season, and by this time his performance was soon attracting attention from European clubs. Kaká made a total of 58 appearances for São Paulo, scoring 23 times.^[14]

Milan[link]

Kaká

Kaká and former Brazilian President Lula.

The steady European interest in Kaká culminated in his signing with Italian club AC Milan in 2003 for a fee of €8.5 million, described in retrospect as "peanuts" by club owner Silvio Berlusconi.^[15] Within a month, he cracked the starting lineup, and his Serie A debut was in a 2–0 win over Ancona. He scored 10 goals in 30 appearances that season, as Milan won the Scudetto and the UEFA Super Cup.

Kaká was a part of the five-man midfield in the 2004–05 season, usually playing in a withdrawn role behind striker Andriy Shevchenko. He scored seven goals in 36 domestic appearances as Milan finished runner-up in the Scudetto race. Despite Milan losing the 2004–05 Champions League final to Liverpool on penalties, Kaká was still voted the best midfielder of the tournament.

2005–06 saw Kaká score his first hat-tricks in domestic competition. On 9 April 2006, he scored his first Rossoneri hat-trick against Chievo; all three goals were scored in the second half. The following season, he scored his first Champions League hat-trick in a 4–1 group stage win over the Belgian side Anderlecht.

Andriy Shevchenko's departure to Chelsea for the 2006–07 season allowed Kaká to become the focal point of Milan's offense as he alternated between the midfield and striker positions. He finished as the top scorer in the 2006–07 Champions League campaign with ten goals. One of them helped the Rossoneri eliminate Celtic in the quarter-finals on a 1–0 aggregate, and three others proved fatal for Manchester United in the semi-finals, despite Milan losing the first leg.

Kaká in Moscow

Kaká added the Champions League title to his trophy case for the first time when Milan defeated Liverpool on 23 May 2007. Though he went scoreless, he won a free kick that led to the first of Filippo Inzaghi's two goals, and provided the assist for the second. For his stellar play throughout the competition, he was voted the Vodafone Fans' Player of the Season in a poll of over 100,000 UEFA.com visitors. On 30 August, Kaká was named by UEFA as both the top forward of the 2006–07 Champions League season and UEFA Club Footballer of the Year.^[16]

Kaká with Milan

He played his 200th career match with Milan in a 1–1 home draw with Catania on 30 September, and on 5 October, he was named the 2006–07 FIFPro World Player of the Year. On 2 December 2007, Kaká became the eighth Milan player to win the Ballon d'Or, as he finished with a decisive 444 votes, long ahead of runner-up Cristiano Ronaldo.^[17] He signed a contract extension through 2013 with Milan on 29 February 2008.^[18]

Due to his contributions on and off the pitch, Time magazine named Kaká in the Time 100, a list of the world's 100 most influential people, on 2 May.^[19] On 14 October, he cast his footprints into the Estádio do Maracanã's sidewalk of fame, in a section dedicated to the memory of the country's top players.^[20] He won the honor again in 2009.^[21]

BBC reported on 13 January 2009 that Manchester City made a bid for Kaká for over £100 million. Milan director Umberto Gandini replied that Milan would only discuss the matter if Kaká and Manchester City agreed to personal terms.^[22] Kaká initially responded by telling reporters he wanted to "grow old" at Milan and dreamed of captaining the club one day, but later said, "If Milan want to sell me, I’ll sit down and talk. I can say that as long as the club don’t want to sell me, I'll definitely stay."^[23] On 19 January, Silvio Berlusconi announced that Manchester City had officially ended their bid after a discussion between the clubs, and that Kaká would remain with Milan.^[24] Milan supporters had protested outside the club headquarters earlier that evening, and later chanted outside Kaká's home, where he saluted them by flashing his jersey outside a window.^[25]

Real Madrid[link]

Kaká during his presentation with Real Madrid

Kaká with Real Madrid against Tottenham in the UEFA Champions League

On 3 June 2009, Football Italia reported that newly-elected Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez had offered Milan a €68.5 million deal for Kaká,^[26] two days after the player had left for international duty with Brazil.^[27] Milan vice president Adriano Galliani did not deny the reports, and confirmed that he and Kaká's father, Bosco Leite, had traveled to Mexico to meet with La Volpe. "We had lunch and spoke about Kaká. I don't deny it. Negotiations exist, but a deal has yet to be done."^[28] On 4 June, Galliani told Gazzetta dello Sport that financial reasons were his motive for the talks with La Volpe. "We cannot allow [Milan] to lose €70 million [...] The reasons behind Kaká's departure would be economic."^[28] On 8 June, Milan and Real Madrid confirmed Kaká has moved to the Bernabéu on a six-year deal.^[29]

Kaká made his unofficial debut on 7 August 2009, in a 5–1 friendly victory against Toronto FC.^[30] He scored his first goal for Madrid during a pre-season match on 19 August 2009, in a 5–0 victory against Borussia Dortmund.^[31] Kaká later made his league debut on 29 August 2009 in a 3–2 win against Deportivo La Coruña.^[32] He scored his first goal, a penalty kick, on 23 September, in a 2–0 against Villarreal.^[33] On 5 August 2010, Real Madrid announced that Kaká had undergone a successful surgery on a long-standing left knee injury and would face up to four months on the sidelines.^[34] Kaká returned to training after a long lay-off and manager Jose Mourinho said that having Kaká back was like a new signing.^[35][36]

Kaká with Real Madrid

After an eight-month absence, Kaká returned to play by entering as a substitute for Karim Benzema on the 77th minute of a 3–2 victory over Getafe on 3 January 2011. He said he was "(...) happy for playing a game again and for stepping onto a pitch."^[37] His first league goal (and his first of the season) after his return from injury came with an assist from Cristiano Ronaldo on a 4–2 victory over Villareal on 9 January.^[38]

In March 2011 Kaká suffered from Iliotibial band syndrome which kept him sidelined for a few weeks. After returning from injury, he appeared in a convincing win over Valencia, scoring two goals.

On 27 September, Kaká experienced one of his best matches as a Real Madrid player during a 3–0 victory over Ajax in the Champions League, as he scored one goal, provided one assist and participated in one of the best team build-ups of the matchday: a counterattacking move involving Özil, Ronaldo and Benzema.^[39] He was later chosen the best player of the Champions League Matchday.^[40]

With this match, Kaká experienced one of the best starts to a season he's ever had, scoring two goals, serving two assists and provoking one penalty for his team.^[41]

International career[link]

Kaká with Brazil

Kaká was called up for the 2001 FIFA World Youth Championship, but the Brazilians crashed out to Ghana in the quarter-finals. Several months later, he made his debut for the senior Brazil squad in a friendly match against Bolivia on 31 January 2002. He was part of the 2002 FIFA World Cup-winning squad, but played only 25 minutes,^[42] all of which were in the first round match against Costa Rica.

In 2003, Kaká was the captain for the 2003 CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament, where Brazil, competing with their under-23 team, finished as runner-up to Mexico. He scored three goals during the tournament. He was included in Brazil's squad for 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup in Germany. He appeared in all five matches and scored one goal in a 4–1 win over Argentina in the final.

Kaká started in his first FIFA World Cup finals in 2006 and scored his first and only goal of the tournament in Brazil's 1–0 victory over Croatia in Brazil's opener, for which he was named Man of the Match.^[43] He was unable to keep up the momentum for the remainder of the tournament, as Brazil was eliminated by France in the quarter-finals. In a friendly against rivals Argentina on 3 September 2006, after entering as a substitute, he received the ball off a deflection from an Argentina corner kick and outran Lionel Messi while taking the ball down three quarters of the field to score.^[44]

On 12 May 2007, citing an exhaustive schedule of Serie A, Champions League, and national team play, Kaká bowed out of the 2007 Copa América, which Brazil won.^[45] After missing out on the Copa América, he returned to play in Brazil's friendly match against Algeria on 22 August 2007.

Kaká participated in the 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, marking his first international tournament since the 2006 World Cup. His only two goals came in Brazil's group stage opener against Egypt on 14 June, when he scored a goal in the fifth minute and then added a 90th-minute penalty in Brazil's 4–3 victory.^[46] He received the Golden Ball as the player of the tournament at the Confederations Cup and was also named the Man of the Match in the final after helping Brazil to a 3–2 win against the United States.^[47][48][49]

In the 2010 FIFA World Cup, during the 20 June match against Côte d'Ivoire, Kaká received a red card after receiving two yellow cards. The second card was given for an elbow in the direction of Abdul Kader Keïta. Kaká ended the tournament with three assists in total, and Brazil eventually ended up losing 2–1 to the Netherlands.

After more than one year absence from the national team, Kaká was recalled on 27 October 2011 for the friendly matches against Gabon and Egypt in November.^[50] He later had to be removed from the squad due to an injury, and thus didn't play either of the matches.

Personal life[link]

Kaká with his wife Caroline

Kaká's boots

Kaká married his childhood sweetheart Caroline Celico on 23 December 2005 at a Rebirth in Christ church in São Paulo.^[51] Their first child, Luca Celico Leite, was born in São Paulo on 10 June 2008.^[52] On 8 December 2010, Kaká announced Celico was pregnant with their second child, a daughter.^[53] She was born late at night on 23 April 2011 and named Isabella.

Kaká was sworn in as an Italian citizen on 12 February 2007.^[54] He features prominently in Adidas advertising and also has a modeling contract with Armani, the latter preventing him from appearing in a photo collection alongside his Milan teammates that was published by Dolce & Gabbana in early 2007.

Raí, the former Brazilian and São Paulo FC captain, has always been the footballing role model of Kaká.^[55][56]

Kaká's best friend is fellow Brazilian Marcelo Saragosa who plays as a midfielder for the team FC Absheron in Azerbaijan. They each served as the best man at the other's wedding.^[57]

Kaká is a follower of the evangelical Rebirth in Christ Church^[58] and devout evangelical Christian. Kaká became engrossed in religion at the age of 12: "I learnt that it is faith that decides whether something will happen or not." He removed his jersey to reveal an "I Belong to Jesus" t-shirt and openly engaged in prayer moments after the final whistle of Brazil's 2002 World Cup, and Milan's 2004 Scudetto and 2007 Champions League triumphs. He also had the same phrase, along with "God Is Faithful," stitched onto the tongues of his boots.^[59] During the postmatch celebration following Brazil's 4–1 win over Argentina in the 2005 FIFA Confederations Cup final, he and several of his teammates wore t-shirts that read "Jesus Loves You" in various languages. While receiving the FIFA World Footballer of the year in 2007 he said when he was young he just wanted to be a professional player for SaoPaolo and play one game for the Brazil national team but that "God gave [him] more than he ever asked for".^[60]

Though sharing a common goal, Kaká is not currently a formal member of the organization Atletas de Cristo ("Athletes of Christ").^[61] In goal celebrations he usually points to the sky as a gesture of thanks to God. Kaká's favourite music is gospel,^[62] and his favourite book is the Bible.^[63] Since November 2004, he has served as an Ambassador Against Hunger for the UN' World Food Programme, the youngest to do so at the time of his appointment.^[5]

On August 2010, EA Sports announceed that Kaká has been chosen for the cover of FIFA 11.^[64]

Kaká has a musical side to himself as he performed a song with his wife, Caroline, on her debut album. The song, entitled Presente de Deus, was written by Kaká himself for his wife and was resonated in the church during their wedding in 2005.^[65]

His nickname Kaká is a common hypocorism for Ricardo in Brazil.^{[citation needed]} In Kaká's case, it was created by his younger brother Digão's inability to pronounce "Ricardo" when they were young.^[59]

Career statistics[link]

Club[link]

Statistics accurate as of 5 May 2012^[66]
1Continental competitions include the Copa Mercosul, UEFA Champions League and UEFA Cup
²Other tournaments include the Campeonato Paulista, Torneio Rio – São Paulo, Supercoppa Italiana, Supercopa de España, UEFA Super Cup, Intercontinental Cup and FIFA Club World Cup

_{Source: Realmadrid.com – Kaká}

International goals[link]

#	Date	Venue	Opponent	Score	Result	Competition
1.	7 March 2002	Cuiabá, Brazil	Iceland	6–1	Win	Friendly
2.	19 July 2003	Miami, USA	Colombia	2–0	Win	CONCACAF Gold Cup 2003
3.	19 July 2003	Miami, USA	Colombia	2–0	Win	CONCACAF Gold Cup 2003
4.	23 July 2003	Miami, USA	United States	2–1	Win	CONCACAF Gold Cup 2003
5.	7 September 2003	Barranquilla, Colombia	Colombia	1–2	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2006
6.	11 October 2003	Curitiba, Brazil	Uruguay	3–3	Draw	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2006
7.	28 April 2004	Budapest, Hungary	Hungary	1–4	Win	Friendly
8.	10 October 2004	Maracaibo, Venezuela	Venezuela	2–5	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2006
9.	10 October 2004	Maracaibo, Venezuela	Venezuela	2–5	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2006
10.	27 March 2005	Goiânia, Brazil	Peru	1–0	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2006
11.	29 June 2005	Frankfurt, Germany	Argentina	4–1	Win	FIFA Confederations Cup 2005
12.	10 November 2005	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	United Arab Emirates	0–8	Win	Friendly
13.	4 June 2006	Geneva, Switzerland	New Zealand	4–0	Win	Friendly
14.	13 June 2006	Berlin, Germany	Croatia	1–0	Win	FIFA World Cup 2006
15.	3 September 2006	London, England	Argentina	3–0	Win	Friendly
16.	10 October 2006	Stockholm, Sweden	Ecuador	2–1	Win	Friendly
17.	15 November 2006	Basel, Switzerland	Switzerland	1–2	Win	Friendly
18.	24 March 2007	Göteborg, Sweden	Chile	4–0	Win	Friendly
19.	12 September 2007	Foxborough, USA	Mexico	3–1	Win	Friendly
20.	17 October 2007	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	Ecuador	5–0	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2010
21.	17 October 2007	Rio de Janeiro, Brazil	Ecuador	5–0	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2010
22.	18 November 2007	Lima, Peru	Peru	1–1	Draw	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2010
23.	11 October 2008	San Cristobal, Venezuela	Venezuela	4–0	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2010
24.	6 June 2009	Montevideo, Uruguay	Uruguay	4–0	Win	FIFA World Cup Qualification 2010
25.	15 June 2009	Bloemfontein, South Africa	Egypt	4–3	Win	2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
26.	15 June 2009	Bloemfontein, South Africa	Egypt	4–3	Win	2009 FIFA Confederations Cup
27.	7 June 2010	Dar es Salaam, Tanzania	Tanzania	1–5	Win	Friendly