Ronaldinho can still hang.
The Brazilian icon took the pitch as part of the starting lineup for Ravenna FC on Sunday, Nov. 15 in a Serie C match against Forlì FC at Stadio Bruno Benelli. It was his first time playing in 11 years.
The 46-year-old wore a black fleece headband and kept up with his teammates and opponents, who were on average 20 years younger than him. He was part of Ravenna's scoring play in the first half. He dribbled the ball against a defender and passed it to Lorenzo Lonardi. Lonardi tossed the ball to Giulio Donati, who dribbled quickly and struck it in for the first goal of the game.
Ravenna lead! 🤩
— Sky Sports Football (@SkyFootball) November 15, 2026
Ronaldinho was involved in the build-up and what a strike it was from Giulio Donati! pic.twitter.com/BNSWjnEp31
At the halftime
whistle, the 2005 Ballon d'Or winner high-fived and hugged several teammates and a few Forlì players as well while the crowd in Italy cheered enthusiastically. Before being taken out of the lineup at the break, he spent several minutes applauding the fans, waving, blowing kisses and bowing.
Simone Rabbi scored a goal for Ravenna in the second half and the club went onto win 2-0.
Ronaldinho was on a mission to score his 300th career goal. Several fans held up signs in the stands rooting for him to score. He failed to do so in his 46 minutes of play with the one minute of stoppage time. There is no word on if he will play another match and continue the pursuit of the mark.
In August, Ronaldinho announced that he was becoming part of Ravenna's ownership group. Part of the deal was that he'd appear in a match, where he'd attempt to score the landmark goal.
Ronaldinho retired in 2018 after playing his last match in 2015. He made a name for himself with stints at major clubs like Paris Saint-Germain, FC Barcelona and AC Milan. The midfielder won the 2002 World Cup with Brazil.
He made an appearance at this summer's World Cup final, but not as a player. He performed with Madonna during the halftime show, along with his Brazil teammate Ronaldo.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: How did Ronaldinho do in comeback match? Brazil star seeks 300th goal
