Sergio Ramos

Sergio Ramos García (born 30 March 1986) is a Spanish professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for La Liga club Sevilla.

Widely regarded as one of the greatest defenders of all time, he is known for his tackling skills, aerial abilities and leadership.

He made his first-team – and La Liga – debut on 1 February 2004, coming on as a 64th-minute substitute for Paco Gallardo in a 0–1 away loss against Deportivo La Coruña.

In the 2004–05 season, Ramos appeared in 41 games as Sevilla finished sixth and qualified to the 2005–06 UEFA Cup, scoring in home fixtures against Real Sociedad (2–1) and Real Madrid (2–2).

In the 2004–05 UEFA Cup, he scored his first continental goal, heading to conclude a 2–0 win over C.D. Nacional at the Ramon Sánchez Pizjuán in the first round (4–1 aggregate).

Born at the gates of Seville, Ramos emerged through Sevilla's youth academy and spent two seasons with the senior side, before moving to Real Madrid in the summer of 2005.

He went on to become a mainstay for the club, winning 22 major honours including five La Liga and four UEFA Champions League titles, and becoming one of La Liga's top goalscorers from a defensive position.

He played a crucial part in the build-up to all four UEFA Champions League wins, being named in the competition Squad of the Season each time.

In the summer of 2005, Ramos was purchased by Real Madrid for €27 million, a record for a Spanish defender.

He was the only Spanish player brought in during Florentino Pérez's first stint as Real's president.

At the club, Ramos was assigned the number 4 shirt, previously worn by Fernando Hierro.

On 6 December 2005 he netted his first goal for the Merengues, in a 2–1 UEFA Champions League group stage loss at Olympiacos.

During his first seasons, Ramos played as centre back, being also used as an emergency defensive midfielder on occasion.

His first red card came after two bookable offences in a 1–0 away loss to Espanyol on 18 September 2005.

During the 2006–07 season, Ramos scored five goals, including one in a 3–3 El Clásico draw with Barcelona, as Real Madrid won a record 30th league title.

However, with the arrival of Christoph Metzelder and Pepe in the 2007–08 season, he was again relocated to right back.

In his first four seasons at Real Madrid, Ramos displayed a goalscoring instinct unusual to many defenders, netting more than 20 goals overall.

He also received the first nine of his 24 red cards for the club, including four in his debut season.

On the final day of the season, he scored twice in a 5–2 home win against already relegated Levante: one through a header, and another an individual effort; these goals taking his league tally for the 2007–08 season to five.

On 4 May 2008, he assisted Gonzalo Higuaín in the 89th minute against Osasuna in an eventual 2–1 away win, the match that sealed the club's 31st league championship.

On 24 August 2008, Ramos scored in the 2008 Supercopa de España second leg against Valencia, making the score 2–1 in an eventual 4–2 and 6–5 aggregate win.

The victory came despite Real Madrid playing with only nine men for a long period of time after Rafael van der Vaart and Ruud van Nistelrooy were sent off.

Ramos was named in both FIFA and UEFA's 2008 Team of the Year, adding the FIFPro Team of the Year 2007–08 accolade.

He also finished 21st in the European Player of the Year nomination for 2008.

Although Ramos experienced a slight dip in form during the early part of the 2008–09 season, he returned to his best and on 11 January 2009, scoring an acrobatic volley in a 3–0 triumph at Mallorca.

He continued his scoring run the following week in a 3–1 home win against Osasuna.

At the start of the 2009–10 season, Ramos was appointed as one of Real Madrid's four captains.

Because Pepe had suffered a serious knee injury during this campaign, Ramos was often deployed as central defender.

He is best known for his sixteen seasons spent playing for Real Madrid, winning four UEFA Champions League titles whilst at the club, along with two UEFA European Championships and the 2010 FIFA World Cup with the Spain national team.

He won the 2010 FIFA World Cup and the UEFA European Championship in 2008 and 2012, being named to the FIFA World Cup Dream Team in 2010, and the UEFA Euro Team of the Tournament in 2012.

He made his first appearance for Spain at the age of 18 and, in 2013, he became the nation's youngest player to ever reach 100 caps.

Ramos currently holds the record as the most capped player in the history of the Spain national team and is his country's ninth-highest all-time goalscorer.

He also holds the record of most international victories for Spain with 131 matches won.

Ramos has been named to the FIFPro World11 eleven times; a record for a defender, and the third-most all-time.

He has also been elected to the UEFA Team of the Year nine times, also a record for a defender and the third-most of any player.

He also scored the crucial equaliser in the 93rd minute of the 2014 UEFA Champions League final, additionally scoring the opener in the 2016 final.

Out of contract, he signed for French club Paris Saint-Germain in July 2021, spending two seasons at the club and winning Ligue 1 twice, before returning to Sevilla.

Internationally, Ramos represented Spain at four World Cups and three European Championships.

Additionally, Ramos has been named La Liga's Best Defender a record five times, and to the La Liga Team of the Season in 2015–16.

Born in Camas, Seville, Andalusia, Ramos started playing at Camas CF by the age of 6, then he began his career at local side Sevilla, emerging through the club's youth system alongside Jesús Navas and Antonio Puerta.