Former Barcelona and Spain midfielder Andres Iniesta has officially announced his retirement at the age of 40. He made the decision in a video posted on his social media channels.
The video, captioned "the game goes on", features an emotional Iniesta speaking about what football means to him, before tributes from a number of high-profile names including Pep Guardiola, Louis van Gaal and Luis Enrique.
Iniesta has recently been playing for UAE Pro League club Emirates, where he has the option to extend his contract until 2025, but it appears he has decided to end his career.
Iniesta is famous for scoring the decisive goal in the 2010 World Cup final, when Spain beat the Netherlands to lift the trophy for the first, and so far only, time.
He has made nearly 900 club appearances during spells with Barca, Vissel Kobe (Japan) and Emirates.
After joining Barca's academy at the age of 12 in 1996, initially living at La Masia, Iniesta made 54 appearances for the club's B team before breaking through to the first team in 2002.
During a memorable era for the club, playing alongside the likes of Carles Puyol, Xavi Hernandez and Lionel Messi, Iniesta helped form the backbone of a team that won multiple Champions League and La Liga titles.
He left Barca in 2018 with nearly 700 appearances for the Catalan club, nine La Liga titles and four Champions League titles among the 32 trophies he won with the team.
At international level, he won 131 caps for Spain and was a key member of the La Roja side that won two consecutive European Championships and the World Cup from 2008 to 2012.
After leaving Barça and retiring from international football, Iniesta spent five years in Japan with Vissel Kobe, winning the J1 League title in 2023, before ending his career at the Emirates.
After retiring, Iniesta - 40 years old, plans to become a coach, starting with youth training and developing skills for young players.
