Rachel Daly, 32, is a key player for the Lionesses and has an outstanding record of 84 caps has called it quits. She played a major role in England’s successful Euro campaign and their incredible run to the World Cup final last summer.
Her legendary career with the national team came to an end on Tuesday when she made a farewell cameo appearance as a substitute against the Republic of Ireland.
‘It has been a privilege’ – Rachel Daly receives this heart-warming message from Lionesses boss Sarina Wiegman after the shock decision to call it quit after a glittering international career
Daly retired from her Lionesses journey on Wednesday, shortly after contributing to England’s 2-0 Euro 2025 qualifying victory against the Republic of Ireland.
The 32-year-old acknowledged the challenge of this choice but expressed profound gratitude for her 84 caps and 16 goals for the national team. Following heartfelt tributes from teammates, England coach Wiegman echoed the sentiment, lauding Daly as the most “adaptable” player she has encountered in her career.
Daly will be missed
“She’ll be missed not just by me but all the other staff members, players, and of course the fans.” Wiegman said to Skysports.
Daly says it is certainly bittersweet to announce her retirement from the world stage. Although saying goodbye to wearing the England jersey is difficult, it’s an occasion filled with reflection and deep gratitude, she says.
With a total of 22 grand slam wins over the span of his distinguished career in tennis, Rafael Nadal has announced his retirement from the sport.
Considered as one of the greatest tennis players of all time, Nadal will play his last match in November at the Davis Cup finals with Spain. The veteran athlete last played at the Paris Olympics but his injuries had hampered him in his career. With this, he had limited time on court during the past two seasons.
In a social media post, Nadal expressed: “Hello everyone, I’m here to let you know that I am retiring from professional tennis,” Nadal said in a video posted on social media. “The reality is that it has been some difficult years, these last two especially. I don’t think I have been able to play without limitations.”
He added: “It is obviously a difficult decision, one that has taken me some time to make. But in this life, everything has a beginning and an end… And I think it’s the appropriate time to put an end to a career that has been long and much more successful than I could have ever imagined.”
Nadal’s 36 Masters 1000 titles and 22 grand slam victories ranked him second in the men’s tennis history, behind only his great and longtime rival, Novak Djokovic.
The athlete was also dubbed as the “King of Clay” due to his incredible dominance on the clay-courts. He has won 14 grand slams at the French Open and only lost four times out of his 116 matches in the competition.
Furthermore, he won the US Open four times, and both Australian Open and Wimbledon twice. His victory over Roger Federer in the 2008 Wimbledon final has been widely considered as the greatest tennis match of all time.
Nadal declared: “I am very excited that my last tournament will be the final of the Davis Cup and representing my country… I think I’ve come full circle since one of my first great joys as a professional tennis player was the Davis Cup final in Seville in 2004. I feel super, super lucky for all the things I’ve been able to experience.”
He further expressed: “I want to thank the entire tennis industry. All the people involved in this sport, my long-time colleagues, especially my great rivals. I have spent many, many hours with them and I have lived many moments that I will remember for the rest of my life… Talking about my team is a little bit more difficult for me because in the end, my team has been a very important part of my life. They are not co-workers, they are friends. They have been by my side at all the times I have really needed them. Very bad moments, very good moments.”
“I leave with the absolute peace of mind of having given my best, of having made an effort in every way,” he said.
We have seen players who have pushed into their 30s playing football, for example, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. However, this life is not cut out for some, especially when it comes towards a more advanced age. Gareth Bale has officially announced his plans to retire this year.
The career that saw Bale shine for Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, Real Madrid, and LAFC while also solidifying his place among the all-time greats in Welsh football has officially ended. It has come to a great shock to many that a player that is still considered in his prime has decided to retire.
“After careful and thoughtful consideration, I announce my immediate retirement from club and international football,” Gareth Bale stated on Twitter.
“I feel incredibly fortunate to have realised my dream of playing the sport I love. It has truly given me some of the best moments of my life. The highest of highs over 17 seasons, that will be impossible to replicate, no matter what the next chapter has in store for me.”
Initially, it was said that he would leave Real Madrid at the end of this season. He was on loan to Tottenham during the 2020-2021 season and was returned to Real Madrid for this season.
He left Real Madrid in mid 2022 and signed a 12 month contract with LAFC, an American soccer team. In his 14 games in the States, his 128th-minute extra-time header in the MLS Cup final, which helped LAFC tie the Philadelphia Union 3-3, was his most significant contribution. Due to that, the game had to go to penalties, where LAFC won their first major championship.
His tweet has garnered over 36 million views and almost 600,000 likes. Most of the positive remarks came from the American soccer fans as they thanked him for his contributions to the LAFC. The Premier League’s official Twitter account even thanked him for his service towards the league.
There were some fans that even stated that he is the best UK player ever. There were some Real Madrid fans that also thanked him for his contributions to the club. Unfortunately, this opinion is not popular among other Real Madrid fans.
ESPN’s Twitter account posted a controversial statement stating that Bale is one of the most underrated players that Real Madrid has ever had. Fans were vehemently against the statement as they said that he apparently “wasted a lot of Madrid’s money.”
He did not carry Ronaldo. However if he did not have any injuries, he could have been his equal or maybe even surpassed him. At his best, he was unstoppable.
For some odd reason, when there’s any football news on Twitter, the topic of Ronaldo and Messi will come up. A fan stated that he carried Ronaldo during their shared time in Real Madrid. Ronaldo fans disagreed with the statement stating that if he did not have any injuries he might actually have surpassed Ronaldo.
how was he?!? Real Madrid tried to renege on their contractual obligations, Balke didn't play ball – RM tried to bully him, and he wasn't having any of it?! Tell me who disrespected whom?
Others stated that towards the end of his tenure with Madrid, he disrespected the team but is regarded as one of the best players they had. Fans disagreed with the statement accusing Madrid of wanting to break their own contract with him, which then led him to be unhappy with said team.
that's exactly what's happening to C.Ronaldo..people are overlooking the impact he had at laliga and epl when he was still a young lad, now that he's old for the sport and can't execute like he used to, they're spitting on his name and tarnishing his legacy and reputation..
More relatability to Ronaldo has been said among fans. They are saying that Bale was treated poorly and was not remembered for his great contributions in his earlier days, and instead he has been cast aside by the team. Others recognize the similarities with how Ronaldo is being treated.
There are truths in this statement, regardless of what field you are in, you will not be remembered for your greatest achievements but for your greatest failures. Regardless of what is being said about Bale, it is indeed a sad day to see such a player retire while still having half a decade worth of playing ahead of him.
Players from the England women’s football team that became European champions in July were among the sports figures recognised in Britain’s New Year public Honours List published Friday.
Team captain Leah Williamson, who lifted the Women’s Euro trophy after a 2-1 victory over Germany at Wembley, has been made an OBE (Officer of the Order of the British Empire).
Her team-mates Lucy Bronze, Beth Mead and Ellen White all received an MBE (Member of the Order of the British Empire), which is a level below an OBE on an honours ‘ladder’ designed mainly to recognise the contributions to public life across a variety of fields by British and Commonwealth nationals.
The England women’s team’s Dutch head coach Sarina Wiegman received the higher-ranking CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) on the overseas list.
Mead was the tournament’s top scorer and was voted its best player.
England’s highest profile woman footballer
White had been a key figure in England’s attack for more than a decade until her retirement in August, while Barcelona defender Bronze is arguably most highest-profile England women’s footballer, having been voted the best player in the world in 2020.
Britain’s Denise Lewis, the heptathlon champion at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, was awarded a damehood, the female equivalent of a knighthood.
The European Championship victory was the first major tournament success for a senior England football team since the men’s side won the 1966 World Cup.
There had been calls for all the England players involved to receive honours.
That approach, however, led to controversy when all the players in the England 2005 men’s Ashes cricket victory received honours, with Paul Collingwood, who made a mere 17 runs in his lone appearance of the series success against Australia, awarded an MBE.
Hugh Robertson, the chairman of the honours sport committee and a former UK sports minister, said: “The approach that we’ve tried to take with this is when we have these events there is a danger in sort of carpet bombing the entire squad because then you get people who’ve done five minutes on the pitch and get an award.”
On an emotional night in Malaga, Rafael Nadal ended his career with a loss in the Davis Cup, failing to have the fairytale finish that his career deserved.
The 38-year-old athlete lost against Dutchman Botic van de Zandschulp 6-4, 6-4 in his final competitive match in the sport.
Following a lengthy on-court speech in front of his devoted followers, family, friends, and teammates after the match, a video montage of his incredible career was shown which made the athlete emotional.
Nadal said: “I was just a kid from a small village that had luck because my uncle was a tennis coach and had a family who supported me.”
He added: “A lot of people work hard but I am one of the lucky ones that life gave me the opportunity to live unforgettable experiences because of tennis. I just want to be remembered as a good person and a kid that followed their dreams.”
His announcement last month that he was retiring from the Davis Cup Final Eight raised the possibility of a final addition to his record of 14 French Open titles. With this defeat, Nadal said: “In some ways it is good, maybe, if that was my last match because I lost my first match in the Davis Cup and I lost my last one. We close the circle.”
Many of Nadal’s supporters, the majority wearing scarves with the words “Gracias Rafa” printed on them, stood to applaud him in a tribute to a great athlete.
Legendary Brazilian football player Marta has announced her retirement from international football this year. At 38 years old, she is known to be Brazil’s all-time record goalscorer in the said sport.
If Marta is chosen for Brazil’s team this summer in Paris, she might compete in her sixth Olympic Games. The athlete declared: “If I go to the Olympics, I will enjoy every moment, because, regardless of whether I go to the Olympics or not, this is my last year with the national team.”
“There will be no more Marta from 2025 in the national team as an athlete,” Marta added.
Marta’s journey in international football
In Athens 2004 and Beijing 2008, Marta placed second in the Olympic Games but was defeated by the US team both times. With 17 goals in 23 appearances throughout six World Cups, Marta is the all-time top goal scorer for both men’s and women’s teams.
When Brazil lost to Germany in the 2007 World Cup, she came the closest to winning the championship. Following Brazil’s loss from the World Cup in the previous summer, she declared that “there is no more World Cup for Marta”.
With her retirement, she is at ease handing the torch to the upcoming Brazilian football players.
Marta remarked: “We have a really qualified team with really talented girls who, as the years go by, you will see what I’m talking about…Because of this I feel very comfortable saying: ‘Listen, I’m passing on to you, I’m going to pass on the baton and you continue to carry on this legacy.'”
