Los Angeles, Jan. 9 (AP) Gareth Bale is retiring from soccer at the age of 33 after setting a Welsh record with 41 international goals.
Bale’s last game was the 3-0 defeat to England at the World Cup on 29 November, his 111th international appearance.
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“My decision to retire from international football has been the most difficult of my career,” Bale said in a statement on Monday.
“My journey on the international stage is one that has changed not only my life, but also who I am. The fortune of being Welsh and being selected to play and captain Wales has given me something incomparable to anything else I’ve experienced. I am honored and humbled to have been able to play a part in the history of this incredible country, to have felt the support and passion of the red wall, and together we have been to unexpected and amazing places.”
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Bale also said he is retiring from club football. He scored 53 goals in the Premier League and 81 in La Liga, finishing last season helping Los Angeles win the Major League Soccer title. Bale won five Champions League titles, three Spanish league titles, one Copa del Rey and one League Cup.
“I look forward to the next step in my life,” he said.
“A time of change and transition, an opportunity for a new adventure.”
Bale made his Wales debut on 27 May 2006, in a friendly against Trinidad and Tobago, and the speedy winger helped Wales reach the semi-finals of the 2016 European Championship, where they lost to Portugal 2–0.
Wales qualified for Euro 2020, losing to Denmark in the round of 16, then qualified for their second World Cup and first since 1958. Bale scored the equalizer in the opening 1-1 draw against the United States United. Wales then conceded two second-half stoppage-time goals in a 2-0 defeat to Iran.
Bale broke the previous Wales record of 28 goals set by Ian Rush. Bale’s appearances are also a Welsh record. He has won the Wales Player of the Year award six times.
“How can I describe what it means to me to be part of this country and team? How can I articulate the impact it has had on my life? How do I put into words how I felt every time I put on that Wales shirt?” Bale said.
“My answer is that I could not do any of these things justice, merely in words. But I know that every person involved in Welsh football feels the magic and is affected in such a powerful and unique way, so I know you feel what I feel, without using any words at all.”
He joined Los Angeles FC from Real Madrid last June and helped his new team win the MLS Championship, scoring the equalizer in the 128th minute in the final. LA went on to beat Philadelphia in penalty kicks.
Bale played for Southampton (2006-07), Tottenham (2007-13, 2020-21) and Real Madrid (2013-22).
He joined Real Madrid after scoring 21 Premier League goals for Spurs in the 2012-13 season. He scored double figures in the league in four of his first five seasons with Madrid. (AP)
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