Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite (; born 22 April 1982), commonly known as Kaká () or Ricardo Kaká, is a Brazilian former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. Kaká was known for his explosive pace, dribbling, passing, and goalscoring, and is considered one of the greatest players of all time. With success for both club and country, he is one of the eleven players to win the FIFA World Cup, the UEFA Champions League, and the Ballon d'Or.The others are Bobby Charlton, Franz Beckenbauer, Gerd Müller, Paolo Rossi, Zinedine Zidane, Rivaldo, Ronaldinho, Lionel Messi, Ousmane Dembélé and Rodri.
In 2001, at age 18, Kaká made his professional debut at Brazilian club São Paulo. He later joined Italian club AC Milan in 2003. Kaká helped Milan win the Serie A title in his first season. Milan finished runner-up in the 2004–05 UEFA Champions League with Kaká being the top assist provider of the tournament and being named the UEFA Club Midfielder of the Year. He led Milan to win the 2006–07 UEFA Champions League and was the tournament's top goalscorer. His performances saw him win the FIFA World Player of the Year, the 2007 Ballon d'Or, and the UEFA Club Footballer of the Year. After six years with Milan, Kaká joined Real Madrid in 2009 for a transfer fee of €67 million, which was the second highest transfer fee at the time. However, his four seasons in Madrid were plagued with injuries, which saw his pace decline. He returned to AC Milan for a single season in 2013, prior to joining MLS expansion club Orlando City SC. He initially went on loan to his former club São Paulo before returning to Orlando in 2015 and retiring from professional football in 2017.
Kaká made his debut for Brazil's national football team in 2002 and was selected for the 2002 FIFA World Cup squad, which won the tournament that year. He also played in the 2006 World Cup, alongside other veterans like Ronaldo, Adriano, and Ronaldinho. He made his final World Cup appearance in 2010. He was also a member of Brazil's 2005 and 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup-winning squads, winning the Golden Ball in 2009 as the tournament's best player.
Between 2006 and 2009, he was named in both the FIFA World XI and the UEFA Team of the Year three times. In 2010, he was named in the AC Milan Hall of Fame. One of the world's most famous athletes during his playing career, Kaká was the first sportsperson to amass 10 million followers on Twitter. Outside of football, Kaká is known for his humanitarian work, where he became the youngest ambassador of the UN World Food Programme in 2004. For his contributions on and off the pitch, Kaká was named by Time as one of the world's 100 most influential people in 2008 and in 2009."Kaka profile" . Goal.com. Retrieved 28 June 2014
Early life Ricardo Izecson dos Santos Leite was born on 22 April 1982 in Gama in the Federal District of the Central-West Region of Brazil to Simone dos Santos, an elementary school Teacher, and Bosco Izecson Pereira Leite, a civil engineer. Istoé Gente, Kaká vira fera , 21 October 2002. His family was financially secure, which allowed him to focus on school and football at the same time. His younger brother Digão and cousin Eduardo Delani are also professional footballers. Digão called him "Caca" due to his inability to pronounce "Ricardo" when they were young; it eventually evolved into Kaká. The word has no specific Portuguese translation.
When he was seven, Kaká's family moved to São Paulo.FIFA Classic Football His school had arranged him in a local youth club called "Alphaville", who qualified to the final in a local tournament. There, he was discovered by hometown club São Paulo FC, who offered him a place in the youth academy. At the age of 18, Kaká suffered a career-threatening spinal fracture as a result of a swimming pool accident, but made a full recovery. He attributes his recovery to God and has since tithed his income to his church.
Club career
São Paulo
Kaká began his career with São Paulo at the age of eight. He signed a contract at 15 and led the São Paulo youth squad to Copa de Juvenil glory. He made his senior side debut on 1 February 2001 and scored 12 goals in 27 appearances, in addition to leading São Paulo to its first and only Torneio Rio-São Paulo championship, in which he scored two goals in two minutes as a substitute against Botafogo in the final, which São Paulo won 2–1."Torneio Rio-São Paulo 2001" . Rsssf. Retrieved 22 March 2018
He scored ten goals in 22 matches the following season, and by this time, his performance was soon attracting attention from European clubs. Kaká made a total of 58 appearances for São Paulo, scoring 23 times.
AC Milan
The steady European interest in Kaká culminated in his signing with the European champions, Italian club AC Milan, in 2003 for a fee of reported €8.5 million, described in retrospect as "peanuts" by club owner Silvio Berlusconi. Within a month, he cracked the starting lineup, replacing Rui Costa in the attacking midfield playmaking position, behind strikers Jon Dahl Tomasson, Filippo Inzaghi and Andriy Shevchenko. His Serie A debut was in a 2–0 win over Ancona. He scored ten goals in 30 appearances that season, also providing several important assists, such as the cross which led to Shevchenko's title-deciding headed goal, as Milan won the Scudetto and the UEFA Super Cup, whilst finishing as runner up in the Intercontinental Cup and the 2003 Supercoppa Italiana. Milan also reached the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia, losing out to eventual winners Lazio, and were knocked out of the quarter-finals of the Champions League by Deportivo La Coruña. Due to his performances in his debut season, in 2004, Kaká was named Serie A Footballer of the Year, and was nominated for both the Ballon d'Or (finishing 15th) and the 2004 FIFA World Player of the Year (finishing 10th).
Kaká was a part of the five-man midfield in the 2004–05 season, usually playing in a withdrawn role behind striker Andriy Shevchenko. He was supported by Gennaro Gattuso and Clarence Seedorf defensively, as well as Massimo Ambrosini, allowing Kaká as the attacking midfielder and Rui Costa or Andrea Pirlo as the deep-lying playmaker to be in charge of creating Milan's goalscoring chances, forming a formidable midfield unit in both Italy and Europe. Milan began the season by winning the Supercoppa Italiana against Lazio. He scored seven goals in 36 domestic appearances as Milan finished runner-up in the Scudetto race. Milan also reached the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia that season. Kaká played a pivotal role in Milan's Champions League campaign that season, helping them to reach the final against Liverpool, scoring two goals and providing five assists. Dubbed the "Miracle of Istanbul", Milan led 3–0 at half time, before Liverpool staged a comeback, scoring three goals in six minutes, and eventually won the match 3–2 on penalties."Games of the decade: 2005 UEFA Champions League Final: The Miracle of Istanbul" . ESPN. Retrieved 15 April 2012 A match widely regarded as one of the greatest finals in the competition's history, Kaká was imperious in the first half; he first won the early free-kick which led to Paolo Maldini's opening goal, began the play that led to Hernán Crespo's first goal and Milan's second of the night, then executed a long curling pass that split open the Liverpool defence and rolled directly into the path of Crespo to score Milan's third.McCarra, Kevin (26 May 2005) "Grit, spirit and the ultimate glory" . The Guardian. Retrieved 8 July 2011 Kaká was once again nominated for the Ballon d'Or and FIFA World Player of the Year Awards, finishing ninth and eighth respectively, and he was named the 2005 UEFA Club Football Best Midfielder.
The 2005–06 season saw Kaká score his first hat-tricks in domestic competitions. On 9 April 2006, he scored his first Rossoneri hat-trick against Chievo, with all three goals scored in the second half. Milan were knocked out in the semi-finals of the 2005–06 Champions League to eventual champions Barcelona, and were once again eliminated in the quarter-finals of the Coppa Italia. Milan also finished once again as runners-up in Serie A, with Kaká scoring 17 goals in the league. After the 2006 Calciopoli scandal, however, Milan were deducted 30 points, which placed them in third in the table. Kaká was nominated for the Ballon d'Or and the FIFA World Player of the Year Awards for the third consecutive year, finishing 11th and seventh respectively. He was also selected to be part of both the UEFA Team of the Year and the FIFPro World XI for the first time in his career.
Andriy Shevchenko's departure to Chelsea for the 2006–07 season allowed Kaká to become the focal point of Milan's offense as he alternated between the midfield and forward positions, operating at times as a striker or as a second striker behind Filippo Inzaghi, as well as in his more typical attacking midfield position. On 2 November 2006, he scored his first Champions League hat-trick in a 4–1 group stage win over the Belgian side Anderlecht. He finished as the top scorer in the 2006–07 Champions League campaign with ten goals. One of the goals helped the Rossoneri eliminate Celtic in the round of 16, 1–0 on aggregate, and he scored three goals against Manchester United in the semi-finals. Milan also reached the semi-finals of the Coppa Italia that season, losing out to winners Roma, and finished fourth in Serie A.
Kaká won the Champions League title when Milan defeated Liverpool 2–1 on 23 May 2007, avenging the previous loss on penalties two years before. Though he went scoreless, he won a free kick that led to the first of Filippo Inzaghi's two goals, and provided the assist for the second. On 30 August, Kaká was named by UEFA as both the top forward of the 2006–07 Champions League season and UEFA Club Footballer of the Year, as well as being named as part of the UEFA Team of the Year for the second time. He once again finished as the second-best assist-provider of the Champions League, providing five, and was voted the 2007 IFFHS World's Best Playmaker.
Milan began its 2007–08 season by winning the UEFA Super Cup on 31 August, defeating Sevilla 3–1, with Kaká scoring the third goal. Kaká had made a dribbling run into Sevilla's area, winning a penalty, which he then proceeded to take. Although it was saved by goalkeeper Andrés Palop, Kaká scored on the rebound with a header. Kaká had previously hit the post in the first half. He played his 200th career match with Milan in a 1–1 home draw with Catania on 30 September, scoring from a penalty, and on 5 October, he was named the 2006–07 FIFPro World Player of the Year, and was elected as part of the FIFPro World XI for the second time in his career. On 2 December 2007, Kaká became the eighth Milan player to win the Ballon d'Or, as he finished with a decisive 444 votes, well ahead of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. He signed a contract extension through 2013 with Milan on 29 February 2008.
On 16 December, Kaká won the FIFA Club World Cup against Boca Juniors, scoring Milan's third goal of the match in a 4–2 victory which allowed them to be crowned World Champions. Kaká had previously assisted Filippo Inzaghi's opening goal of the match and also assisted Inzaghi's final goal of the match after an impressive exchange with Clarence Seedorf; he was awarded the Golden Ball as the best player of the competition. On 17 December, Kaká was voted the 2007 FIFA World Player of the Year with 1,047 votes, ahead of Lionel Messi with 504 and Cristiano Ronaldo with 426.