Ronaldo de Assis Moreira (born 21 March 1980), commonly known as Ronaldinho (Brazilian Portuguese: [ʁonawˈdʒĩɲu]) or Ronaldinho Gaúcho,[2] is a Brazilian footballer who plays for Brazilian club Atlético Mineiro.[3][4][5] His main playing position is as an attacking midfielder or forward. He won the FIFA World Player of the Year award in 2004 and 2005 and is widely regarded to be one of the best footballers of his generation. Some fans consider Ronaldinho to be one of the greatest players of all time.
"Ronaldinho", the diminutive and term of endearment for "Ronaldo", is accompanied in Brazilian usage by the nickname "Gaúcho" (since he hails from southern Brazil), in order to distinguish him from fellow footballer and countryman Ronaldo, who was known as "Ronaldinho" in Brazil beforehand. Ronaldo simply went by his first name upon his move to Europe, thereby allowing Ronaldinho to drop the "Gaúcho" and go by the name Ronaldinho abroad.
Prior to his move to Atlético Mineiro, he played for Grêmio, Paris Saint-Germain, FC Barcelona, Milan and Flamengo. With Barcelona, he won the UEFA Champions League in 2006 and the Ballon d'Or in 2005. He became a Spanish citizen in January 2007.[6] He was named to the FIFA 100, a list of the greatest footballers compiled by fellow countryman Pelé, and to the FIFPro World XI consecutively from 2004–2007.