Roberto Carlos was hospitalized in Brazil after a heart attack

Former Brazil and Real Madrid defender Roberto Carlos has undergone surgery for a heart problem, the Spanish sports daily reports AS diary reported on Wednesday.

The 52-year-old former full-back, who is now Madrid’s ambassador, was reportedly on holiday in his home country when tests revealed he had a heart condition.

According to IFCarlos initially sought tests for a small blood clot in his leg. However, a full-body MRI revealed that his heart was not functioning properly. He was admitted to hospital for surgery to insert a catheter.

The procedure, which was expected to take 40 minutes, was extended to almost three hours due to a complication. Fortunately, however, the procedure was successful.

Carlos is said to be out of danger but remains closely monitored and will remain in hospital for another 48 hours to ensure his recovery continues.

The newspaper said it had contacted the former Brazilian star and his entourage and quoted him as saying: «I’m doing well now.»

One of the most attacking left-backs of all time, Carlos won 125 caps for Brazil and played for eleven years in Madrid.

He was part of the World Cup squad that reached the final in 1998 and won in 2002. He also helped Brazil win the Copa America in 1997 and 1999 and won the Champions League three times with Madrid.

Carlos once produced a stunning ‘banana’ free kick that seemed to defy the law of physics and was analyzed by scientists.

In what many people consider to be the greatest free kick in the history of football, he struck the ball from 35 yards with the outside of his left foot and bent it around France’s three-man wall during an exhibition tournament in Lyon in 1997.

The shot looked way off target; a ball boy standing ten yards from the goal even bowed his head, but at the last moment it swerved dramatically into the net. France’s stunned goalkeeper Fabien Barthez had not even moved.

Carlos claimed at the time that he had done it all before, against Roma while playing for Inter Milan, although he never quite managed to repeat his 1997 trick.

Published on December 31, 2025