Luis Suárez, the all-time top scorer for the Uruguay national team, announced his retirement from international football early Tuesday morning, Mecca time.
The veteran star revealed that Uruguay's upcoming match against Paraguay in the CONMEBOL qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, scheduled for this Friday, will be his last game for his country.
Speaking at a press conference in the Uruguayan capital, Montevideo, an emotional Suárez said, "I’ve given everything to the Uruguay national team, but I’m 37 years old and the next World Cup is still far away."
Suárez is Uruguay's all-time top scorer with 69 goals in 142 appearances and is considered one of the greatest strikers in football history.
He has played for several top European clubs, including Ajax Amsterdam, Liverpool, and Barcelona, and is currently under contract with Inter Miami in the United States, where he plays alongside his friend, Argentine star Lionel Messi.
On Monday, Suárez, who represented his country in nine major tournaments, stated that winning the 2011 Copa América was the pinnacle of his career, adding, "I wouldn’t trade the Copa América title for anything. It was the best moment of my career. I wouldn’t exchange it for anything else."
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A "Hat-trick" of Bites
However, the "Pistolero" has drawn attention multiple times for his unsportsmanlike behavior throughout his career, including biting Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini during the 2014 World Cup, which led to a nine-match international ban and a four-month suspension from all football-related activities.
It wasn’t the first time he had bitten an opponent, as he committed a "hat-trick" of bites during his career. The first instance was while playing for Ajax, where the victim was PSV Eindhoven’s Moroccan-Dutch player Otman Bakkal, leading to a seven-match suspension by the Dutch FA in 2010.
The second incident occurred while he was at Liverpool when he bit Chelsea defender Branislav Ivanović, resulting in a 10-match ban by the English FA.
The Evra Incident and Ghana Controversy
Suárez's troubles weren’t limited to his biting incidents. He was also involved in a major controversy after being accused of racially abusing Manchester United’s French defender Patrice Evra during a Premier League match on October 15, 2011, for which he was banned for eight matches and fined 70,000 euros.
The outcry against Suárez grew even louder after he refused to shake Evra’s hand in their next encounter in February 2012.
Suárez also made headlines during the 2010 World Cup in South Africa when he denied Ghana a goal that would have sent them to the semi-finals by blocking the ball with his hand on the goal line in the final minute of extra time. He was sent off, and Ghana’s captain, Asamoah Gyan, missed the resulting penalty. Uruguay went on to win in the penalty shootout, preventing Ghana from becoming the first African nation to reach a World Cup semi-final.
Achievements with Uruguay
Apart from the controversies, Suárez played a crucial role in leading Uruguay to the 2018 and 2022 World Cups and also participated in this summer's Copa América, where he came on as a substitute in several matches.
He scored his 69th international goal in the third-place playoff match, which Uruguay won against Canada.
By deciding to retire from international football, Suárez joins his former strike partner Edinson Cavani, who took the same step this past May.
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