Left-back spent 11 years at Barcelona and made more than 450 appearances
Barcelona legend Jordi Alba has announced he will retire from professional football at the end of the MLS season.
The 36-year-old made the announcement on Tuesday through a video shared on social media, just over a week after his Inter Miami teammate and long-time friend Sergio Busquets also revealed plans to hang up his boots.
The retirement brings to a close a career that saw him become one of the best full-backs of his generation.
Alba was a product of Barcelona’s famed La Masia academy but was released in 2005 at the age of 16. He eventually returned to the club in 2012 after a successful spell at Valencia.
Over the next 11 years, he became a mainstay at left-back, forming a devastating on-field partnership with Lionel Messi. His overlapping runs and quick combinations with the Argentine were a hallmark of Barcelona’s attacking play during the club’s highly successful period under Luis Enrique.
Alba made more than 450 appearances for Barcelona, winning six La Liga titles, five Copa del Rey trophies, one Champions League, four Spanish Super Cups, a Uefa Super Cup and a Club World Cup.
With Spain, he lifted the European Championship in 2012 and the Uefa Nations League in 2023.
In 2023, Alba joined Inter Miami to reunite with Messi and Busquets in MLS, helping the club win the Leagues Cup in his debut season.
“Thank you, football, thank you for everything,” he said in his announcement.
