Neymar Brazilian Athlete From Mogi das Cruzes

Early life

Neymar da Silva Santos Júnior, known simply as Neymar, was born on 5 February 1992 in Mogi das Cruzes, in the state of São Paulo. He shares his name with his father, a former footballer who later became his adviser. As a child he played both futsal and street football, and he has said that futsal shaped his technique and his ability to act quickly in tight spaces. In 2003 his family moved to the coast, first to São Vicente, where he played for the youth side Portuguesa Santista, and later to Santos, where he joined the youth academy of Santos FC. At fourteen he travelled to Spain for a trial with the Real Madrid youth team, but his father preferred that he continue developing at Santos.

Career

Neymar made his professional debut for Santos on 7 March 2009, a month after turning seventeen. In 2010 he scored 42 goals in 60 matches and finished as top scorer of the Copa do Brasil, which Santos won for the first time. In 2011 he helped the club win the Copa Libertadores, its first since the 1960s, and was named the tournament's best player. A solo goal he scored that July received the FIFA Puskás Award. He ended his time at Santos with 43 goals in 47 matches in 2012 and left in 2013.

He joined FC Barcelona that year and, from 2014, formed an attacking trio with Lionel Messi and Luis Suárez. In 2014–15 the club won the league, the Copa del Rey and the UEFA Champions League; Neymar scored in the final against Juventus and finished as joint top scorer of the Champions League. Barcelona won a domestic double in 2015–16, and in the 2016–17 Champions League round of 16 he scored twice and provided an assist as the club overturned a 4–0 first-leg deficit against Paris Saint-Germain. He scored 105 goals in 186 appearances for the club.

In August 2017 he moved to Paris Saint-Germain for 222 million euros, the largest transfer fee on record. He won five Ligue 1 titles, including 2017–18, 2019–20, 2021–22 and 2022–23, along with domestic cups, and reached the 2020 Champions League final, which PSG lost to Bayern Munich. In 2020–21 he became the first player to score 20 Champions League goals with two different clubs, and he scored more than 100 goals for PSG, becoming the club's fourth-highest scorer. In August 2023 he signed with the Saudi club Al Hilal, and in January 2025 he returned to Santos, where he wears the number 10 shirt and has captained the team.

For Brazil, Neymar made his senior debut in August 2010 and scored in that match against the United States. He won the Golden Ball as best player at the 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup, which Brazil won on home soil, and took part in the 2012 Olympic tournament, where Brazil finished with silver, and in the 2016 Games, where the team won the country's first Olympic gold medal in men's football. He played at four consecutive World Cups from 2014 to 2026 and is Brazil's all-time leading scorer with 80 goals. He retired from international football in 2026 after 130 appearances. He also appeared in the 2017 film xXx: Return of Xander Cage.

Recognition

Neymar won the South American Footballer of the Year award in 2011 and 2012, and received the Samba Gold in 2014. He was nominated for the Laureus World Sports Award for Breakthrough of the Year in 2013. He finished third in the 2015 FIFA Ballon d'Or voting and was shortlisted for the award repeatedly in other years. In 2017 he appeared in the Time 100 list of influential people, and he has regularly been listed among the world's highest-paid athletes.

Personal life

Neymar has two children. He is close to his sister, Rafaella, and has said his father has handled his business affairs since he was young.