Luis Suarez could not hold back the tears as he announced to the world that his incident-packed international career was coming to an end after 17 years.
In front of an adoring crown at Estadio Centenario in Montevideo on Friday, Suarez will play for his beloved country for a 143rd and final time in a 2026 World Cup qualifier against Paraguay.
All going well, Uruguay's all-time leading scorer will also add to his 69 goals and bring a fitting end to a career that has seen him hit the highs of winning the Copa America but also the lows of being banned for biting an opponent at a World Cup.
Suarez – who now plies his club trade at Major League Soccer side Inter Miami alongside former Barcelona teammates Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets and Jordi Alba – played in four World Cups and five Copa Americas.
“It's hard for me to say it, but Friday will be my last match with my country’s national team,” said a tearful Suarez at a press conference on Monday.
“I am retiring because I want to step aside. I am 37 years old, there are a lot of talented players, and I know it would be difficult to get to the next World Cup.
“It is comforting to know I can retire on my terms and not have to retire due to injuries, or to not being called up. I want to say goodbye here, with my people. This is the ideal moment.”
Suarez's Uruguay debut would set the tone for future controversies while wearing his country's colours. During a 3-1 friendly win over Colombia in 2007, he was sent off late in the game for dissent after being handed his first cap by legendary Uruguay coach Oscar Tabarez.
But four years later came Suarez's crowning glory as he spearheaded Uruguay to Copa America glory, scoring both goals in the 2-0 semi-final victory against Peru. He also scored in the final, a 3-0 win over Paraguay.
His performances in Argentina saw him named player of the tournament after finishing as second-top scorer with four goals – behind only Peru's Paolo Guerrero and ahead of Argentina's Sergio Aguero (three), Neymar and Radamel Falcao (two for Brazil and Colombia, respectively).
“I wouldn't trade the Copa America title for anything,” he said. “It was the best moment of my career.”
At the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, Suarez – who scored three times at the tournament, including two in the last-16 win over South Korea – was sent-off in the quarter-final clash with Ghana.
Late in extra-time, he cynically blocked Dominic Adiyiah's goal-bound header with his hands which would have made the Black Stars the first African team to reach a World Cup semi-final. Asamoah Gyan then missed the subsequent spot-kick with Uruguay going on to win the shoot-out but lose in the next round to the Netherlands.
“I don't apologise for it,” he insisted before the two teams clashed again at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar – which Uruguay won 2-0. “I apologise if I injure a player but I took a red card for the handball. It wasn't my fault because I didn't miss the penalty.”
But it would be the 2014 World Cup in Brazil that would witness Suarez at his most infamous despite a qualification campaign that saw him finish as top scorer with 11 goals, one ahead of future Barca teammate Messi.
With nine minutes remaining in the group-stage clash with Italy, Suarez bit Italy's Giorgio Chiellini which was missed by referee Marco Rodriquez despite the defender's protests as he pointed out visible teeth marks on his shoulder. The incident would see Suarez handed a nine-game ban by Fifa – the longest suspension in World Cup history.
Remarkably, this was the third time Suarez had been banned for similar incidents after receiving heavy punishments during his club career for biting PSV Eindhoven's Otman Bakkal, while playing for Ajax in 2010, and Chelsea's Branislav Ivanovic's in 2013 while at Liverpool.
“My fear has always been that my lasting image for my children and all Uruguayan fans would be of 2014. I have got past that. And I hope the people have also forgotten and they are left with all the great moments I lived in our stadium, with all the things our team accomplished, in Copa Americas, in World Cups.”
Suarez featured in this summer's Copa America but was largely used as a substitute by coach Marcelo Bielsa, although it was his injury-time finish against Canada – and penalty in the resulting shoot-out – that would help secure Uruguay third place.
“My dream was for my children to see me win something important with the national team … that last goal … even though it wasn’t a trophy to take home, it was very nice for them,” he added.
“I wanted to show people again that I can continue to contribute to the national team and, well, I had the Copa America and yes, I could have done it [retired] perfectly after that, but having analysed the situation, I want to do it with my people, in my stadium.
“I want my children to live this experience. Saying goodbye with the people here is something that I don’t know if many have done.”
