Real Madrid midfielder Toni Kroos will retire from football after playing for Germany at this summer's European Championship, the player announced on Tuesday.
Kroos, 34, has won 22 trophies with Madrid since arriving in 2014, including four Champions Leagues (plus another with Bayern Munich) and four LaLiga titles.
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The midfielder first raised the possibility of retiring in 2022, before deciding to continue playing for one more season, but has now opted to end his career this summer.
“After 10 years, at the end of the season this chapter comes to an end,” Kroos posted on Instagram.
“I especially want to thank everyone who welcomed me with an open heart and trusted me. But above all I want to thank you, dear Real Madrid fans, for your love and affection from the first day to the last.
“At the same time, this decision means that my career as an active footballer will end this summer after the Euro. As I have always said: Real Madrid is and will be my last club. I am happy and proud of that, in my opinion. I found the right time for my decision and I was able to choose it on my own. My ambition was always to finish my career at the top of my performance level.
Kroos announced his return to international football with Germany in February ahead of the Euros, having previously retired from international duty in 2021.
“We suspected that some people knew [his decision]”But he still took us by surprise,” a source close to the locker room told ESPN. “The truth is that he is irreplaceable.”
Real Madrid won LaLiga this season and will face Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League final at Wembley on June 1.
“We thought he would stay, but we will be eternally grateful,” a club source told ESPN. “It was a possibility.”
“I am convinced that it is the right decision,” Kroos said in a special episode of his podcast, “Einfach bad Luppen [Just Suck It Up]”, published on Tuesday.
“I've been thinking about it for months, and with its pros and cons, it's what I want… I want you to remember that I came out in my best moment. I promised that when I left Madrid, I would leave football.”
“Toni Kroos has decided to end his career as a professional footballer after Euro 2024,” Madrid said in a statement on Tuesday.
“Real Madrid wants to express its gratitude and affection to Toni Kroos, a player who is already part of the history of Real Madrid and who is one of the great legends of our club and world football.
“Toni Kroos arrived at our club in 2014, and has been a fundamental player in one of the most successful eras in the 122-year history of Real Madrid. During the ten seasons in which he has defended our shirt and our shield, he has won 22 titles in 463 games to date: four European Cups, five Club World Cups, four European Super Cups, four Leagues, one Copa del Rey and four Spanish Super Cups.
“Toni Kroos will forever remain in the hearts of all Real Madrid fans for his football excellence and for being a player who has given everything for this shirt.”
Kroos played for Bayern Munich at youth level and made his first-team debut in September 2007. He was part of the Bayern team that won the Champions League in 2013 before joining Madrid the following summer.
Since then, he has been a key figure in Madrid's midfield, forming an iconic trio alongside Luka Modric and Casemiro.
“I have always said that I will not go anywhere else,” he said in November 2022. “I will not change clubs. I will retire here. The only thing I don't know is when.”
