Carlos el ‘Pibe’ Valderrama, world-class midfielder and perennial ’10’ of the Colombia national team, is included in the FIFA 100, a list of the best living football players selected by Pelé to mark the federation’s 100th anniversary. The ex-selection player played three World Cups and was the first Colombian to take part Football Hall of Fame in 2014. Relive his best moments in this note and discover what he is currently doing.
Carlos Valderrama grew up in a family full of professional soccer players. Photo: Gol Caracol
Football is a family tradition
Carlos el ‘Pibe’ Valderrama, nickname of an Argentine friend of his father, was born on September 2, 1961 in Santa Marta, Magdalena and grew up in a family full of professional soccer players on both father’s and mother’s side.
The midfielder is the son of Carlos ‘Jaricho’ Valderrama, who won the championship with Unión Magdalena and played with the Colombian side in World Cup qualifiers. His maternal uncles are Aurelio ‘Yeyo’ Palacio, a Unión Magdalena capper (338), and Justo Palacio, who was a champion and played for Unión Magdalena for several seasons.
“El Pibe” wears the Valladolid club shirt. Photo: brand
Which teams have you played for professionally?
debuted in the Celedon High Schoolhis school team, and from there he went to Magdalena Union then be transferred Millionaires FC. In 1985 he started in the Deportivo CaliTeam with which he reached the Colombian sub-championship in 1985 and 1986, behind America, which attracted the attention of some European teams.
The ‘Pibe’ played for teams like Montpellier (in France), the Valladolid (in Spain) and the Tampa Bay community (in United States of America). Due to the recognition he gained both inside and outside of Colombia, he took on a very important role in the golden age of Colombian football in the 1990s.
With the Colombian national team
The midfielder represented the Colombian national team from 1985 to 1998, was captain for 11 years and won a total of 111 caps.
In international tournaments, Valderrama featured in five editions of the Copa America and was instrumental in qualifying for the 1990, 94 and 98 World Cups.
What is Carlos el ‘Pibe’ Valderrama doing today?
Twice voted “America’s Best Footballer”, recognition by El País newspaper, he played on several teams United States of America to finally complete his time on the courts with the team Colorado Rapidswhere he played from 2001 to 2002. On April 12, 2003, at the age of 42, he announced his retirement from football.
He currently has his YouTube channel on “A While with the ‘Pibe'”which has more than 200,000 subscribers, and is also invited to various sports programs.
