Prior to his move to Atlético Mineiro, he played for Grêmio, Paris Saint-Germain, FC Barcelona, Milan and Flamengo. With the Spanish club, he won his first Champions League in 2006 and the Ballon d'Or in 2005. He became a Spanish citizen in January 2007. He was named to the FIFA 100, a list of the greatest footballers compiled by fellow countryman Pelé, and to the FIFPro World XI consecutively from 2004–2007.
Ronaldinho's football skills began to blossom at the of age 8, and he was first given the nickname Ronaldinho because he was often the youngest and the smallest player in youth club matches. He developed an interest in futsal and beach football, which later expanded to organized football. His first brush with the media came at the age of thirteen, when he scored all 23 goals in a 23–0 victory against a local team. Ronaldinho was identified as a rising star at th 1997 U-17 World Championship in Egypt, in which he scored two goals on penalty kicks.
Ronaldinho has been described as being "skilful by nature, his tricks are unparalleled and he is wonderful with the ball at his feet. One of the coolest players in pressure situations" and a "fast, brash, skilful, tricky, an uninhibited playmaker" who provides "a mix of goals, assists, skills and a large repertoire of crafty moves." Former Portugal midfielder, Rui Costa, has said of him: "There are not many players who can offer goalscoring passes like he can. He is just marvellous. He is a rare case of an assist man who can provide the ball from anywhere." He is also the player who perfected "Elastico", that considered the most stunning football move. He is fairly believed to be the greatest dribbler of all time, with his stunning technique and dribbling style, that makes him unstopable with the ball at his feet.
