Ai Kesen announces retirement from football

Veteran striker Ai Kesen, also known Elkeson, announced on Wednesday on social media that he would retire from football. 

Born in Brazil, he became the first-ever foreign-born footballer to qualify for the PRC national team without having any Chinese ancestry or lineage back in 2019. The 36-year-old played for China in the 2022 FIFA World Cup Asian qualifiers, as the first player of non-Chinese heritage to be called up for the national squad. He contributed four goals and three assists in China's World Cup qualifying campaign. 

He joined Chinese Super League (CSL) side Guangzhou Evergrande in 2012, and helped the club win both CSL and AFC Champions League titles in his first season with them.

He joined Shanghai Port in 2016, before he rejoined Guangzhou in 2019. The last CSL side he joined was Chengdu Rongcheng in 2023, after he played in Brazilian club Gremio for a year. He left Chengdu in October last year, and has not played since. 

In all his years in China, the striker won a total of five CSL titles, two AFC Champions League titles, and one Chinese Football Association Super Cup.