Raúl (footballer) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Raúl

Raúl in 2024
Personal information
Full name	Raúl González Blanco
Date of birth	(1977-06-27) 27 June 1977 (age 47)
Place of birth	Madrid, Spain
Height	1.80 m
Playing position	Forward
Club information
Current club	Real Madrid B (manager)
Youth career
1987–1990	San Cristóbal
1990–1992	Atlético Madrid
1992–1994	Real Madrid
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps†	(Gls)†
1994	Real Madrid C	9	(16)
1994	Real Madrid B	1	(0)
1994–2010	Real Madrid	550	(228)
2010–2012	Schalke 04	66	(28)
2012–2014	Al Sadd	39	(11)
2014–2015	New York Cosmos	28	(8)
Total		693	(291)
National team
1994	Spain U18	2	(4)
1995	Spain U20	5	(3)
1995–1996	Spain U21	9	(8)
1996	Spain U23	4	(2)
1996–2006	Spain	102	(44)
Teams managed
2018–2019	Real Madrid (youth)
2019–	Real Madrid B
Honours Men's football Representing  Spain UEFA European Under-21 Championship Runner-up 1996 Spain
Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only. † Appearances (Goals).

Raúl González Blanco (born 27 June 1977), known simply as Raúl, is a Spanish football manager and former player. He played as a forward. Many people think he is one of the greatest forwards of all time. He currently manages Real Madrid Castilla, which is the reserve team for Real Madrid.

During his amazing career, Raúl scored more goals than anyone else for Real Madrid. He also held the record for most goals for the Spain national team and in the UEFA Champions League at one point. Raúl played in over 1,000 matches in his career, showing incredible dedication.

He spent 16 years playing for Real Madrid, becoming the player with the most appearances for the club (741 games). With Real Madrid, he won many important trophies. These include six La Liga titles (Spain's top league) and three Champions League titles. He also won four Supercopa de España titles, one UEFA Super Cup, and two Intercontinental Cups. In 2001, he was the runner-up for the Ballon d'Or award, which goes to the best player in Europe. Two years later, he became the captain of Real Madrid.

Raúl left Real Madrid in 2010, having scored 323 goals for them. He then joined Schalke 04 in Germany. There, he won a DFB-Pokal (German Cup) and a DFL-Supercup. After Germany, he played for Al Sadd in Qatar and then for the New York Cosmos in the United States. For Spain, Raúl scored 44 goals in 102 games. He played for his country in three FIFA World Cups and two UEFA European Championships. He was even named in the Euro Team of the Tournament in 2000. He became the captain of the national team in 2002.

Raúl is one of the most successful players in Champions League history. He was named the UEFA Club Forward of the Year three times in a row (2000, 2001, and 2002). He was also the top goalscorer in the Champions League in 2000 and 2001. In 1999, he was named the top international goalscorer in the world. He also won two Pichichi trophies (for being top scorer in La Liga). In 2004, he was included in the FIFA 100 list of the world's greatest living players.

Raúl's Amazing Club Career

Starting in Youth Teams

Raúl began his football journey at his local team, CD San Cristóbal de los Ángeles. He then joined Atlético Madrid's youth team. He even won a national title with their "Cadete" team.

However, Atlético's president decided to close their youth academy. So, Raúl moved to Real Madrid's youth academy, known as La Fábrica. He quickly moved up through their different youth teams. While at Real Madrid's youth setup, Raúl won the Dallas Cup twice, in 1993 and 1994.

Playing for Real Madrid's Senior Team

Raúl in 1995

Raúl started his professional career in the 1994–95 season with Real Madrid C. He scored an incredible 16 goals in just nine games. Because of this, he was quickly moved up to the first team by coach Jorge Valdano. He became the youngest player ever to play for Real Madrid's senior team at 17 years and 124 days old.

On 29 October 1994, he played his first senior game against Real Zaragoza. The next week, Raúl scored his first goal in his second senior game. This was a home game against Real Madrid's rivals, Atlético Madrid, his former youth club. He quickly became a regular player in the first team. Raúl scored nine goals in 28 games, helping Real Madrid win the league championship in his very first season.

Raúl wore the number 7 shirt for Real Madrid between 1996 and 2010.

With Real Madrid, he won many more titles. These included La Liga titles in 1997, 2001, and 2003. Between 1998 and 2002, Raúl and Real Madrid also won three UEFA Champions League trophies. He often played alongside other great strikers like Fernando Morientes and later Ronaldo.

In October 1999, during a game against rivals Barcelona, Raúl scored a goal. He famously celebrated by putting a finger to his lips, telling the loud home crowd to be quiet. Raúl became the captain of Real Madrid in 2003. He remained captain until he left the club in 2010.

Raúl was the first player to score 50 Champions League goals. He also was the first to play 100 games in the competition. He was also the first player to score in two Champions League finals. He scored in the 2000 final against Valencia CF and the 2002 final against Bayer 04 Leverkusen.

Raúl has a special record: he was never sent off (given a red card) in his 17 years as a professional player. On 15 February 2009, Raúl scored his 323rd goal for Real Madrid. This broke the club record held by the legendary Alfredo Di Stéfano. He is currently fifth on the all-time list of La Liga goalscorers.

Raúl gets substituted for Cristiano Ronaldo, who would inherit the number 7 in the following season.

Raúl and his teammate Iker Casillas were given "contracts for life" in 2008. This meant their contracts would be renewed each year as long as they played 30 matches. Raúl was known as "El Capitan" ("The Captain") because he was captain for both Real Madrid and Spain for many years.

Raúl in his last match with Real Madrid in a La Liga match against Real Zaragoza

Raúl's last goal for Real Madrid was on 24 April 2010. It was the opening goal in a 2–1 win against Real Zaragoza. He was injured during this game and could not play for the rest of the season. On 25 July 2010, Real Madrid confirmed that Raúl would be leaving the club.

Moving to Schalke 04

Raúl in a training session with Schalke 04 in August 2011

Raúl signed a two-year contract with Schalke 04 in Germany on 28 July 2010. He chose Schalke because they had qualified for the 2010–11 UEFA Champions League. He scored his first goals for the club in a pre-season match against Bayern Munich.

He made his Bundesliga debut on 21 August 2010. He scored his first Bundesliga goal on 25 September 2010. After a slow start, he scored his first hat-trick for Schalke on 20 November. He scored another hat-trick on 18 December.

Raúl with Schalke in 2011

On 2 March 2011, Raúl scored a key goal against Bayern Munich in the German Cup semi-final. Schalke reached the final, and on 21 May 2011, Raúl finally won a domestic cup. Schalke won the final match 5–0. This was followed by another win two months later in the 2011 DFL-Supercup against rivals Borussia Dortmund.

Raúl became the highest goal scorer in all UEFA club competitions with 73 goals. This record was later broken. He scored 71 goals in the Champions League (66 with Real Madrid and five with Schalke 04). On 15 February 2011, he broke the record for most European goals.

In the Champions League quarter-finals, Raúl scored two goals against Inter Milan. Schalke reached the semi-finals for the first time in their history. On 19 November 2011, he captained Schalke for the first time. He scored another hat-trick against Werder Bremen on 17 December 2011. On 19 February 2012, he scored the 400th goal of his career.

On 19 April 2012, Raúl announced he would leave Schalke. He said his future was not in Europe. Schalke even decided to retire his number 7 shirt for a while because of his impact.

Adventures in Qatar and the USA

Raúl playing for Al Sadd in 2012

On 12 May 2012, Raúl signed with Qatari club Al Sadd. He played his first game on 5 August and scored a penalty. He also became the team's captain. On 13 April 2013, Raúl captained Al Sadd to win the 2012–13 Qatar Stars League title. He scored 9 goals in 22 games, helping Al Sadd win their first title in five years.

On 22 August 2013, Raúl played for Real Madrid in the first half of a friendly match. He scored the first goal. Then he played the second half for Al Sadd. On 5 March 2014, Raúl announced he would retire from professional football.

However, on 30 October 2014, Raúl returned to play for the New York Cosmos in the United States. He made his debut on 4 April 2015. The following week, he scored his first goal for the team. Raúl scored four goals as the Cosmos won the spring season without losing a game.

On 16 October 2015, it was announced again that Raúl would retire at the end of the season. The Cosmos finished with the best record. On 7 November, he scored the winning goal in the semi-finals. Eight days later, they won the Soccer Bowl 2015, and Raúl confirmed his retirement.

Raúl's International Career for Spain

Raúl started playing for Spain's youth teams. He played in the 1995 FIFA U-20 World Cup, scoring three goals. He also played for the under-21 team. They reached the final of the 1996 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. He scored in the final but missed a penalty in the shootout. In total, he scored 17 goals for Spain's youth teams.

For the senior team, Raúl scored a national record of 44 goals in 102 games for Spain. This record was later broken by David Villa. Raúl is seen as one of Spain's greatest ever players.

World Cups and European Championships

On 9 October 1996, Raúl played his first game for the Spanish senior squad. In his third match, he scored his first international goal. At the 1998 World Cup in France, Raúl played in every match. He scored in their opening game against Nigeria.

In a Euro 2000 qualifier on 27 March 1999, Raúl scored four goals against Austria. Four days later, he scored three goals against San Marino. Raúl played every minute of Spain's Euro 2000 tournament. He scored against Slovenia. Spain was knocked out by France in the quarter-finals. Raúl missed a penalty in the last minute that could have sent the game to extra time.

At the 2002 FIFA World Cup in South Korea and Japan, Raúl scored in Spain's first group match. He added two more goals in a win against South Africa. He got injured in the next round and missed the rest of the tournament. Spain was knocked out in the quarter-finals.

On 12 February 2003, Raúl broke the national goalscoring record. He scored twice in a friendly win against Germany. He played every match at the Euro 2004 tournament in Portugal. Spain was eliminated in the group stage.

Raúl played his 89th game for Spain on 8 October 2005. This tied him with Fernando Hierro for most games played by an outfield player. He played less often under the new manager, Luis Aragonés. At the 2006 World Cup in Germany, he came on as a substitute against Tunisia and scored the equalizing goal.

On 15 August 2006, Raúl played his 100th game for Spain. He was last chosen for the national team on 6 September 2006.

Raúl's Managerial Career

Coaching Real Madrid's Youth Teams

On 17 August 2018, Raúl became a youth coach at Real Madrid. He took charge of the "Cadete B" (under-15) team.

Managing Real Madrid Castilla

On 20 June 2019, he was appointed manager of Real Madrid Castilla. This is Real Madrid's reserve team. His first game on 25 August was a 1–1 draw.

Raúl's team reached the promotion playoffs in 2021. They lost in the semi-finals. He later said he would not replace Zinedine Zidane as the first-team manager. Two years later, Castilla made the playoffs again. They lost in the final after a 3–3 draw, missing out on promotion.

Raúl's Playing Style

Raúl executing a bicycle kick for Real Madrid in 2009

Raúl is known as one of the greatest forwards ever. He usually wore the number 7 jersey. He mainly played as a centre-forward. He could also play as a "number 10" behind the main strikers. Raúl was left-footed and could score goals from anywhere. He often scored goals by "chipping" the ball over the goalkeeper. He was excellent at controlling the ball and had great vision.

Even though he scored many goals, Raúl was also a very creative and hardworking player. He was good at helping his teammates score. Sometimes, later in his career, he even played as an attacking midfielder.

Raúl in the Media

Raúl was sponsored by the German sports company Adidas. He appeared in commercials for their football boots. In 2004, he was in an Adidas commercial with other famous players like Zinedine Zidane.

He also appeared in Pepsi commercials. One famous ad for the 2002 World Cup showed him and other players playing against Sumo wrestlers.

Raúl is featured in the EA Sports' FIFA video game series. His famous goal celebration of kissing his ring finger appears in FIFA 18. This celebration was a sign of love for his wife. Because of this, he was sometimes called "Lord of the Rings".

Raúl's Personal Life

Raúl married Mamen Sanz in 1999. They have four sons and one daughter: Jorge, Hugo, twins Héctor and Mateo, and María. His sons Jorge and Hugo both played football in New York in 2016. In 2022, his daughter Maria was signed by Real Madrid's U15 football team.

Career statistics

Club

International

Managerial statistics

Raúl's Achievements and Awards

Player Honours

Real Madrid Youth

• Dallas Cup: 1993, 1994

Real Madrid

• La Liga: 1994–95, 1996–97, 2000–01, 2002–03, 2006–07, 2007–08
• Supercopa de España: 1997, 2001, 2003, 2008
• UEFA Champions League: 1997–98, 1999–2000, 2001–02
• UEFA Super Cup: 2002
• Intercontinental Cup: 1998, 2002

Schalke 04

• DFB-Pokal: 2010–11
• DFL-Supercup: 2011

Al Sadd

• Qatar Stars League: 2012–13
• Emir of Qatar Cup: 2014

New York Cosmos

• North American Soccer League: Spring Season 2015
• North American Supporters' Trophy: 2015
• Soccer Bowl: 2015

Spain U21

• UEFA European Under-21 Championship runner-up: 1996

Individual Awards

• UEFA European Under-21 Football Championship top goalscorer: 1996
• La Liga's Breakthrough Player: 1994–95
• Zarra Trophy: 1995–96, 1998–99, 2000–01, 2002–03
• La Liga's Best Spanish Player: 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2001–02 (record)
• ESM Team of the Year: 1996–97, 1998–99, 1999–2000
• Pichichi Trophy: 1998–99, 2000–01
• IFFHS World's Top Goal Scorer: 1999
• UEFA Champions League top goalscorer: 1999–2000, 2000–01
• UEFA Club Forward of the Year: 1999–2000, 2000–01, 2001–02
• UEFA European Football Championship Teams of the Tournament: 2000
• Ballon d'Or runner-up: 2001
• FIFA World Player of the Year bronze award: 2001
• UEFA Champions League top assist provider: 2002–03
• FIFA 100
• Trofeo Alfredo Di Stéfano: 2007–08
• Marca Leyenda: 2009
• Golden Foot Award runner-up: 2009, 2010, 2011
• Goal of the Month in Germany: August 2011, March 2012, April 2012, July 2013
• Goal of the Year in Germany: 2011, 2013 (shared with Julian Draxler)
• Qatar Stars League Fair Play Award: 2013
• NASL Player of the Month: May 2015

Records

• Real Madrid Record Appearance Maker: 741 games
• Real Madrid Record Appearance Maker in La Liga: 550 games
• European Competitions Record Appearance Maker: 150^*
• Third leading scorer in the world (throughout history), according to IFFHS Statistics: 125 goals^{^^}

^*Includes other European competitive competitions, including the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, UEFA Intertoto Cup, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Super Cup.

^{^^}Includes other European competitive competitions and Intercontinental Cup.

• Has not received a red card in entire career.

Manager Honours

Real Madrid U19

• UEFA Youth League: 2019–20

Decorations

• Government of Spain: Gold Medal of the Royal Order of Sporting Merit 2006
• City of Madrid: Gold Medal 2009

Images for kids

• 

  Raúl with Schalke in 2011

See also

In Spanish: Raúl González Blanco para niños

• List of footballers with 100 or more UEFA Champions League appearances
• List of men's footballers with 100 or more international caps
• List of men's footballers with the most official appearances
• List of Real Madrid CF records and statistics
• List of La Liga players (400+ appearances)