Filipe Luis bids farewell to the pitch at 38 years old

Filipe Luis, who had a career filled with triumphs and accomplishments, bids adieu to the football pitch at the age of 38, playing for Flamengo.

Join us as we track the journey of this player known for his tactical awareness, dedication, and physical prowess.

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How it all began

Filipe Luís Kasmirski, or simply Filipe Luis, was born on August 9, 1985, in the city of Jaraguá do Sul, Santa Catarina, Brazil.

It’s no surprise that young Brazilian talents often start their careers in futsal, as previously highlighted here in the “They will be famous” segment.

With Filipe Luís, it wasn’t any different, especially considering his place of birth. The Southern Region of Brazil usually has a strong tradition in futsal, especially the city of Jaraguá do Sul.

Situated between Joinville and Blumenau, it’s the home of Jaraguá, one of the most traditional teams in the sport.

Consequently, the city breathes futsal, and this context shaped his beginnings as a football player.

The athlete emphasizes the importance of futsal in learning the basic fundamentals of the ball, such as passing, control, spatial awareness, and movement.

His skills in the indoor game caught the attention of one of the region’s prominent clubs, Figueirense. Currently, the entity is in decline, but the team from Florianópolis, the capital of Santa Catarina, was a regular in Serie A.

For Figueirense, he played 39 games between 2003 and 2004, winning two state championships at just 19 years old.

Soon, he attracted the interest of one of the world’s biggest clubs, Ajax.

However, he didn’t find space and didn’t even get opportunities with the Dutch club.

Therefore, he was loaned to Rentistas, a Uruguayan club, and later transferred to Real Madrid Castilla (B).

Truly, there’s no logic in these transfers, seemingly mechanisms used to move him away from Ajax.

He stayed at Real Madrid Castilla from 2005 to 2006, playing 37 matches, before moving to Deportivo La Coruña.

It’s fascinating to note that even in the most successful careers, a player’s journey isn’t necessarily linear; it’s essential to overcome obstacles and stay focused.

Finally, the career of this historic left-back started to take off.

Image: Cristiano Andujar/Arquivo Figueirense

Deportivo La Coruña

Playing for a team that had notable Brazilians in its history such as Djalminha, Rivaldo, Bebeto, and Márcio Santos, Filipe Luis began showcasing his best qualities to the international football community.

Being a highly dedicated player on and off the field, the left-back played 66 consecutive matches wearing the La Coruña shirt.

Believe it or not, he was purchased by La Coruña only in the 2008/09 season for €2.2 million. Until that moment, he was still a Rentistas player, loaned to the Spanish club. Meaning, Rentistas held Filipe Luis’s rights from 2005 to mid-2008, but he didn’t feature in a single match for the Uruguayan club. Quite curious.

Nevertheless, his new bond as a player for the traditional Galician team seemed to have a genuinely positive effect.

In that mentioned season, he was voted the best left-back in La Liga, contributing to La Coruña’s good campaign, finishing the competition in 7th place.

He made 136 appearances and scored 8 goals.

With significant success in La Liga, Atletico Madrid sought after his talent. The capital club paid €12 million to secure Filipe’s services. The investment paid off.

Image: Reprodução GE

Atletico Madrid

In July 2010, the left-back arrived at the capital club.

Since Diego Simeone’s arrival at the club in 2011, Filipe Luis fulfilled his role with mastery.

A coach who highly values tactical organization, especially defensively, knew he had a powerful weapon in his squad.

The Brazilian full-back was fundamental throughout his time at the club during both stints.

Notably, he was part of the most victorious period in the club’s modern history, winning the UEFA Europa League 2011–12, UEFA Super Cup in 2012, La Liga 2012-13, and the Copa del Rey 2012-13 in his first spell.

His crucial role led the most powerful markets in Europe to seek his signing. The chosen club was Chelsea.

The Blues paid €20 million for his acquisition.

He had a decent performance and contributed to winning the Premier League and the English League Cup in the 2014-15 season.

Despite this, both Filipe and Simeone, as well as Atletico Madrid, knew they needed the player. Chelsea, however, with a well-stocked squad and coming off a great run of victories, accepted the €16 million offer for him to return to Spain.

Upon his return, he secured another UEFA Europa League and UEFA Super Cup in 2017-18 and bid farewell to the club at the end of his contract in mid-2019, having made 333 appearances and scored 12 goals.

As a free agent, he signed with Flamengo at 34 years old and showed that he still had a lot to offer.

Image: Getty Images

Flamengo

Filipe Luis returned to Brazilian football in 2019 after 15 years abroad.

Despite his relatively advanced age as an athlete, his signing was viewed favorably by the media and fans, which turned out to be an extremely accurate prediction.

Playing at left-back, he was part of Flamengo’s most successful generation in history, achieving incredible feats. Among them, winning the Brazilian Championship with the highest points tally in the history of the league (contested since 2003). An astounding 90 points. Santos and Palmeiras, second and third place, respectively, finished the competition with 74 points. They would have been champions in this year’s edition (2023). Just to measure the performance of the Rubro Negro.

Titles won by Flamengo:

• Copa Libertadores: 2019 and 2022
• Recopa Sudamericana: 2020
• Brazilian Championship: 2019 and 2020
• Copa do Brasil: 2022
• Brazilian Super Cup: 2020 and 2021
• Campeonato Carioca: 2020 and 2021

In 2023, aiming for squad restructuring, Flamengo signed Ayrton Lucas as a left-back. The newcomer’s start to the year was spectacular, which led Filipe Luis to take a backseat, natural given his advanced age.

Nevertheless, he remained important at specific moments in this season, even though it was a failure for Flamengo.

Thus, at 38 years old, he bids farewell with his head held high for the remarkable career he carved out.

Image: Buda Mendes/Getty Images

Brazilian National Team

Such a consistent career naturally led to representing his country.

Filipe Luis made his debut for the Brazilian National Team in 2009, but his main stint was during Tite’s era, precisely while he was experiencing another great phase as an Atletico Madrid player.

He played 44 matches and scored 2 goals, even getting the opportunity to compete in the 2018 World Cup.

Many attribute his absence in the match against Belgium in the quarter-finals as one of the reasons for Brazil’s elimination since he could have provided the defensive solidity that Marcelo lacks as a characteristic.

He was part of the squad that won the Confederations Cup in 2013 and the Copa America in 2019.

Image: Kirill Kudryavstev/AFP

Filipe Luis’s Virtues

To describe Filipe Luis’s virtues, we cite an interview given by him. On this occasion, he mentions that one of his great qualities as a football player was to enhance the ability and emphasize the qualities of his teammates.

For this reason, when Turkish player Arda Turan arrived at Atletico Madrid to play on the left, he knew that somehow he needed to connect with the player.

Hence, he decided to discover what Arda liked most as a person. The response was religion. Turan is a devout Muslim.

Recognizing the role and weight that religion had on his teammate, Filipe asked if he could accompany him to the Mosque, read parts of the Quran, and inquire about his lifestyle.

The desired connection was established, and their synergy on the left side of Atletico Madrid’s team led to goals, titles, and stellar performances.

More of his personality and dedication were highlighted in his farewell as a professional.

Expressing all his gratitude, Flamengo’s fans, in his last match at Maracanã for the season, created mosaics and numerous tributes.

Furthermore, the emotion of fans, players, and Filipe Luis himself could be felt throughout the stadium. For instance, Gabigol cried profusely during the tributes to the full-back, and Rodrigo Caio, who was also bidding farewell to Flamengo.

Therefore, this is Filipe Luis’s legacy. A loyal, highly intelligent, committed, and gritty athlete. He was always aware of his role as a player and how it reflected on the lives of his teammates and fans.

A sort of rarity in the world of football.

Written by Vitor F L Miller.