Brazilian Footballer
- Sporting debut: March 7, 2009 (Santos FC)
- Position: Forward
- Numbers: 7, 10,11, 17...
- Parents: Neymar Santos and Nadine da Silva
- Children: Davi Lucca da Silva Santos, Mavie
- Name: Neymar da Silva Santos Junior
- Height: 1.75
Neymar was born on February 5, 1992, in Mogi das Cruzes, São Paulo state, Brazil.
Parents
Son of Neymar Santos and Nadine da Silva, he inherited the name of his father, a former footballer who became his advisor from the beginning.
With the success of his career, the family bought their first property, a house next to Vila Belmiro.
Footballer
Neymar combined his love for futsal with street football, and from a very young age, he caught the attention of big football teams. His idol is fellow footballer Robinho.
In 2003, he moved with his family to São Vicente, where he began playing for the Portuguesa Santista youth team.
Saints
At just eleven years old, Neymar was signed by Santos, one of the most important Brazilian teams.
Renowned for his speed and dribbling skills, he quickly began to stand out in the lower categories, so much so that Real Madrid became interested in him in 2005, although in the end they did not reach an agreement.
At just seventeen years old, he made his professional debut on 7 March 2009, a week later scoring his first goal for Santos against Mogi Mirim. A month later, on 11 April, Neymar scored the decisive goal in a 2–1 win over Palmeiras in the 2009 Campeonato Paulista semi-final first leg. In his first season, Neymar racked up 14 goals in 48 matches.
Brazilian National Team
He was with the Brazilian national team in 2009 at the Under-17 World Cup . After the World Cup in South Africa in 2010 , he was called up to play for the senior team for the first time. He made his debut against the United States and scored a goal.
He had a great performance in the South American Under-20 Championship in Peru, held at the beginning of 2011, being top scorer after scoring nine goals. Brazil won the championship and qualified to participate in the 2012 London Olympics.
In Brazil's first friendly match on 20 July 2012, against host nation Great Britain at the Riverside Stadium, Neymar participated in both goals in a 2–0 victory. On 26 July 2012, he scored his first goal of the 2012 Olympics in Brazil's first match against Egypt, which gave Brazil a 3–2 victory. In the following match against Belarus, he scored a free kick to secure their place in the quarter-finals with a 3–1 victory.
On 5 August 2012, against Honduras, he scored a penalty, his third goal of the tournament and assisted Leandro Damião's second goal, as they won 3–2 reaching the semi-finals at the end of the tournament.
Neymar scored his first full international hat-trick on 10 September 2012, in an 8–0 win over China at the José do Rego Maciel Stadium in Recife. On 19 September, he scored a goal against Argentina in a 2–1 win in the first leg of the 2012 Superclásico de las Américas at the Estadio Serra Dourada in Goiânia, Brazil.
Real Madrid expressed interest in signing Neymar, and it seemed that an agreement had been reached when the club announced that the player would arrive in Madrid in December 2011. Real Madrid would pay up to €56 million for his transfer. But Neymar signed for Santos until 2014 according to the contract he signed on 9 November 2011 with the São Paulo club, according to which he will remain at the club at least until the next World Cup in exchange for seeing his income increased to a level equivalent to what he would receive at Real Madrid, Barcelona or another big club.
Nominated for the FIFA Ballon d'Or in 2011 and 2012.
FC Barcelona
" FC Barcelona has reached an agreement in principle with Santos and Neymar for the signing of the player for the next five seasons." With this message via Twitter, at 3.15am Spanish time on 26 May 2013, Barcelona announced the signing of the Brazilian striker until 2018.
In the first match of the 2013/14 La Liga season, he made his debut in an official match against Levante UD. On 21 August, he scored his first official goal for Barcelona in the first match of the 2013 Spanish Football Super Cup against Atlético Madrid.
His league debut was on 24 March 2013 against Real Sociedad.
On 18 September, he made his debut in the UEFA Champions League, in which Barça defeated AFC Ajax 4-0. On 24 September, Neymar scored his first goal in La Liga against Real Sociedad at the Camp Nou. On 26 October, he made his first appearance in El Clásico, scoring the opening goal and assisting the winner for Barcelona, scored by Alexis Sánchez, as they defeated Real Madrid 2–1 at the Camp Nou
On 11 December, he scored his first three Champions League goals, scoring a hat-trick in a 6–1 win over Celtic in Barcelona.
On 4 July, during the 2014 FIFA World Cup , in the quarter-final match with the Brazilian national team against Colombia, he suffered a fractured third lumbar vertebra after being kneed by Camilo Zuñiga, which forced him to retire from the tournament.
On 13 September 2014, he scored two goals in a 2–0 win over Athletic Bilbao. On 27 September, he scored a hat-trick against Granada in a 6–0 win.
On 11 January 2015, as part of the so-called "holy trinity" of Barcelona formed by Neymar , Luis Suárez and Lionel Messi, he scored at home 3-1 beating the defending champions of La Liga, Atlético de Madrid.
On 6 June 2015, he won the European Cup after beating Juventus in Berlin. Barcelona won three trophies this season. The Liga BBVA, the Copa del Rey, and the Champions League , in that order.
He tattooed the Olympic rings on his arm after winning the gold medal at the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Paris Saint-Germain FC
On 3 August 2017, his signing for Paris Saint-Germain FC was confirmed , becoming the most expensive player in history (222 million euros) after signing a five-year contract with the French club. A deal that will earn him around 30 million euros per season.
Neymar was presented at the Parc des Princes on 5 August 2017 in front of more than 40,000 spectators. He was given the number 10, previously worn by Javier Pastore. He made his debut for PSG on 13 August, scoring one goal and assisting another in a 3–0 win over Guingamp. He then scored two more goals in the following match against Toulouse. Neymar shone in the UEFA Champions League, scoring in the first two group stage matches against Celtic and Bayern Munich.
He suffered a fracture of the fifth metatarsal of his right foot on 25 February 2018 during a match against Olympique de Marseille. He underwent successful surgery in Belo Horizonte and was unable to play any more during that season.
In the 2018–19 season, he scored in the opening Ligue 1 match against Caen. But then, he suffered another foot injury in January 2019, which ruled him out of the Champions League round of 16 against Manchester United.
In April 2019, Neymar scored in the Coupe de France final against Rennes, although his team lost on penalties. After the match, he was filmed punching a spectator who was insulting him, which sparked controversy.
In July 2019, there were tensions with PSG, but Neymar agreed to stay after his return to Barcelona fell through. In that season, he scored several goals but also suffered injuries. In the Champions League, he played a crucial role in PSG's comeback against Borussia Dortmund in the round of 16.
During the 2020–21 season, he tested positive for COVID-19 and missed the opening match, which PSG lost to Lens. He was then embroiled in controversy over an alleged racist comment towards an Olympique de Marseille player. He returned after a suspension and continued to score goals for PSG.
In the 2022–2023 season, he regained his form, scoring goals and providing assists prominently. However, he suffered a further injury in March 2023 and underwent surgery, which ruled him out for the rest of the season.
Al-Hilal Saudi FC
On 15 August 2023, Al -Hilal Saudi FC officially announced the acquisition of the player for €80 million, in addition to bonuses based on achievements. A contract was formalised with a commitment of two seasons with a total of €200 million in salaries, which could rise to more than €350 million if income from advertising agreements is included.
The 2018 World Cup was the second time Neymar participated with the Brazilian national team, although they failed to make it past the quarter-finals.
Neymar is known for his Christian faith; he contributes 10% of his income to the church.
Son
At just nineteen years old, he became a father in 2011 to David Lucca. The child's mother, Carolina, was seventeen.
On April 18, 2023, together with his partner, Bruna Biancardi, he announced that they were expecting a child. Their daughter Mavie was born in October 2023.