Ronaldinho returns to Barcelona as club opens New York City office
Barcelona have re-signed Ronaldinho, sort of. The La Liga giants announced that the Brazil legend will serve in an ambassador role as the club gets set to open a new office in the United States.
Ronaldinho, who currently does not play for a team but hasn’t indicated he’s ready to retire, will be one of the club’s representatives at the inauguration of the new Park Avenue office in New York City on Tuesday.
Barcelona hope to expand commercial activity in international markets and increase revenue with the new presence in the United States, two years after opening an office in Hong Kong. Manuel Arroyo said similar projects are planned for China and South America, particularly in Brazil. Ronaldinho might come in handy there, too.
"New York will not be the last office that we open. We fervently believe that we need a greater presence in China and the Southern Cone of South America. Brazil is one of our strategic targets and we are sure that these new supports will be decisive for sustaining the Club’s position among the top three sports clubs in the world,” Arroyo said in a statement on the club’s website.
In five seasons at Barcelona, Ronaldinho won two La Liga titles as well as the 2005-06 Champions League, helping spark the most successful era in club history. Since leaving the Catalans in 2008, Ronaldinho’s played for five teams in the last eight years, but has been without a club since asking for his release at Fluminense after just a two-month stint last September.
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