Armando Sadiku retires from football at 35: Thank you, I will miss you

Albania national team striker Armando Sadiku has made official his retirement from playing football at the age of 35. He announced the decision Wednesday in a video on Instagram that summed up the best moments of his career, accompanied by the message: “Thank you, football, I will miss you.”

Sadiku described it as the hardest decision of his life. His farewell as a player also marks the start of a new chapter: he will stay in football as sporting director of Swiss club Bellinzona.

The goal that opened the door to the Euros

For Albanian fans, Sadiku’s name remains inseparably linked to the Euro 2016 qualifying campaign. It was he who scored the decisive goal against Armenia that secured Albania’s first-ever qualification for a European Championship. In France, he was part of the squad led by Gianni De Biasi, including the 1-0 win over Romania in Lyon, where Sadiku himself scored the only goal, Albania’s first win at a major tournament.

For the national team, Sadiku collected 38 caps and 12 goals, becoming one of the most important strikers of the generation that wrote the history of Albanian football.

Fans react

His post was immediately flooded with messages of thanks from fans and former teammates, who remembered him as a combative striker devoted to the red and black colors. Sadiku’s departure comes at a time when several names from the Euro 2016 generation have ended or are nearing the end of their careers, turning his farewell into an emotional moment for Albanian football.