Luis Suárez, Uruguayan professional footballer for Spanish club Atlético Madrid, made history Sunday (March 21) when he scored his 500th career goal in his combined domestic and international games. It was his 19th goal of the season and the difference in his team’s 1-0 win over Spanish football club Alavés.
With his 500th career goal, Suárez joins four other active players with that distinction. They are Cristiano Ronaldo (770 goals), Lionel Messi (732 goals), Zlatan Ibrahimovic (564 goals) and Robert Lewandowski (516 goals).
Suárez released a letter on social media to his English, Spanish and Dutch fans thanking them for their support and said he wants to “score many more goals” as a player for Atlético Madrid.
“You may not know it, but you played your part in every goal I have scored so far,” Suárez wrote. “I thank you: every single fan who has supported my teams over the years, from Montevideo to Madrid, from 0 to 500.”
In celebration of the career milestone, Suárez pledged to donate 500 soccer balls to youth clubs in the cities he’s played for over the years—Montevideo, Uruguay; Groningen, Netherlands; Amsterdam, Netherlands; Liverpool, England; Barcelona, Spain; and Madrid, Spain.
He also thanked his wife, Sofia, on the stories section of his Instagram account.
“To think that you saw me score the first one when I was 18 and now the old man of 34 has reached 500,” Suárez wrote. “I love you each day more for what you mean to me, my queen.”
Now, that’s what we call a goal.