Goalkeeper Keylor Navas has announced his retirement from the Costa Rica national team weeks ahead his country’s squad reveal for the 2024 Copa America.
“This stage of my life with the national team has come to an end,” Navas said in a video posted to his Instagram account on Thursday.
The announcement brings to an end the most decorated and high-profile international career of any Costa Rican in world soccer. Navas finishes with 114 caps, the first couple of which were earned in 2008 when playing Deportivo Saprissa in his home country. He solidified his place in the squad, amassed further notoriety, and eventually became captain as his club career took him to Spain with Alabacete, Levante, and then Real Madrid, before he moved to France with Paris St. Germain in 2019. Navas spent part of the 2022-23 season on loan with Premier League side Nottingham Forest.
His contract with PSG expires this summer.
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Navas was an instrumental part in one of the most successful periods in Costa Rican soccer, having helped the team qualify for three consecutive World Cups – the longest such run in the nation’s history.
He may be best remembered for his form at the first of those World Cups in 2014, as he backstopped the Ticos to the quarterfinals, which included a surprising first-place finish in a group that included Uruguay, Italy and England.
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Navas was named as one of three nominees for the Golden Glove award at the 2014 World Cup, an award that was eventually won by Manuel Neuer.
“My teammates are more than colleagues, they’ve become family to me,” Navas said in his announcement. “Together, we’ve made history against the best players in the world, elevating Costa Rica to the very highest level. Without you, none of this would be possible.
“I go forward with a heart full of gratitude and my eyes looking ahead, always carrying Costa Rica with me. A small country with a big heart.”
Within CONCACAF, he was named men’s player of the year in 2014 and 2017, goalkeeper of the year in 2016, 2017, and 2018, and part of the confederation’s Best XI in those same three years. He was also named in the International Federation of Football History & Statistics’ (IFFHS) team of the decade for CONCACAF for the period spanning 2011-2020.
He finishes his career with 42 clean sheets in his 114 appearances, with a 1.11 goals against average.
Pablo Maurer contributed to this report.
(Photo: Aurelien Meunier – PSG/PSG via Getty Images)