This is a post by /u/Honka_Honka on reddit.com/r/soccer Thoughts?

The other day I made a comment that, in Ronaldinho threads, Grêmio fans always are too afraid to show up and speak their minds against the majority that loves the guy and has him as a symbol of "pure love" for the game. After all, how can you hate Ronaldinho? Well, we gremistas do. Some people asked me why is that, and I decided it deserved its own thread (I had already told this story a few months ago, but it got buried by other discussions).

I would like to preface this by stating that Ronaldinho had every right to do what he did (just like Neymar had when he left Barcelona), and that Grêmio's board was very naïve with him, but that doesn't make any of it less shady. I will tell you about the two biggest moments in our relationship with him: when he left Grêmio through the backdoor in 2001 and when he lied about coming back ten years later.

From the very beginning, Ronaldinho was a big star, and we could see his potential from one thousand miles out. As a 19 year old, his breakthrough year was in 1999, when he won us the state league and humiliated Brazilian NT captain Dunga (who then played for Internacional, our biggest rivals) in the process. A few days later, he earned his first competitive cap for the national team, making his debut with this amazing goal in the 1999 Copa América.

Anyway, Ronaldinho was worth a lot of money, and everyone knew that. Our contract with him, however, ended in February 2001. Here's the thing: in Brazil, where you know you'll lose your players during the season (and going to Europe is inevitable), there is this "unwritten rule" that you sign a new contract a few months before your transfer - that way, your wages are raised as well as your transfer fee. That's a way to guarantee your childhood club isn't left with a shitty value when you leave. Nearly everyone does that, both sides are happy in the end, etc.

Ronaldinho didn't sign anything and instead left Grêmio for free when his contract was terminated. So, the guy who was probably the biggest "future star" in the world by the turn of the century went to Europe for the grand total of $0. Think how Neymar played Barcelona like a fiddle last summer - now think that not only he did that, but he also left Barça without a single penny. That's Ronaldinho with us. That in itself would have been a shitty thing to do, but there is more: Grêmio was the club that pulled his whole family out of poverty. In the 80s, his older brother and now agent Roberto Assis (known simply as Assis) was one of our greats (Ronaldinho was initially known as "Assis's brother", only later it'd be the other way around), and we gave him a huge contract when he (Assis) was just 16. In his stint with us, Ronaldinho used every chance he had to say he was a "gremista" and that, "for Grêmio, [he] would even play for free". He repeatedly said that his family owed everything to Grêmio and that he wouldn't screw us over.

Well, we tried to sign Ronaldinho a new, longer contract, paying him even bigger bucks (he was already one of the 15 highest wages in the country as a 19 year old - most of the players earning more than him were World Cup veterans like Romário and Faustino Asprilla). Of course we weren't dreaming of keeping him much longer (that's impossible in Brazil), we just wanted to secure a deal like every other club did (and does) to guarantee a fair price when their young star leaves. Ronaldinho spent half the 2000 season stating that he would be a "gremista" forever, that his wages weren't an issue and that, when the time came, he would sign the extension - in the backstage, however, he had already signed a contract with PSG, without telling anyone. He then proceeded to leave his childhood club without a dollar by the end of his contract, the only "big young star" in Brazilian football to do so since going to Europe became the norm.

Fast forward 10 years. In 2010, when he was already past his prime and thinking about coming back to Brazil, of course he approached Grêmio. Ronaldinho (and Assis) lured us into thinking he was willing to make up for his shady exit a decade earlier: he'd spent the previous 10 years giving many interviews where he insisted that he had Grêmio in his heart, that his dream would be to end his career in Porto Alegre, and now was the time to do it. Well, he was filthy rich, had won everything, he knew how bad his perception was among us, so many people believed that this time Ronaldinho would correct his record. He couldn't **** us over twice, right? Well...

Grêmio initiated a three-month-llong negotiation to bring him back, treated it like the big deal it was, looked for sponsors that could facilitate his return and went on to the point where we had already planned a huge party at our stadium to welcome him. For a couple of months, it was clear to everyone that Ronaldinho was coming back to Grêmio and that no other Brazilian club would be able to change his heart and mind. Like he did in 2000, however, there was a lot of shady stuff going on in the brackstages: Assis used Grêmio's interest as a way to auction his brother up in the Brazilian market.

Knowing that everyone wanted the man and that "being a gremista" was a huge card up his sleeve, Assis used our interest to negotiate an even better deal with any other Brazilian club that showed interest - without disclosing such negotiation. Suddenly, Grêmio's offers were matched by Palmeiras and Flamengo - by the end of the year, Ronaldinho had signed with Flamengo by a few thousands reais more than we had originally offered. Grêmio looked like fools, lost months in the process (our 2011 season was awful because of the time we wasted dealing with Ronaldinho), and once again ended up with nothing. It was no surprise for most fans (many of us, myself included, didn't want to see him back at our club after what he did in 2000), but it was once again a confirmation that he was in it for the money. I mean, that is your right, I'd probably follow the money too (even if his family has enough to live as millionaires for generations to come) but come on, stop lying about how much you love this club or that you kept playing for so long just because you "loved the game".

Of course, the biggest **** is Assis (who orchestrated the whole thing on both occasions), but it doesn't help much that Ronaldinho follows him blindly in every move he makes.

(Oh, and a bit of pettiness to end this write up: in 2006 he wasn't able to beat our fiercy rival Internacional in the Club World Cup final - which Barcelona lost -, but that's just rubbing salt in the wound)

EDIT:
TL;DR:

Left Gremio for free when he was a young prodigy after saying he would sign a new contract so they could earn a transfer fee.

Said he would rejoin them in 2010 but was just using them to get a higher contract with a different Brazilian club.
(thanks /u/DrinkMyJelly)

EDIT 2:

Some people are disputing my claim that Ronaldinho left for free in 2001, because some sources out there list PSG paying us 5 million dollars for him. That was not a proper transfer fee. It was a reparation fee FIFA demanded PSG pay us after the contract was signed because of how shady the whole deal was (even then, Grêmio was demanding $20 million in reparation). I'm not sure about the technicalities that made this reparation possible, but it's another indication of how messed up that transfer was.

I'm pretty sure I've seen you on reddit before, you have same username there right?

r/soccer is getting worse though. OCs like this are rarer. I remember Roma-Napoli OC which was great. This one is very good too. I knew Ronaldinho was surrounded with bit of controversy regarding PSG move, but I never even knew he rejected Gremio because of money (while he already had plenty).

He was great player but his determination was questionable too.

Very interesting read. Thanks for sharing.

We live Ronaldinho for his game his style, his guidance for youngsters, especially Messi. But we also know that his life style outside football is a mess, probably as crazy as Andriano.

It doesnt surprise me 2nd transfer especially with the involvement of his brother. And i agree thats felt like a betrayal after all what he said...

The first one which he left and Gremio didnt earn jack $hit was at fault for BOTH parties. Gremio didnt manage the whole thing well... Same as Arsenal now, if they arent careful enough. I meant if you see your star is about to leave, put the assignment on top prio, lobby Assin if you must, made the family sign, give them gifts, etc...

Good post. I always wondered why Dihno moved from club to club in his return to Brazil but now it makes sense. What a shame he couldn't be a little more loyal to Gremio.

Wow, just goes to show even the most respected of footballer sometime got thing to reproach themselve. Real shame but I really think its important to know that kind of info, show us a different side to the player, thanks for the share HorseAFC, this is good stuff. :D Really feel bad for Gremio.

I can understand his leaving the way he did. I bet he was under huge influence at that age and did what he was asked.

The return though would have totally been under his control. He must have seen all the negative fan base there and did not want to deal with it, thus choosing a different team.

It would have been cool to see him there his final days though. Fans can be won back with some effort. Plus, you will never please everyone.

Thank you for the backstory HorseAFC. I had heard a little about his time there and that he was not liked much, but I never knew how far it went.

Still my all time favorite player ever :P

@Croatian Yup I have the same username on reddit. I think the main reason OCs like this are starting to become rarer and rarer is that alot of things that isn't auotes or news gets pushed to the daily discussion thread instead of them being their own threads :(