Football: at 43, Andorran Ildefons Lima retires from international football after a 26-year career

After 137 caps in 26 years, Andorra's emblematic captain Ildefons Lima (43) played his last national team match on Tuesday, ending what is considered the longest career in men's international football.

The 43-year-old defender, who made his debut with his team at the age of 17, played his last minutes in the Andorran jersey on Tuesday, during a 3-0 defeat against Switzerland.

He was replaced in the 22nd minute, receiving a standing ovation from the Swiss and Andorran supporters as he left.

“Congratulations to Andorran Ildefons Lima for his incredible journey, the longest national team career of all time,” UEFA wrote in a message published on X.

In 2021, Guinness World Records already judged that Lima had the longest international career in the history of men's football.

He is one of the few players to have been capped in four different decades, and became the oldest to play in a Euro qualifying match.

Lima is also Andorra's top scorer, with... 11 goals in 137 caps, and a record of more than 100 defeats for 7 victories.

After wearing the colors of Espanyol Barcelona, ​​Las Palmas and Rayo Vallecano, the forty-year-old now plays for Inter Escaldes (vice-champion of Andorra).

Ildefons Lima is also known for its impressive collection of several hundred international jerseys, gleaned over the years.