World Cup 2010 Golden Ball – Diego Forlan will participate in the men’s doubles event of the ATP Challenger Uruguay Open taking place this coming November.
The 2010 World Cup Golden Ball, former Manchester United, Atletico Madrid and Uruguay star Diego Forlan will make his first professional tennis appearance at the age of 45 at the ATP Challenger Uruguay Open 2024 taking place from November 11 to November 17 in the capital city of Montevideo.
The former Manchester United player will compete in the men’s doubles, where he will team up with Argentine tennis great Federico Coria. This promises to be an interesting combination as Coria is also a true football fan, with a photo of him with Lionel Messi pinned to the top of his personal Instagram page.
Diego Forlan’s switch to tennis actually did not cause much surprise, because as a child, Forlan was a potential tennis player before deciding to stick with a career in shorts and jersey.
Retiring in 2019 after parting ways with Kitchee (Hong Kong), Diego Forlan tried his hand at coaching but failed to make any impression during his time leading two home teams: Penarol and Atenas in 2020 and 2021.
The 45-year-old former striker then participated in tournaments for over-40s under the ITF (International Tennis Federation) system. As of now, he is ranked 108th in the world in the rankings of tennis players aged 45 and over.
In the past, Diego Forlan was a famous striker in world football with a period of sublimation in the colors of two Spanish teams: Villareal and Atletico Madrid from 2004 to 2011. He used to wear the colors of other big teams such as Manchester United, Inter Milan, Internacional, Independiente before having experiences in Asia with Cerezo Osaka (Japan), Mumbai City (India) and Kitchee.
Forlan scored 36 goals in 112 matches for the Uruguayan national team, peaking at the 2010 World Cup held in South Africa, where the 1979-born player played brilliantly, winning the Golden Ball award, sharing the Golden Boot award with Thomas Muller, David Villa and Wesley Sneijder.
