Portland Timbers captain Diego Chara to retire next year

After 16 seasons with the Portland Timbers, team captain Diego Chara, 40, is set to retire from major league soccer next year.

At a press conference Monday, the Colombian footballer and Timbers midfielder said he’ll play through the end of the 2027 MLS Sprint Season next May, before the league changes to a summer-to-spring calendar.

“Once you cross the line at 35 years old, you know, you start thinking about what is next,” Chara said. “[At] some point, you know, the body says, ‘OK, this is enough… For me, I think it’s the right time to do it.”

His career with the Timbers began in 2011, when the team played its first MLS match and signed Chara as its first designated player.

Since then, Chara has appeared in more than 400 matches with the Timbers and has set an MLS record for number of seasons played with one team. He was also named an MLS All Star in 2019.

“Loyalty in football is not easy to achieve, and to do it for that long a time speaks by itself,” Timbers head coach Martí Cifuentes said of Chara.

Cifuentes said Chara’s decision to announce his retirement ahead of the season gives the team “time enough” to figure out who will take Chara’s place as captain.

In Spanish, Cifuentes said it will be a challenge for the team to replace “such an important figure” in the following months.

During Chara’s tenure, the Timbers have won one MLS Cup title, in 2015, and three Western Conference Championship trophies in 2015, 2018 and 2021. Chara has also made two appearances in international football, both with the Colombian national team.

Chara said he plans to acquire new skills after he retires but would still like to remain involved in soccer.