Flamengo icon Angelim reveals R$1.5m invested in women's team | OneFootball

Former center-back leads R4, a project of more than 10 years that will return to compete in the Ceará Championship in 2026

Former center-back Ronaldo Angelim, a Flamengo idol, leads R4, a women’s football team from Juazeiro do Norte, in Ceará. In a video posted on social media this Thursday (24), the former player revealed that he has already invested R$ 1.5 million in the project, which is now more than ten years old.

– Since my project is 100% legalized, does anyone give any help? Nothing! Who helps? Flamengo’s fans when I hold a raffle. Zico when he comes to Juazeiro, Adriano Imperador… My friends, they’re the ones who helped me build this here –, said the “Steel Skinny One,” who added:

– I can even say how much I’ve raised: at the first event I raised R$ 120,000, and that was only enough to build the walls here. At the other one I raised only R$ 20,000. But I’ve already spent more than R$ 1.5 million here out of my own pocket to build some things here for women’s football, which gets help from nobody –, he protested.

How did the R4 project begin?

Ronaldo Angelim founded R4 in 2010, initially as a social project in the city in Ceará. Over the years, the dream grew and it was professionally registered as a football team. So, R4 heads into 2026 with a return to the Ceará Championship, after more than a decade of history.

What titles has R4 already won?

Among the women’s team’s achievements are the Barbalha Championship and the ASSEAJUNO tournament. The acronym stands for the Association for the Support of Amateur Sports of Juazeiro do Norte. R4 has also collected other amateur titles in the Cariri region of Ceará.

How does Angelim cover the team’s expenses?

To cover part of the team’s expenses, Angelim organizes charity matches and raffles throughout the year. However, most of the funds to keep the project going come out of the former center-back’s own pocket.

In 2025, for example, a field measuring 28m x 50m appeared on social media, with dimensions designed for amateur football. In this way, the space was built thanks to the money raised in a charity match attended by stars such as Zico.

What is the connection between Angelim and Adriano and the 2009 title?

Ronaldo Angelim and Adriano Imperador were teammates in the squad that won the Brazilian title with Flamengo in 2009, the club’s sixth league championship. The center-back was a key player in the campaign and even found the net in the final round of the tournament, against Grêmio, at the Maracanã.

However, Angelim’s decisive goal sealed a 2-1 comeback, since the Rubro-Negro had gone behind on the scoreboard. Finally, the number 9 of that squad, Adriano, finished the Brasileirão as the outright top scorer, with 19 goals. Thus, both names still carry the affection of Flamengo’s fans to this day for that historic title.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.