Brazilian fraudster pulled off a 26-year career as a pro footballer

A film charting the life of the most notorious footballing fraud in the history of the game has been released.

Carlos Henrique Raposo – known as ‘Carlos Kaiser’ because of his self-professed similarity to Germany legend Franz Beckenbauer – played for top clubs in South America, the US and Europe.

But, astonishingly, the Brazilian made zero appearances, scored zero goals and provided zero assists throughout his entire 26-year career. 

 

Carlos Henrique Raposo – known as ‘Carlos Kaiser’ because of his self-professed similarity to Germany legend Franz Beckenbauer – played for top clubs in South America, the US and Europe

The Kaiser, left, with Renato and Gaúcho - actual Brazilian football stars. He was excellent at befriending powerful people 

The Kaiser, left, with Renato and Gaúcho – actual Brazilian football stars. He was excellent at befriending powerful people 

He pulled off his tricks at top Brazilian sides Flamengo, Botafogo, Bangu, Fluminense and Vasco da Gama as well as French team Gazélec Ajaccio (whose shirt he is wearing above) and El Paso Sixshooters in Texas

He pulled off his tricks at top Brazilian sides Flamengo, Botafogo, Bangu, Fluminense and Vasco da Gama as well as French team Gazélec Ajaccio (whose shirt he is wearing above) and El Paso Sixshooters in Texas

A new documentary – ‘Kaiser: The Greatest Footballer to Never Play Football’ – reveals the hilarious tactics employed by Raposo, now 55, so he could avoid playing football.

His primary method was to sign for a club and then get injured in his first training session. 

As a consequence, he would be sidelined for weeks or months. When teams grew weary of him, he simply moved on.

He pulled off his tricks at top Brazilian sides Flamengo, Botafogo, Bangu, Fluminense and Vasco da Gama as well as French team Gazélec Ajaccio and El Paso Sixshooters in Texas.

But the Kaiser was also excellent at fooling celebrities – including Brazilian superstar footballers like Romario, Carlos Alberto, Bebeto and Zico – and manipulating journalists.

He would send reporters a video showing ‘his’ goals, which were actually scored by someone resembling him, and persuade them to write glowing articles about him. 

If the owner of a team he had fooled into signing him was present during a training session, he would bribe fans to cheer his name. 

He even paid youth team players to make bad tackles on him during training so he could avoid revealing his talentlessness. 

On one occasion, when he was told he would be coming off the bench for Bangu when the team was losing 2-0, he jumped onto a fence and shouted abuse at booing fans.  

He was immediately given a red card and so avoided being exposed.

On four separate occasions, he claimed he could not play because his grandmother had died. 

In a book by Rob Smyth about Raposo, which has been released with the documentary, authentic Brazilian star Bebeto explained how his then-friend managed to pull off the deceit.

‘His chat was so good that if you let him open his mouth, that would be it,’ Bebeto said.

His scam was possible because as a 16-year-old he was given a trial at Puebla FC is Mexico after impressing their scouts. Pictured: His ID at French club Gazalec 

His scam was possible because as a 16-year-old he was given a trial at Puebla FC is Mexico after impressing their scouts. Pictured: His ID at French club Gazalec 

The Kaiser was also said to be excellent with women - the man himself claims to have bedded over a thousand

The Kaiser was also said to be excellent with women – the man himself claims to have bedded over a thousand

Astonishingly, the Brazilian made zero appearances, scored zero goals and provided zero assists throughout his entire 26-year career

Astonishingly, the Brazilian made zero appearances, scored zero goals and provided zero assists throughout his entire 26-year career

‘He’d charm you. You couldn’t avoid it. That would be it.’ 

The Kaiser was also said to be excellent with women – the man himself claims to have bedded over a thousand. 

Despite being regarded as something of a villainous figure by many fans, Raposo himself said he sees himself as a ‘victim’. 

Speaking to The Mirror, he said: ‘I always thought I’d been adopted, but I found out from my cousin that my adoptive mother, Lina, had stolen me from my mother when I was seven days old.

‘My real mother thinks I’m dead. Lina was a cruel person who, when I was 10, put me into a football school and forced me to play to make her rich. But from that moment on, I hated football.

Despite being regarded as something of a villainous figure by many fans, Raposo himself said he sees himself as a 'victim'

Despite being regarded as something of a villainous figure by many fans, Raposo himself said he sees himself as a ‘victim’

He said: 'I was never a bad person. I consider myself a survivor'. The Kaiser now lives in Rio and trains women to be bodybuilders

He said: ‘I was never a bad person. I consider myself a survivor’. The Kaiser now lives in Rio and trains women to be bodybuilders

‘I did everything I could to not play, from the age of 10 until the day I never had to play again. Psychologists have told me that’s the reason I did what I did. I was never a bad person. I consider myself a survivor.’

His scam was possible because as a 16-year-old he was given a trial at Puebla FC in Mexico after impressing their scouts. 

But he was ultimately rejected as not good enough, forcing him to lie his way into nine other clubs. 

The Kaiser now lives in Rio and trains women in bodybuilding.

He said he now regrets his fraud and believes he could have been a ‘great footballer’ like everyone thought he was – if only he’d put as much effort into practising as he did into scamming clubs.



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