Raphael Rossi Branco

Early career

Born in Campinas, São Paulo, Rossi debuted professionally for Porto Alegre and was spotted by an agent who was friend of Gus Poyet, then Brighton & Hove Albion manager. He went on a trial for the English club and an offer to sign for the team was stalled until the player could get an Italian passport. After that, Brighton demanded a statement from Branco's former youth clubs in which they would not receive future compensation, otherwise the club would have to pay £200,000 to register him, which meant he would be released. After unsuccessful trials in Europe and Brazil, he went to play again in England for Brighton-based club Whitehawk. Since he was signing for a non-professional club, he did not need any agreement with his former clubs and could move to other clubs for free. With Whitehawk, Rossi won the 2012–13 Isthmian League.

Swindon Town

On 2 August 2013, he joined Swindon Town on a one-year deal after impressing on a pre-season trip to Portugal after being invited by a former Brighton & Hove Albion assistant. He was first called up for a matchday squad on 31 August, remaining unused as Swindon won 5–0 at the County Ground in a League One game against Crewe Alexandra. He made his debut on 8 October in the second round of the Football League Trophy, playing the entirety of a 2–1 victory over League Two team Plymouth Argyle. On 29 December he made his first league appearance, replacing the injured Grant Hall in the 53rd minute of a 1–1 draw…

In addition to central defence, Rossi can play at right-back and midfield. His favourite player is compatriot defender David Luiz.

As of match played 14 December 2024

His older brother Igor, also a defender, plays for Al-Faisaly in the Saudi Professional League.