José Luis Chilavert

Chilavert made his footballing debut with Sportivo Luqueño, where he was trained by Modesto Sandoval. In 1989, he played for the Paraguay national team for the first time. He later moved to Spain, where he played for Real Zaragoza. In 1988, whilst Chilavert played for Real Zaragoza, he stated that "the fans used to freak out" when he would come out with the ball at his feet and "scream at me to get back in goal. I've never stopped to think about what others are saying. I just rely on my abilities. Later on, I started to practice penalties and free kicks until they gave me the job for real". Chilavert admitted to staying behind after training to practice 80 to 120 free kicks, which in his opinion was how he got better. After his time at Real Zaragoza, he moved to Argentina, where he played with Vélez Sársfield, helping them win the Primera División four times, as well as the Copa Libertadores and the Intercontinental Cup, both in 1994. In 1999, he became the first goalkeeper known to score a hat-trick in the history of professional football, while playing for Vélez against Ferro Carril Oeste, scoring all three goals through penalties. He also scored a free kick from behind the half-way line against River Plate. In the 2001 Coupe de France Final, Chilavert scored the winning penalty in the shootout victory over Amiens.

Chilavert was voted World Goalkeeper of the Year by the IFFHS in 1995, 1997, and 1998. He was sent off alongside Faustino Asprilla in a South American qualifying match world the 1998 World Cup against Colombia, in which Asprilla had to convince a hitman to not murder Chilavert afterwards. Chilavert participated in the 1998 World Cup with Paraguay, where he became the first goalkeeper ever to take a direct free kick in the World Cup finals, almost scoring against Bulgaria. With two clean sheets in the first round, he helped take Paraguay to the round of sixteen, where the team lost to France on a golden goal scored by Laurent Blanc. Chilavert had made boasts about being the Cup's best goalkeeper before the tournament, and after the tournament, FIFA indeed named Chilavert on the tournament All-Star Squad for his performances, alongside French goalkeeper Fabien Barthez. Chilavert refused to take part in the 1999 Copa América, angering the Paraguayan government, as he claimed funding should be used for education. FIFA gave Chilavert a four-game suspension (later reduced to three) for spitting on Brazil's Roberto Carlos at the conclusion of a 2002 FIFA World Cup qualification game. As a result, he watched Paraguay's first game of the 2002 World Cup against South Africa from the stands. Chilavert accused Roberto Carlos of racism and of making obscene gestures during the match. Chilavert later claimed that Roberto Carlos came up to him after the match and said "Indian, we have won…

Chilavert announced his retirement from football in December 2003, but decided to come out of retirement to return to Vélez. Chilavert had just won the Uruguayan league with Peñarol when he initially retired. He finally retired permanently in 2004, playing his last match, a farewell testimonial, on 11 November of that year – fittingly, he scored a goal. In 2005, Chilavert received a suspended six-month prison sentence in France for the use of false documents related to the compensation for the end of his contract with Strasbourg. Chilavert was a commentator for American television network Univision during the 2006 FIFA World Cup and 2010 FIFA World Cup, alongside Jorge Pérez-Navarro. Chilavert vowed that if he had gone to the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany, he would have tried again to become the first goalkeeper to score a goal.

Chilavert is married to Marcela, an English language teacher he met in Buenos Aires while playing for San Lorenzo de Almagro. In 1998, they had a daughter named Anahí.

Controversies

Chilavert has allegedly thrown punches at Faustino Asprilla and Diego Maradona. He was suspended for four matches for his altercation with the former that occurred during a World Cup qualifier in 1997. He once received a suspended prison sentence for attacking a physiotherapist. Chilavert was a guest commentator for Univision during the Copa América Centenario but was removed from the broadcasts after CONMEBOL President Alejandro Dominguez told the network to remove Chilavert. Chilavert had criticized Dominguez and called him corrupt on the air during Paraguay's Group A match against Colombia. In 2018, Chilavert called for the expulsion of the British ambassador to Paraguay Matthew Hedges after the latter made controversial statements about the conviction of 12 farmers in a case relating to the violent deaths of six police officers and 11 rural workers in 2012. During the altercation, Chilavert made anglophobic and homophobic comments, the latter referencing Hedges's homosexuality, calling him 'anormal'.

Transphobic comments

In 2026, Chilavert made transphobic comments against Kylian Mbappé after a Champions League match with Benfica, stating "it is not normal for a man to live with a transvestite, for that there is a woman".

Racism allegations

Shortly before…