Dante Bonfim Costa Santos (born 18 October 1983), commonly known as Dante (), is a Brazilian professional

footballer A football player or footballer is a sportsperson who plays one of the different types of football. The main types of football are association football, American football, Canadian football, Australian rules football, Gaelic football, rugby le ...

who plays for and

captains Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

French club

Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative c ...

. Primarily a

central defender In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

, he has previously also been used as a

defensive midfielder A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

or a

left back In the sport of association football, a defender is an outfield position whose primary role is to stop attacks during the game and prevent the opposition from scoring. Centre-backs are usually positioned in pairs, with one full-back on either s ...

. After emerging at Juventude, Dante went on to play for

Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Pref ...

Charleroi Charleroi ( , , ; wa, Tchålerwè ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593.

and

Standard Liège Royal Standard de Liège, commonly referred to as Standard Liège (; nl, Standard Luik ; german: Standard Lüttich ) or simply Standard in Belgium, is a Belgian professional football club based in the city of Liège. They are one of the most ...

, winning the

Belgian Pro League The Belgian Pro League,(officially the Jupiler Pro League due to sponsorship reasons with Jupiler), is the top league competition for association football clubs in Belgium. Contested by 18 clubs since the 2020–21 season and reduced to 16 team ...

with the latter. In January 2009, he was signed by

Borussia Mönchengladbach Borussia Verein für Leibesübungen 1900 e. V. Mönchengladbach, commonly known as Borussia Mönchengladbach (), Mönchengladbach () or Gladbach (; abbreviated as Borussia MG, BMG), is a professional Association football, football club based in ...

, spending two-and-a-half seasons before making a €4.7 million move to

Bayern Munich Fußball-Club Bayern München e. V. (FCB, ), also known as FC Bayern (), Bayern Munich, or simply Bayern, is a German professional sports club based in Munich, Bavaria. It is best known for its professional men's football team, which pla ...

, where he won nine domestic and international honours. Dante made his international debut for

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

in 2013, winning that year's Confederations Cup and representing the nation at the

2014 FIFA World Cup The 2014 FIFA World Cup was the 20th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial world championship for men's national football teams organised by FIFA. It took place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014, after the country was awarded the hosting ri ...

Club career

Early career

Dante joined Juventude's youth system in 2001 and by 2002 became a part of the club's first team setup. In 2004, he made his move to European football, signing for

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. After two seasons with the club where he only featured in 12 league games, Dante moved to Belgium, signing for

Charleroi Charleroi ( , , ; wa, Tchålerwè ) is a city and a municipality of Wallonia, located in the province of Hainaut, Belgium. By 1 January 2008, the total population of Charleroi was 201,593.

in 2006. After a successful campaign in the

for Charleroi where he made 27 appearances and helped the club to a respectable fifth-place finish, he moved across the country to

. Dante had a successful debut season with the Belgian giants, as Standard were crowned league champions; the Brazilian defender proving to be an integral member, missing just one league match. In his second season with Standard, he featured in the first 15 league matches of the campaign before interest from Germany sent the player to the

Bundesliga The Bundesliga (; ), sometimes referred to as the Fußball-Bundesliga () or 1. Bundesliga (), is a professional association football league in Germany. At the top of the German football league system, the Bundesliga is Germany's primary footba ...

Borussia Mönchengladbach

Dante joined German side

on 27 December 2008 for an undisclosed transfer fee, signing a contract with the club until summer 2013. He made his debut for the club on 20 March 2009, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 1–0 loss to fellow strugglers

VfL Bochum Verein für Leibesübungen Bochum 1848 Fußballgemeinschaft, commonly referred to as simply VfL Bochum (), is a Football in Germany, German association football club based in the city of Bochum, North Rhine-Westphalia. The club has spent 35 seas ...

. His first goal for the club came against eventual champions

VfL Wolfsburg Verein für Leibesübungen Wolfsburg e. V., commonly known as VfL Wolfsburg () or Wolfsburg, is a German professional sports club based in Wolfsburg, Lower Saxony. The club grew out of a multi-sports club for Volkswagen workers in the city of W ...

on 11 April but it came in a losing effort as 'Gladbach fell 2–1 thanks to a late strike by defender

Sascha Riether Sascha Riether (; born 23 March 1983) is a German former professional footballer who played as a right-back. In addition to playing in the right back position, Riether has also played in defensive midfield, center back and right midfield position ...

. The Brazilian scored a dramatic late winner against

Energie Cottbus FC Energie Cottbus ( Lower Sorbian: ''Energija Chóśebuz'') is a German football club based in Cottbus, Brandenburg. It was founded in 1963 as SC Cottbus in what was East Germany. After the reunification of Germany, Energie played six seasons i ...

on 13 May, heading in a cross from winger

Marko Marin Marko Marin ( sr-cyr, Марко Марин, born 13 March 1989) is a German former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder and left winger. He was known for his acceleration, dribbling, agility, creativity, versatility, ...

to give the club a 1–0 win in the 91st minute. On the final day of the

season on 23 May 2009, Dante scored 'Gladbach's only goal in a 1–1 draw with

Borussia Dortmund Ballspielverein Borussia 09 e. V. Dortmund, commonly known as Borussia Dortmund (), BVB (), or simply Dortmund (), is a German professional sports club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. It is best known for its men's professional footb ...

, a point which meant the club avoided immediate relegation to the 2. Bundesliga. In the opening fixture of the

2009–10 Bundesliga The 2009–10 Bundesliga was the 47th season of the Bundesliga, Germany's premier football league. The season commenced on 7 August 2009 with the traditional season-opening match involving the defending champions VfL Wolfsburg and VfB Stuttgart. ...

campaign on 9 August 2009, Dante received a red card for a bad foul as Mönchengladbach relinquished a 3–0 lead against VfL Bochum, drawing 3–3. He scored his first goal of the campaign on 31 October, heading home a corner in the 76th minute to draw the match level at 2–2 and an 82nd-minute strike from

Rob Friend Rob or ROB may refer to: Places * Rob, Velike Lašče, a settlement in Slovenia * Roberts International Airport (IATA code ROB), in Monrovia, Liberia People * Rob (given name), a given name or nickname, e.g., for Robert(o), Robin/Robyn * Rob (s ...

handed 'Gladbach a 3–2 victory over

Hamburger SV Hamburger Sport-Verein e.V. (), commonly known as Hamburger SV () or Hamburg (), is a German sports club based in Hamburg, with its largest branch being its football section. Though the current HSV was founded in June 1919 from a merger of three ...

. On 9 April 2010, Dante headed in a free-kick from

Juan Arango Juan Fernando Arango Sáenz (born 16 May 1980) is a Venezuelan former professional footballer who played as an attacking midfielder. He spent the better part of his professional career in La Liga with Mallorca, appearing in 196 official game ...

to double 'Gladbach's lead, resulting in a 2–0 defeat of

Eintracht Frankfurt Eintracht Frankfurt e.V. () is a professional sports club based in Frankfurt, Hesse, Germany. It is best known for its football club, which was founded on 8 March 1899. The team is currently playing in the Bundesliga, the top tier of the Germa ...

that all but secured Bundesliga survival. The 2010–11 campaign proved to be another difficult campaign for 'Gladbach. Dante only featured in 17 league matches as he battled against persistent injury and the club finished in 16th place, the relegation play-off spot. However, Dante did play the full 90 minutes in each play-off match against VfL Bochum as Borussia Mönchengladbach managed a 2–1 aggregate victory to remain in the German top flight for the 2011–12 season. The following season proved much more successful as Dante featured in 38 matches in all competitions, playing the full 90 minutes in each. In January 2012, he hinted he could leave the club before his contract expired in June 2014, revealing to the press he desired to play for a top club in Germany, singling out

, Borussia Dortmund and

Bayer Leverkusen Bayer 04 Leverkusen Fußball GmbH, also known as Bayer 04 Leverkusen (), Bayer Leverkusen, or simply Leverkusen, is a professional football club based in Leverkusen in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. The club competes in the Bundesliga, th ...

. Dante was influential as the club made a run to the semi-finals of the

DFB-Pokal The DFB-Pokal ( is a German knockout football cup competition held annually by the German Football Association (DFB). Sixty-four teams participate in the competition, including all clubs from the Bundesliga and the 2. Bundesliga. It is considere ...

where the club lost 4–2 on penalties to Bayern Munich on 21 March 2012, with Dante and

Håvard Nordtveit Håvard Nordtveit (born 21 June 1990) is a Norwegian professional footballer who plays as a defender or defensive midfielder for Skjold IL in the Norwegian 4th Division. Club career Norway Nordtveit began his career as a youth in Norway with V ...

missing their penalties to give Bayern a spot in the final with champions Borussia Dortmund.

Bayern Munich

On 26 April 2012, Dante agreed to join Bayern Munich at the start of the 2012–13 season for an estimated transfer fee of €4.7 million.

2012–13

Dante's first appearance for the club came in the DFL-Supercup on 12 August 2012, starting at centre-back in Bayern's 2–1 defeat of Borussia Dortmund. He made his Bundesliga debut for the Bavarian giants on 25 August as Bayern cruised to a 3–0 opening day victory over promoted side Greuther Fürth. He scored his first competitive goal for the team in a 5–0 thrashing of

Hannover 96 Hannoverscher Sportverein von 1896, commonly referred to as Hannover 96 (), Hannover, HSV or simply 96, is a German professional football club based in the city of Hanover, Lower Saxony. They played in the Bundesliga for a total of 30 years betwe ...

on 24 November 2012. Dante made an immediate impact at Bayern, earning a place in the starting 11 and forming partnerships with the interchanging

Holger Badstuber Holger Felix Badstuber (born 13 March 1989) is a German former professional footballer who played as a centre-back or left-back. Badstuber made his debut in the Bundesliga for Bayern Munich in the 2009–10 season, at the age of 19. He played ne ...

Daniel Van Buyten Daniel Van Buyten (; born 7 February 1978) is a Belgian former footballer who played as a centre back. Nicknamed "Big Dan", Van Buyten was known for his uncompromising style of play, exploiting both his physical strength and aerial ability. Begi ...

and

Jérôme Boateng Jérôme Agyenim Boateng (born 3 September 1988) is a German professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for French Ligue 1 club Lyon. Boateng started his career at Hertha BSC where he developed from the youth ranks to the first team. Aft ...

in the centre of defence. Following the defender's impressive start with ''Die Roten'', head coach Jupp Heynckes told media Dante was one of the first names on the team sheet, with club captain Phillip Lahm supporting the manager's sentiments: "Dante is one of the best defenders I've ever played with." He secured his first Bundesliga title since moving to Germany after a 1–0 defeat of Eintracht Frankfurt on 6 April 2013 and was seen celebrating with the supporters in the stands following the result. In the Champions League final against Borussia Dortmund, Dante conceded a penalty for a rash challenge but failed to receive a red card in an entertaining 2–1 victory for the Bavarians. With Dante at the heart the defence, Bayern broke

records A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, ...

for fewest goals conceded and most

clean sheets In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

in a Bundesliga season during their treble-winning campaign.

2013–14

In new manager

Pep Guardiola Josep "Pep" Guardiola Sala (; born 18 January 1971) is a Spanish professional football manager and former player, who is the current manager of club Manchester City. He is considered one of the greatest managers of all time and holds the re ...

's first

match, against Dante's former club Borussia Mönchengladbach, Dante scored an own goal after a mix-up with goalkeeper

Manuel Neuer Manuel Peter Neuer (; born 27 March 1986) is a German professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper and captains both club Bayern Munich and the Germany national team. He is regarded as one of the greatest goalkeepers in the history of the ...

. The match nonetheless ended in a 3–1 victory for Bayern. On 21 December 2013, Dante scored the opening goal as Bayern beat

Raja Casablanca Raja Club Athletic ( ar, نادي الرجاء الرياضي, Nādī ar-Rajāʾ ar-Riyāḍī, zgh, ⴰⵙⵔⵉⵔ ⵏ ⵕⴰⵊⴰ ⴰⵎⴰⵏⵓⵏ), commonly referred to as Raja CA, Raja Casablanca or simply RCA is a professional Footb ...

2–0 in the

final Final, Finals or The Final may refer to: *Final (competition), the last or championship round of a sporting competition, match, game, or other contest which decides a winner for an event ** Another term for playoffs, describing a sequence of cont ...

of the

2013 FIFA Club World Cup The 2013 FIFA Club World Cup (officially known as the FIFA Club World Cup Morocco 2013 presented by Toyota for sponsorship reasons) was the 10th edition of the FIFA Club World Cup, a FIFA-organised international club football tournament between t ...

. In February 2014, Dante scored three goals in the space of four matches for Bayern, in Bundesliga wins over Eintracht Frankfurt (5–0) and

SC Freiburg Sport-Club Freiburg e.V., commonly known as SC Freiburg () or just Freiburg, is a German football club, based in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau, Baden-Württemberg. It plays in the Bundesliga, having been promoted as champions from the 2. Bund ...

(4–0) and a

victory over Hamburger SV (5–0). On 24 March 2014, Dante extended his contract with Bayern until June 2017.

VfL Wolfsburg

On 30 August 2015, Dante agreed to move to

for an undisclosed transfer fee. On 13 January 2016, Dante injured teammate Bas Dost in training.

Nice

On 22 August 2016, VfL Wolfsburg announced the departure of Dante to French

Ligue 1 Ligue 1, officially known as Ligue 1 Uber Eats for sponsorship reasons, is a French professional league for men's association football clubs. At the top of the French football league system, it is the country's primary football competition. A ...

side

, with which he signed a three-year contract. On 18 February 2018, he scored his first goal for the club in a 1–1 draw with

Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...

Fan culture

In his time at Borussia Mönchengladbach, Dante was well known for his hair, becoming a cult hero with Borussia fans regularly sporting large

afro The afro is a hair type created by natural growth of kinky hair, or specifically styled with chemical curling products by individuals with naturally curly or straight hair.Garland, Phyl"Is The Afro On Its Way Out?" ''Ebony'', February 1973. ...

wigs as an homage to their favourite player. Bayern fans continued this tradition after the defender's move to Munich.

International career

Brazil and Colombia match at the FIFA World Cup 2014-07-04 (42)

Dante received his first call-up to the Brazil national team on 21 January 2013 by returning coach

Luiz Felipe Scolari Luiz Felipe Scolari (; born 9 November 1948), also known as Felipão ("Big Phil"), is a Brazilian football manager and former player. He is the current manager of Athletico Paranaense. Scolari was a defender during his playing days, and notab ...

to be part of the squad for a friendly against

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, on 6 February at

Wembley Stadium Wembley Stadium (branded as Wembley Stadium connected by EE for sponsorship reasons) is a football stadium in Wembley, London. It opened in 2007 on the site of the Wembley Stadium (1923), original Wembley Stadium, which was demolished from 200 ...

. He started the game, which England won 2–1 after goals from

Wayne Rooney Wayne Mark Rooney (born 24 October 1985) is an English professional football manager and former player, who is the manager of Major League Soccer club D.C. United in the United States. He spent much of his playing career as a forward while als ...

and

Frank Lampard Frank James Lampard (born 20 June 1978) is an English professional football manager and former player who is the manager of club Everton. He is widely regarded as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever players, and one of the greatest midfielder ...

. On 22 June 2013, he scored his first international goal in the final group match of the

2013 FIFA Confederations Cup The 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup was the ninth FIFA Confederations Cup, which was held in Brazil from 15 to 30 June 2013 as a prelude to the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The most recent winners of the six continental championships appeared in the tourna ...

, against

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

at the stroke of half-time, after coming on as a substitute for

David Luiz David Luiz Moreira Marinho (born 22 April 1987) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays for Flamengo. Primarily a centre back, he can also be deployed as a defensive midfielder. After starting out at Vitoria, David Luiz moved to Ben ...

on the 33rd minute. Dante was a member of Brazil's squad for the

, making his only appearance in the

semi-final A single-elimination, knockout, or sudden death tournament is a type of elimination tournament where the loser of each match-up is immediately eliminated from the tournament. Each winner will play another in the next round, until the final matc ...

as a replacement for the suspended

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Thiago Silva Thiago Emiliano da Silva (born 22 September 1984) is a Brazilian professional footballer who plays as a centre-back for club Chelsea and captains the Brazil national team. Considered one of the best defenders of his generation, he is known f ...

, as the ''Seleção'' were defeated by

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

in a record 7–1 scoreline. In a comment regarding the defeat, he said he has "been treated with 'less respect'".

Personal life

Dante is married and has two children. His uncle, Jonilson Veloso, is a football manager.

Career statistics

Club

International

:''Scores and results list Brazil's goal tally first, score column indicates score after each Dante goal''.

Honours

Lille *

UEFA Intertoto Cup The UEFA Intertoto Cup (from la, Inter, 'between' + german: toto, 'betting pool'),Most precisely, from (football pool); cf. often abbreviated and more known in the German-speaking world as UI Cup and originally called the International Foot ...

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

Standard Liège *

: 2007–08 *

Belgian Super Cup The Belgian Super Cup ( nl, Belgische Supercup, ; french: Supercoupe de Belgique; german: Belgischer Fußball-Super Cup), ''Pro League Supercup'', is a Belgian club competition played as a single match between the Belgian First Division A champion ...

2008 File:2008 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: Lehman Brothers went bankrupt following the Subprime mortgage crisis; Cyclone Nargis killed more than 138,000 in Myanmar; A scene from the opening ceremony of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing; ...

Bayern Munich *

: 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15 *

: 2012–13, 2013–14 * DFL-Supercup:

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

UEFA Champions League The UEFA Champions League (abbreviated as UCL, or sometimes, UEFA CL) is an annual club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) and contested by top-division European clubs, deciding the competit ...

: 2012–13 *

UEFA Super Cup The UEFA Super Cup is an annual super cup football match organised by UEFA and contested by the winners of the two main European club competitions; the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League. The competition's official name was originall ...

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

FIFA Club World Cup The FIFA Club World Cup is an international men's association football competition organised by the ''Fédération Internationale de Football Association'' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The competition was first contested in 200 ...

;Brazil *

FIFA Confederations Cup The FIFA Confederations Cup was an international association football tournament for men's national teams, held every four years by FIFA. It was contested by the holders of each of the six continental championships ( AFC, CAF, CONCACAF, CONMEBOL, ...

Nice *

Coupe de France The Coupe de France, formerly known as the Coupe Charles Simon, is the premier knockout cup competition in French football organized by the French Football Federation (FFF). It was first held in 1917 and is open to all amateur and profession ...

runner-up: 2021–22 Individual *

ESM Team of the Year The European Sports Media (ESM), formerly European Sports Magazines, is an association of football-related publications in Europe. Members European Sports Media was established in 1989 as an international body for football journalism. Its nine fo ...

: 2012–13

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dante 1983 births Living people Sportspeople from Salvador, Bahia Afro-Brazilian sportspeople Brazilian footballers Association football central defenders Esporte Clube Juventude players Lille OSC players R. Charleroi S.C. players Standard Liège players Borussia Mönchengladbach players FC Bayern Munich footballers VfL Wolfsburg players OGC Nice players Campeonato Brasileiro Série A players Ligue 1 players Belgian First Division A players Bundesliga players UEFA Champions League winning players Brazil international footballers 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup players 2014 FIFA World Cup players FIFA Confederations Cup-winning players Brazilian expatriate footballers Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in France Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Belgium Brazilian expatriate sportspeople in Germany Expatriate footballers in France Expatriate footballers in Belgium Expatriate footballers in Germany