Former Sunderland and PSV Eindhoven goalkeeper Robbin Ruiter has announced his retirement from football at the age of 37. The Dutch shot stopper announced the news on Instagram, saying that it was a ‘difficult decision’ to call time on his 14-year professional career. Robbin Ruiter represented seven different clubs during that time, with his most memorable spells coming at FC Utrecht and Sunderland.
‘I have decided to quit professional football,’ Ruiter wrote on social media. ‘I still had several opportunities to continue my career, but the challenge I was looking for no longer came along. A football life that started around 30 years ago has taken me past great clubs like FC Volendam, Utrecht, Sunderland AFC, PSV, Willem II, Cambuur Leeuwarden and very briefly FC Nordsjaelland.’
Ruiter featured 21 times for Sunderland between 2017 and 2019. He was a prominent figure in the hit Netflix documentary series ‘Sunderland ‘Til I Die,’ featuring for the Black Cats as they dropped down from the Championship into League One. Prior to his spell in England, Robbin Ruiter spent five seasons with Utrecht, playing 157 times for the Eredivisie side.
