Arthur Antunes Coimbra, universally known as Zico, spent decades as a professional soccer player and coach, representing Brazil in three FIFA World Cups and leading Japan to victory in the 2004 Asian Cup. His road to success started in his childhood home in Brazil, he explained in his 2026 RootsTech virtual keynote address.
“What did it for me was the upbringing I received at home,” he said in Portuguese.
Zico reflected on hours of practicing and perfecting different soccer drills on his own, inspired by his father, who was a tailor, and his mother, who worked in their home taking care of six children.
“That perfectionism came from my dad. The dedication was from my mother.”
Of the six children in Zico’s family, four became professional soccer players. Zico described playing soccer in the streets of Brazil with his siblings and other neighborhood children, claiming that their childhood played a “huge part” in their development.
“I think that my parents were able to give us the freedom and instill in us the kind of personality that allows you to make your own decisions,” he said.
Now with three children of his own, Zico tried to re-create the kind of upbringing he experienced, telling his now-grown children: “You have all the freedom to choose what you want. Now that you made your choice, dedicate yourself to it.”
Zico recalled his own experience sticking to his choices after one of his worst soccer seasons.
In a moment of grief, Zico determined that he would quit soccer. It was two of his brothers — also professional soccer players — who helped him change his perspective and decide to stick with his dream.
“When you choose soccer, there is no other way,” he said.
Zico’s keynote address can be viewed online, along with other RootsTech 2026 speeches and classes.
