Patrick Vieira retires from Football

French 1998 FIFA World Cup winner Patrick Vieira officially retired from competitive football today. Vieira couldn't have chosen a more patriotic day for the French then July 14 is Bastille Day (the French National Day).

The 35 year old had been released from his contract by Manchester City at the end of last season after having been coach Roberto Mancini's first signing in January 2010. Vieira would go on to play 45 games for the Citizen's and ended it with the FA Cup trophy.

The Dakar born midfielder was a key element of the Equipe Tricolore in their 1998 FIFA World Cup and 2000 UEFA European Championship triumphs playing alongside players like Zinedine Zidane, Laurent Blanc and Fabian Barthez. Vieira played 107 times for France.

Vieira would go on to play professional football for 18 years. He started his career at AS Cannes before playing for AC Milan, FC Arsenal London, Juventus Turin, Internationale Milan and Manchester City. The Frenchman is best known for his club football at FC Arsenal under Arsene Wenger, who he captained a number of years, alongside players like Thierry Henry, Tony Adams, Freddie Ljungberg and Jens Lehmann to name a few.

Vieira already knows what he is doing after ending his career. The new post of 'Football Development Executive' has been created by Manchester City for him, in which he will be involved in overseeing the club's youth team players and promoting community projects around the world.