Curtis Davies, a former Hull City and Derby County defender, has announced his retirement after a career spanning more than 20 years.
Cheltenham Town released the 39-year-old centre-back following their relegation from League One last season.
Davies made a total of 677 professional appearances in English football after making his debut with Luton Town in 2003.
He later played for West Bromwich Albion, Aston Villa, Leicester City, Birmingham City, Hull City, Derby County, and Cheltenham, scoring in the Tigers’ FA Cup final defeat to Arsenal in 2013-14.
Davies has three caps for Sierra Leone and three appearances for England Under-21s.
“The day has finally come,” he said on his official X account., external
“After much thought over the last few months, I’ve decided to retire from football.”
“Growing up, all I wanted to be was a football player. So, to be able to play and score at Wembley Stadium, compete in the Premier League, and represent both England U21 and Sierra Leone over the course of 23 years was a dream come true.
“There have been plenty of ups and maybe even more downs, but all combined it made my journey a very special one.”
Davies won League One with Luton and was part of Birmingham’s League Cup-winning squad in 2010-11, however he was cup-tied and therefore unable to participate in the final.
Davies made 145 appearances for Hull, scoring seven goals.
His FA Cup final goal put the Tigers ahead 2-0 against Arsenal, but the Gunners came back to win 3-2.
He moved to Derby in 2017 after Hull was relegated from the Premier League, where he played 175 games and helped the Rams reach the Championship play-off final in 2018-19.
He joined Cheltenham last summer and made 39 appearances as the club was relegated to League Two.