Former Sunderland and Everton defender Bryan Oviedo has announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 36
Former Sunderland and Everton defender Bryan Oviedo has announced his retirement from professional football at the age of 36.
The Costa Rica international calls time on a lengthy career which included spells in England, Denmark, the United States and his homeland. Oviedo had most recently played for AD San Carlos before leaving the Costa Rican club at the end of 2025, having subsequently spent several months without a team.
Oviedo will be remembered on Wearside after joining Sunderland from Everton in January 2017, reuniting with former Toffees manager David Moyes. He went on to make 70 appearances for the Black Cats across the Premier League, Championship and League One before returning to FC Copenhagen in the summer of 2019.
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The left-back had previously spent almost five years at Everton after arriving from Copenhagen in 2012. He made 68 appearances for the Merseyside club, with one of his most memorable moments coming when he scored the winner against Manchester United at Old Trafford in December 2013.
Oviedo later returned to Copenhagen before heading to MLS with Real Salt Lake in 2022, where he made 56 appearances across all competitions before leaving in 2024. He also enjoyed a distinguished international career with Costa Rica, featuring at both the 2018 and 2022 World Cups after a serious leg injury cruelly ruled him out of the 2014 tournament. Oviedo now brings the curtain down on a career spanning almost two decades.
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Former Sunderland, Everton and Copenhagen defender announces retirement aged 36
Former Sunderland, Everton and Copenhagen defender announces retirement aged 36