'When the hate came my way, I did even more' - Zlatan Ibrahimovic reveals 'gypsy' insults motivated him to silence opposition fans and says he 'opened the doors' for new generation of Sweden stars

Ibrahimovic appeared on This Is Me, speaking candidly about life after football. Now a senior advisor at RedBird, he reflected on raising his sons, Maximilian and Vincent, both part of Milan’s youth setup. “They think they’re already stronger than me,” Zlatan joked. “It helps them, but for my ego, it’s impossible. What matters is that they’re well.”

He also paid tribute to Milan, the club he calls his “home.” “Milan gave me happiness the first time and love the second time,” said the two-time Scudetto winner. “When I returned, I played with teammates 20 years younger. My farewell was emotional, I didn’t want to plan it because I wanted my emotions to be real,” Ibrahimovic said.

In a 2021 Serie A match against Roma at the Stadio Olimpico, Ibrahimovic was subjected to racist chants by some Roma fans. Despite the abuse, the ex-Milan forward used the incident as motivation rather than letting it affect him negatively. As the verbal jibes rained down on him, Ibrahimovic silenced the crowd by firing Milan into the lead after 25 minutes and was subsequently booked for gesturing at the crowd in his celebration. It was his 150th Serie A goal and 400th across all domestic leagues.

Opening up about what happened during the match, Ibra said: "I remember that day, 50,000 people were shouting 'You're a gypsy' after the goal. I pretended not to hear because I wanted even more, because that way they would motivate me. When I was on the pitch and the hate came my way, I did even more , because I needed motivation. Then when the crowd started doing it, I thought 'louder, louder, louder.' Then the referee booked me, which I don't understand."

The incident led to sanctions for Roma, including a suspended stadium ban for their Curva Sud section, where the racist abuse originated. Roma publicly stated their zero tolerance for racism and commitment to fighting discrimination.

Ibrahimovic’s story began far from the glamour of San Siro. Born in Malmo’s tough Rosengard district, he grew up amid poverty and struggle, experiences that hardened him early. “I worked, I made sacrifices, I went against everyone. I had to be stronger than the others to make myself known,” he recalled. Football became his escape, his motivation, and his rebellion. His difficult childhood was marked by hunger, broken homes, and street fights but this is what eventually forged his resilience. “Either I’d do this for real or waste my time,” he once said of his early Malmo days.

"I worked, I made sacrifices, I went against everyone. I had to be stronger than the others to make myself known and have the opportunity to make it. Today I can say I've opened the doors to second generations in Sweden," he said.

Ibrahimovic began his career at Malmo in 1999 before moving to Ajax in 2001, where he won two Eredivisie titles. He then played for Juventus and Inter, winning three Serie A titles, and then moved to Barcelona in 2009, securing La Liga and several international trophies but clashing with manager Pep Guardiola. Returning to Italy with Milan in 2010, he clinched another Serie A title. At Paris Saint-Germain, the Swede dominated Ligue 1 with four consecutive titles and became the club's all-time top scorer, though he was then overtaken by Edinson Cavani and then Kylian Mbappe. Brief spells at Manchester United in 2016, winning the Europa League, and LA Galaxy in 2018 followed, before Zlatan returned to Milan in 2020, helping them win Serie A in 2022 despite an ACL injury.

Ibrahimovic has always seen himself as operating on a different level - “Planet Zlatan,” he called it in a previous interview. Growing up in Malmo’s tough neighbourhoods, he felt like an outsider, underestimated and unwelcome. Yet he transformed that difference into a unique identity and unmatched confidence. “I came from my own planet, with something that no one has seen,” he told BBC in 2018.

Across his two spells at Milan, Ibra made around 163 appearances, scoring 93 goals overall, including 76 goals in 125 Serie A matches. His journey from adversity to global football icon has left a lasting legacy, inspiring a new generation of players to follow in his footsteps.