On 21 May, when the footballing world celebrates one hundred years of FIFA, there will be another person at football's world governing body with some celebrating of his own to do. Argentinian Raúl Madero, a member of the FIFA Sports Medical Committee and the FIFA Medical Assessment and Research Centre (F-MARC), will be celebrating his 65th birthday that same day.

"I think it was written in the stars that football would be an integral part of my life," he says with a smile to FIFA.com. "I was born on the 35th anniversary of FIFA. Which perhaps explains why my life has always seemed to revolve around football. First I was a professional footballer, then I became the Argentinian team doctor for the FIFA World Cup™ finals, and today I'm on the FIFA Medical Committee. Now if that's not destiny, then I don't know what is,"says Madero, who specialises in sports medicine, traumatology and orthopaedics.

A late start for a precocious talent
The case of Raúl Madero must be one of the strangest success stories in the history of football. As a youth he played a variety of sports but showed no interest whatsoever in football. "As a teenager I was a big basketball fan and only started to play football when I turned 17." Barely eight months later he was playing first team football in the Argentinian first division.

There he played for Boca Juniors, Huracán and Estudiantes de La Plata, where alongside Carlos Bilardo he won multiple domestic honours, two Copa Libertadores, the Copa Intercontinental and the Copa Interamericana. If that were not impressive enough, he also represented his country at junior and senior level.

When Madero finally hung up his boots, he decided to stay in the sport. Being a qualified physician he joined Argentinos Juniors as team doctor where he first worked with the legendary Diego Maradona. "Diego was there at the time and we got on so well that when he left to join Boca Juniors he took me with him," recalls the Argentinian. Doctor Madero was on his way again in 1983, when Carlos Bilardo offered him the chance to work with the national team "There are a lot of similarities between Carlos and I. Our professional paths keep crossing again and again. At club level both of us won multiple titles. Later we worked together with the national side at the 1986 and 1990 FIFA World Cup™ finals. Now we are both still in the game: him as a coach and me as FIFA doctor," he says proudly.

Without doubt, the highlight of Madero's career came in 1986, when Argentina were crowned world champions in Mexico. "It was a remarkable experience. We had a brilliant team at the time. I'm not a world champion though, that's an accolade reserved only for the players. I simply had the privilege of attending them." Among the doctor's charges once again was Diego Maradona. All I will say is that I found him a model patient. More than that I can't say, as that would be an unforgivable breach of professional ethics.
Professional Pride
As a doctor, Raúl Madero has a long and impressive CV. As well as his work for FIFA, he also held the post of official doctor for Argentina's Football Association for more than 20 years. Later he worked as a FIFA instructor and lecturer before becoming a member of the Federation's Sports Medical Committee in 1996. Not content with his already onerous responsibilities, Doctor Madero applied to work at FIFA's state-of-the-art and Medical Research Centre and was accepted. "There was competition from doctors the world over for that position, I guess I was one of the lucky ones," he says modestly.

"Working here is the ultimate honour. After all, this is the home of football. If I am completely honest with you, it's a privilege that I'm not sure I deserve. I look at it as one of life's blessings," the doctor says humbly. Whatever the case may be, Madero will be celebrating this Friday alongside FIFA, where he might just raise a glass to destiny.