Kakha Kaladze

Club career

Early career Kaladze started his career playing as a striker for his local club Lokomotiv Samtredia, where his father was president, until former Georgia international footballer David Kipiani requested Kakha to join Dinamo Tbilisi. He made his top-flight debut as a 16-year-old with Dinamo during the 1993–94 campaign. where he signed a four-year deal. Here he scored six goals in 71 league games over the two-and-a-half seasons he spent there. Kaladze also appeared in both legs of the semi-final of the 1998–99 Champions League against Bayern Munich, which Dynamo Kyiv lost 4–3 on aggregate. En route to the semi-finals, they beat teams like Real Madrid, Barcelona and Arsenal.

A.C. Milan On 10 February 1999, almost two years before his move to Milan would happen, Kaladze was part of the Dynamo Kyiv team that went to Italy for a mid-season friendly game against AC Milan, which at the time had been in the final stages of negotiations for the transfer of Andriy Shevchenko. As Dynamo won 2–1, it was Kaladze who scored the winner from a free kick with his left foot, which impressed the rossoneri management and put him onto the club's shortlist of potential signings for the team's defense.

In January 2001, Kaladze became the most expensive Georgian footballer in history when Milan paid €16 million to bring him to Italy. Upon his arrival, Kaladze became a regular starter almost immediately, and played mostly as a left-sided defensive midfielder in 4–4–2 or 4–2–1–3 formations, particularly under caretaker coach Cesare Maldini.

In the 2002–03 season, he returned to his original role of a defender (left-sided full back and center back), and made 46 appearances in all competitions, including 27 Serie A appearances. That year, Milan won the Champions League, where they beat Juventus on penalties in the final (despite Kaladze missing his penalty) and the Coppa Italia, where they beat Roma 6–3 on aggregate in the final. After Kaladze's double success, the Georgian postal service issued a special stamp bearing the player's image. He is the first Georgian player to win a Champions League title.

quote="I've always dreamed of playing for a top club abroad, but I could have stayed at Kyiv, picked up an injury and it would all have been over for me. That's why I asked Dynamo president Hryhorii Surkis to put me on the transfer list." — Kakha Kaladze, upon leaving Dynamo Kyiv in relation to Gerasimenko's injury. He was said to be frustrated with his lack of first-team options and a move to Chelsea, in exchange for Hernán Crespo or for £4 million, was widely reported. Kaladze himself said, "I have agreed everything with the Chelsea management. Now it is necessary to wait for them to reach an agreement with Milan and I think I could become a Chelsea player next week." Chelsea opted to sign Asier del Horno instead. On 30 June 2005, Kaladze extended his contract with Milan until 2010 and again on 4 September 2006, this time until 2011. In 2005–06, an injury to Paolo Maldini meant that Kaladze was moved back into the centre of defence, his favoured position.

In the 2006–07 Serie A campaign, Kaladze scored a goal against Sampdoria which turned out to be his only goal of the season. Milan finished in fourth place with an eight-point deduction relating to the previous season's scandal. Kaladze won his second Champions League title on 23 May 2007 after Milan beat Liverpool 2–1 in the final; he came on as a 79th-minute substitute in that match. He later picked up the FIFA Club World Cup in December that year where Milan beat Boca Juniors 4–2 in the final, though Kaladze was one of two players to be sent off in that match. He had established himself as a first-team regular in the 2007–08 season, making 32 appearances, Kaladze's performance on 15 February 2009 Milan derby was described as a "horror show" on the Channel 4 website which started a dispute over an alleged smear campaign between Kaladze and the Georgian newspaper Lelo, who used the quote, "Milan really does need a new centre-back after Kakha Kaladze’s horror show in the derby." Milan finished third in the league that season, ten points behind Serie A champions Inter Milan; Kaladze believed this was caused by the many injuries suffered by the Milan squad. In the 2010–11 season, he played 26 matches and scored one goal, which came against Parma on 30 January 2011. He was named as second-best defender of the 2010–11 Serie A by La Gazzetta dello Sport, being surpassed only by his former teammate, Milan's Thiago Silva. On 12 May 2012, Kaladze announced his retirement from football.

International career Kaladze won his first cap against Cyprus in a friendly match on 27 March 1996, coming on as a 72nd-minute substitute for Mikhail Kavelashvili. Later that year, he was sent off for the first time in his international career against Lebanon in a friendly match. He subsequently featured in his country's qualifying campaigns for the 1998, 2002, 2006 and 2010 FIFA World Cups, and the 2000, 2004 and 2008 UEFA European Championships. Georgia had never qualified for the FIFA World Cup or the UEFA European Championship since they split from the Soviet Union until their historic qualification for Euro 2024. Sadly, this tournament appearance was made long after Kaladze's retirement from football. His competitive debut was against Poland on 14 June 1997 in a 1998 World Cup qualifier; Georgia lost the match 4–1. In qualifying for Euro 2000, Georgia finished at the bottom of the group (Group 2) in sixth place, with just one win. Kaladze occasionally captained the side during these qualifiers in the absence of Georgi Nemsadze. Kaladze played in all of the matches and often missed the friendlies in between. He did, however, feature in a 1–0 victory over neighbouring Russia, a victory considered to be one of Georgia's greatest successes. He played fewer matches during the qualification for Euro 2008 and once again Georgia failed to qualify as they finished in sixth place despite starting their campaign with a 6–0 win over the Faroe Islands.

He scored his first ever international goal against Latvia on 6 February 2008 in a friendly which Georgia lost 3–1. On 5 September 2009, Kaladze scored two own goals in a 2010 World Cup qualifying match against Italy within the space of 11 minutes. The match ended 2–0 to Italy. Kaladze was the captain of the national team, The La Gazzetta dello Sport reporter and the president of International Sports Press Association, AIPS [Italian], Gianni Merlo said: "Kakha Kaladze is a man of the history of football in Georgia. In AC Milan he was a pillar of the defense and also a nice and polite man."

Personal life Kaladze started to learn both Ukrainian and Russian after his move to Dynamo Kyiv and quickly became fluent. He also speaks Italian and English.

On 23 May 2001, Kaladze's younger brother Levan, a medical student, was kidnapped in Georgia with a ransom of $600,000 demanded. Then-President Eduard Shevardnadze promised that "everything is being done to locate him". Despite this assurance, the only time that Levan was ever seen was in a video where he was shown blindfolded and begging for help. Following the kidnapping, Kaladze threatened to take up Ukrainian citizenship, Roughly four years later, on 6 May 2005, Georgian police officers found eight dead bodies in the Svaneti region and it was speculated that Levan was among them. On 21 February 2006, Levan was officially identified among the deceased, The local media claimed that the ransom was paid by Kaladze's family,

Kaladze has also been active in charitable causes and is a FIFA ambassador for the SOS Children's Villages. Through his Kala Foundation, a charitable organisation established in 2008, Kaladze raised €50,000 to benefit South Ossetian refugees during the Russian invasion of Georgia. Kaladze also plans to release an autobiography with the proceeds going to the Kala Foundation.

Political career

Business ventures Along with his football career, Kaladze is an investor in Georgia, Italy, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. Kaladze owns Kala Capital, an investment company established in 2008 in Georgia with a focus on energy businesses, and whose chief executive is former Georgian Prime Minister Zurab Noghaideli.

Kaladze's other businesses include the Buddha Bar in Kyiv that opened in 2008. Kaladze is also the owner of a restaurant called Giannino, founded in 1899 by Giannino Bindi, which is based in Milan. The restaurant has had a Michelin star under Davide Oldani and the chef in charge was Roberto Molinari.

Kala Capital owned 45 percent of the Georgia Hydropower Construction Company company SakHidroEnergoMsheni, a joint stock company incorporated in Georgia in 1998. His candidacy as Minister of Energy and Natural Resources in October 2012 was therefore overshadowed by concerns about a serious risk that a conflict of interests might arise. Reports on the same day indicated that Kaladze might refuse the energy portfolio or sell off his shares in Georgia Hydropower Construction Company within 10 days of his appointment.

Political office and conflict of interests Kaladze became involved in the politics of Georgia as a member of the opposition Georgian Dream–Democratic Georgia party founded by billionaire Bidzina Ivanishvili in February 2012. He was elected to the Parliament of Georgia on 1 October 2012 as majoritarian of Samtredia constituency. He was approved as Deputy Prime Minister as well as Minister of Energy in the cabinet of Bidzina Ivanishvili on 25 October 2012. More importantly, it stirred an intense debate on a conflict of interest arising from Kaladze's business interests in the Georgia Hydropower Construction Company, in which Kala Capital owned 45 percent. Kala Capital sold the shares to GMC Group in November 2012 but concerns whether his indirect commercial interests had been abandoned remain.

Mayor of Tbilisi In July 2017, Kaladze resigned as Energy minister in order to run for Tbilisi mayor in the upcoming local elections. On 22 October, he was elected mayor as a candidate of Georgian Dream, winning the elections with 51% of the votes. He was sworn in on 13 November 2017.

Kaladze won reelection in 2021 with 55% of the vote. His second term expires after the 2025 election.

In sanctions list On 5 December 2024, President Zelenskyy imposed sanctions against Bidzina Ivanishvili and his 18 associates, including Kaladze, amid a violent crackdown on participants of pro-EU protests. In response, Kaladze explained to media reporters the next day that "Zelenskyy does not belong to himself, the Ukrainian people and Ukraine as he serves another country".

On 15 December 2024, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys announced sanctions against 17 Georgian Dream officials, Kaladze among them. On the same day, Estonia imposed a travel ban against 14 officials and judges with Kaladze also being in the list.

Тhe Ukrainian Ministry of Sport announced on 27 February 2025 that Kakha Kaladze had his title Маster of Sports of International Class revoked. This decision stemmed from a relevant presidential decree signed five days earlier which sanctioned 34 individuals in relation to the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Controversy Kaladze is known for his blunt language and manners. As he once revealed to reporters, "I never show restraint. Whenever I have to say something, I always express myself and never shy away regardless of how hard it is to see".

On 14 November 2019, while sitting in a car he showed his middle finger to participants of a rally at the Georgian Dream HQ, although in the same day he denied it being directed at protesters.

Career statistics Club

International

Scores and results list Georgia's goal tally first. Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition 1. 6 February 2008 Boris Paichadze Stadium, Tbilisi 1–3 1–3 Friendly

Honours Dinamo Tbilisi Georgian League: 1993–94, 1994–95, 1995–96, 1996–97, 1997–98 Georgian Cup: 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997 Georgian Super Cup: 1996, 1997

Dynamo Kyiv Ukrainian Premier League: 1998–99, 1999–2000, 2000–01 Ukrainian Cup: 1997–98, 1998–99, 1999–2000

Milan Serie A: 2003–04 Coppa Italia: 2002–03 Supercoppa Italiana: 2004 UEFA Champions League: 2002–03, 2006–07 UEFA Super Cup: 2003, 2007 FIFA Club World Cup: 2007

Individual Georgian Footballer of the Year: 2001, 2002, 2003, 2006, 2011 A.C. Milan Hall of Fame Source: Eurosport at Yahoo

Electoral history