Neymar sued by personal chef as severe overworking allegedly caused medical issues

Martin Macdonald

• 7 Mar 2026 07:01 CST
• 4 min read

News

Neymar is being sued by his former personal chef who was reportedly forced to work 16-hour days, resulting in medical problems and physical trauma.

The chef, who has not been named in the legal proceedings as of yet, was initially hired to work 7am to 5pm Monday to Thursday, and 7am to 4pm on Fridays.

However, Neymar reportedly had an entourage of up to 150 people with him at any given day in his villa in Casa Hotel Portobello in Rio de Janeiro's Mangaratiba municipality which led to the chef having to work through legally-required lunch breaks and as late as midnight on some days.

Brazilian outlet Metropoles reports that the chef routinely had to work 16-hour days, far more than her contract stipulated.

The workload, having to do everything herself, and having to carry around extremely heavy shopping bags as well as 10kg slabs of meat led to her developing physical problems like an inflamed hip and back problems.

The chef's legal team stated in an official document: "The claimant did not regularly enjoy a lunch break. Throughout the entire employment contract, the plaintiff was required by the defendant to clock in for the lunch break, even though she remained actively working during that period."

The employee was paid around £1,065 per month and is now seeking a total of £37,544 in damages for severance pay, medical bills, unpaid overtime and damages for working more than her mandated hours.

Neymar returned to Brazil with Santos after a disastrous spell with Al-Hilal in Saudi Arabia. At the moment, he is desperately trying to prove his fitness to Selecao boss Carlo Ancelotti in time for the upcoming 2026 World Cup.

Neymar to retire soon?

Neymar previously announced that this could be his last season of professional football.

The former Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain star celebrated his 34th birthday last month, but the he appears to have little intention of following in the footsteps of Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi by playing too much longer.

Indeed, in an interview with Caze TV, the Santos attacker has indicated that he could call time on his career following the 2026 World Cup.

“I don’t know what the future holds,” Neymar admitted.

“I don’t know what next year will bring. It’s possible that in December I’ll want to retire. I’m taking it one day at a time now.

“This year is very important, not only for Santos, but also for the Brazilian national team, because it’s the World Cup year.

“For me too, it’s a huge challenge. I’m taking it one day at a time. I don’t know what the future holds, I don’t know what next year will bring.

“It’s possible that in December I’ll want to retire, but it will be a decision that comes from the heart. I’m taking it one day at a time. We’re moving forward little by little.”

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