Football player Romario to enter politics

Romario, who also faces tax evasion allegations and is embroiled in an illegal betting probe, was forced to sell a luxury appartment.

World Cup winner Romario is to run for election to the national parliament as he fights off debts and fraud charges.

The 43-year-old, who scored 70 goals in 80 games for Brazil and was part of the 1994 World Cup-winning squad, was to join the socialist party and stand in the 2010 federal elections, the daily O Globo reported Tuesday.

"Romario will have policies and can't just depend on the votes of his supporters," the party's Rio state chairman Alexandre Cardos told the paper.

In August, Romario, who also faces tax evasion allegations and is embroiled in an illegal betting probe, was forced to sell a luxury penthouse appartment here, which fetched 4.37 million dollars.

All profits from the sale were seized by the judicial authorities to help pay his debts.

Romario, whose full name is Romario de Souza Faria, played for a host of top clubs including PSV Eindhoven and Barcelona and finished his career at Brazilian side Vasco de Gama in 2008.