Ricky then moved on to Santo André, a club from the ABC region in Greater São Paulo which his father, the former footballer Lela, has also defended during his playing career.

Loaned to Fortaleza and Austrian top flight club Salzburg, the midfielder drew the attention of São Paulo city giants Palmeiras.

Under the command of Ramalho, Richarlyson went on to have the best phase of his career as a footballer, being an integral part of São Paulo's three Campeonato Brasileiro championships in a row.

[5] At the peak of his career, Richarlyson was called by the Brazil national team's coach Dunga for their friendly against Republic of Ireland.

[6] Richarlyson, despite his success for the club, was a target of constant scrutiny and abuse over allegations of homosexuality, to the point where even São Paulo supporters would sing demeaning and homophobic chants against him.

[18] On 25 June 2007, the newspaper Agora São Paulo reported that a football player of a major team would come out of the closet as a homosexual in an exclusive interview for the weekly newsmagazine Fantástico.

The following day, Brazilian sports commentator Milton Neves invited the director of Palmeiras football club José Cyrillo Júnior for his live TV show Debate Bola.