Tom Brady officially announces retirement: 'The future is exciting'

The GOAT has officially left the building ... er, the stadium.

Football legend and Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback Tom Brady on Tuesday confirmed his retirement in a lengthy Instagram post, bringing an end to his legendary 22-season run.

In explaining his decision, Brady, 44, said he was no longer going to make the "competitive commitment" required to be a part of the NFL, and instead plans to "focus my time and energy on other things that require my attention."

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"My teammates, coaches, fellow competitors, and fans deserve 100 percent of me, but right now, it's best I leave the field of play to the next generation of dedicated committed athletes," he wrote.

The beloved (and despised, depending on who you root for) quarterback then thanked a multitude of people, including his fellow Bucs teammates, the fans, and his family.

"I feel like the luckiest person in the world," he said.

ESPN broke the news of Brady's reported retirement on Saturday, though the athlete hadn't yet confirmed the news himself.

"The future is exciting," Brady wrote in his post Tuesday. "I am going to take it day by day. I know for sure I want to spend a lot of time giving to others and trying to enrich other people's lives, just as so many have done for me."