The AFL career of Carlton champion Chris Judd is over, the 31-year-old confirming his retirement at a packed press conference at Ikon Park on Tuesday.

Judd ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in the first quarter of his side’s loss to Adelaide at the MCG on Saturday.

• Chris, it wasn’t meant to end like this

The 2015 season was widely expected to be his last, and the knee injury brings a premature end to a stunning career.

“You don’t get to write your ending,” Judd said.

“But it’s been a very fortunate journey.

“It was a disappointing finish to my career but I don’t lose sight of the fact about how fortunate I’ve been to play for two such wonderful football clubs.”

Judd said he knew he had played his last game of footy as soon as the cruciate ligament rupture was confirmed.

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“Once I hurt myself and that it was an ACL, not for a second did I think I was going to play another game of footy,” he said.

He leaves the game as one of the modern greats.

Judd boasts two Brownlow Medals, a Norm Smith Medal, six All-Australian nods and a premiership, as captain of West Coast in 2006.

He played 279 games, 134 of them with the Eagles and 145 with Carlton.

Judd declared the 2006 premiership, when the Eagles pipped the Sydney Swans by just one point, as the stand-out moment of his career.

“Winning the premiership stands head and shoulders above the rest,” he said.

Judd said he erred by playing on in 2015.

“Clearly it was the wrong decision to go on,” he said.

“As it turned out, it was the wrong decision but it was very much made for the right reasons.

“My motives were pure.”

Judd suggested his future would involve “something entrepreneurial”.

“I don’t see myself working in football,” said Judd, who hinted at buying a small business.