Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro (Born on 5 February 1985 in Funchal, Madeira), better known as Cristiano Ronaldo or CR7, is a Portuguese footballer who played as a striker for Manchester United Football Club in the English Premier League and the Portugal national team and all-time top scorer. Today, he plays as a forward for and is captain of Saudi Professional League club Al Nassr.
Usually identified in the media with the number name CR7, Cristiano Ronaldo is often considered the best and most complete footballer and scorer in the world and one of the best of all time, by many people and press linked to sport, as well as one of the most media figures of his generation. He is, with 813 goals, the top scorer in the history of professional football, and with 450.25 the all-time top scorer of Real Madrid Club de Fútbol, achieving it in the nine seasons he played in this club. He is also, according to the portals experts in historical statistics of Rec.Sport.Soccer Statistics Foundation (RSSSF) and International Federation of Football History and Statistics (IFFHS), the third top scorer in the European First Division championships, with 497 goals – the same record worldwide. The data are recognized by UEFA and FIFA.
Throughout his professional career, he has managed to break several records. Among them, they stand out being the first player who managed to win four Golden Boots, being the second player in history who has won the Golden Ball more times (with five) – three Golden Balls and two FIFA Golden Balls – being the first to win THE FIFA Best award for the best player in the world – and the one who has achieved it the most with two with Robert Lewandowski —, to be the historical top scorer of the Portuguese national team (117), the world’s top scorer at the level of national teams, and to be the historical top scorer of the Champions League (141) counting the previous phase, competition in which he also holds the marks of most goals in an edition of the tournament —17 goals in 11 matches (2013-14) —, of more goals in a group stage of the tournament —11 goals in six matches (2015-16) — and of more times top scorer of the tournament with seven editions.
He is, in addition, the Madridista who needed fewer games (92) to reach one hundred goals in the national league championship and the player who needed the fewest games (140) to reach 150 goals in the history of the League, the first player in the history of the competition who managed to score all the teams he faced in a season, the only player capable of scoring in six consecutive Clasicos, or the only one to score in six consecutive visits to the Camp Nou, the stadium of maximum rivalry for the whites.
His consecration as an elite footballer occurred in his time at Manchester United Football Club, where after winning three Premier League, two EFL Cup, an FA Cup, two Community Shield, a Champions League and a Club World Cup, he was awarded the Golden Ball, the FIFA World Player, and the Golden Boot, trophies that credited him as the best footballer in the world as of 2008.
After starring in the most expensive transfer in the history of football at the time, he landed at Real Madrid Club de Fútbol, where he improved as a footballer reaching his highest records in play and goals. In the Spanish club, he was the first player to surpass the historic figure of thirty-eight goals in a league season, placing the new mark at forty goals, 41 records that served to win his second Golden Boot in 2011.
He won as a Madridista two Copas del Rey, two Leagues, and two Spanish Super Cups, thus completing the Spanish triple crown, plus four Champions Leagues, three European Super Cups and three Club World Cups. His performances led him to win four other Golden Balls – in 2013, 2014, 2016 and 2017 –and two other Golden Boots – in 2014 and 2015 – and to be among the three best players in the world for eight seasons. He is the player who has won the UEFA Best Player Award in Europe the most times, with three titles.
Absolute international with the Portuguese national team since 2003, he has played five European Championships, four World Cups, a Confederations Cup and two Nations Leagues, where his greatest achievements were the conquests of the titles in the Euro 2016 and in the Nations League 2018-19. As for the World Cup and the Confederations Cup, a fourth place in Germany 2006 and a third place in Russia 2017 respectively, were his best performances. He is one of the members players of the FIFA Century Club, formed by footballers with more than one hundred internationals with their national team. His 186 matches place him third on the list as of 2022 – the one he has played the most in the history of Portugal – and first at UEFA level.
On December 14, 2020, he was included as a left winger in the first historical Dream Team of the Golden Ball and on December 27 of the same year, he was chosen as the best Player of the XXI Century.
Since 2014, he is Grand Officer of the Order of the Infante Don Enrique, one of the highest recognitions granted in Portugal, for his provision of relevant services granted to his country, as well as its cultural, historical and values expansion.
In 2020, he had $1050 million, making him soccer’s first billionaire.
In 2021 it had 1200 million dollars.
Childhood and Beginnings
Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro was born in São Pedro, Funchal, on the Portuguese island of Madeira, and grew up in the Santo António area, one of Portugal’s poorest neighborhoods. He is the fourth and youngest child of the marriage between Maria Dolores dos Santos Viveiros (b. 1953), a cook, and José Dinis Aveiro (1954-2005), a municipal gardener and prop. His paternal great-grandmother, Isabel da Piedade, was from the island of São Vicente, Cape Verde.
She has an older brother, Hugo (b. 1975) and two older sisters, Elma (b. 1973) and Liliana Cátia “Katia” (b. 1977), who is a singer. His mother revealed that when she was pregnant with him she wanted to abort him, because of his father’s addiction to alcohol, the family’s poor financial situation and because he already had too many children. However, his doctor refused to perform the procedure. Cristiano grew up in a Catholic family and in a home of poor conditions, sleeping in the same room with all his brothers.
He began to stand out among his teammates at Andorinha, his first club and where his father worked as a prop. He had as idols his compatriots Rui Costa, Fernando Couto and Luís Figo. At the age of ten, the great teams of Madeira, C. S. Marítimo and C. D. Nacional, had already taken an interest in his recruitment. He finally joined the ranks of Nacional, where he continued his progression, becoming one of the brightest promises of Portuguese football.
In 1997, he made a three-day trial to sign for Sporting Club of Portugal and finally left C. D. Nacional to become part of the club in Lisbon, the Portuguese capital, having to move alone and move away from his family. Cristiano would comment years later that this was one of the most difficult decisions of his life, but that it was worth it for his football career. At that time the C. D. Nacional had a debt of 450,000 shields that were paid thanks to the progression and trajectory harvested by Ronaldo in his transfer to Lisbon.
Once the transfer was completed, he began his new journey in the discipline of the Lisbon club from the 1997-98 season. In the quarry run by Leonardo Véliz, he was assigned, along with the rest of his colleagues, including Ricardo Quaresma and Hugo Viana, psychologists, personalized tutors to guide him in his studies and doctors who observed his physical growth, which contributed to his training as a person and footballer.
When he was fifteen, he was diagnosed with a heart problem that may have forced him to retire from playing football. Sporting Lisbon informed his mother about the problem, who, aware of the risks, gave him permission to go to the hospital. He then underwent an operation in which the area of the heart that was causing the problem was analyzed through laser surgery. The surgery was performed in the morning and Cristiano was discharged from the hospital the same afternoon and a few days later he returned to training without problems.
Cristiano Ronaldo club career
Sporting C. P.
His great football development ended up leading him to play his first minutes as a professional when he was 17 years old, in the qualifying match for the UEFA Champions League on August 14, 2002, against Inter Milan. His debut in the First Division came on 30 September against Sporting Club of Braga in which his team was defeated 4–2. However, in his second league match played on 7 October against Moreirense, Cristiano scored two goals in the 3-0 final, which made a great impression on fans and the press, becoming part of the group of regulars of the sporting’s first team. With his goal, he became the youngest goal scorer in the history of Sporting, at 17 years and 8 months. He also became the first player to play in a season in Sporting’s youth, in the subsidiary team and in the first team.
In 2002, he came close to signing for Juventus through a trade for Chilean Marcelo Salas, but the latter refused to play in Portuguese football. He was first observed by Gérard Houllier, the Manager of Liverpool, but refused to sign him because he considered him too young and because he still had to develop his skills further. However, in the summer of 2003, Sporting and Manchester United played a friendly match on the inauguration of the José Alvalade Stadium for Euro 2004. In that match, the young winger put together a magnificent performance that would amaze both the rival players themselves and his coach Alex Ferguson, who got the transfer of the Portuguese to the English club shortly after that same summer.
Manchester United F. C. and Cristiano Ronaldo
Development and emergence in England (2003-2007)
For the 2003–04 season, Ronaldo became the first Portuguese player in Manchester United’s history. Ronaldo signed a contract with the club for 5 years at the price of €12 million euros. The price of his signing made him the most expensive transfer for a young player in the history of English football at the time. Despite having asked for the number 28, the one he had at Sporting de Portugal, coach Sir Alex Ferguson assigned him the number ‘7’ left by the former Manchester captain, David Beckham, and which had been used by club legends such as George Best and Éric Cantona. Using the number 7 served as an extra motivation for Ronaldo.
A key element in his development in England was his coach, Ferguson, whom he described years later as his “footballing father” and “one of the most important people in my career”. Mike Phelan, Ferguson’s assistant for years, commented in an interview that they had to transform Cristiano from an individualistic player to a team player, demanding hard training that the Portuguese accepted and followed perfectly.
He made his Premier League debut on 16 August 2003, against Bolton Wanderers, coming on in the 60th minute for English midfielder Nicky Butt. In addition, received a standing ovation when he took the field, and his performance was met with great acclaim by George Best, describing it as “the most exciting debut I’ve seen in years”. He scored his first direct foul goal in a 3–0 win over Portsmouth on 1 November at Old Trafford. He scored three more goals in the second half of the season, the last coming from the last day of the league against Aston Villa, a game in which he also received the first red card of his career.
Ronaldo finished his first season in England by winning the FA Cup, beating Millwall 3-0 in Cardiff in League One, England’s third tier; Ronaldo opened the scoring and was named the man of the match. However, the British press was critical of Cristiano during the season for his “too elaborate” dribbling when trying to dribble an opponent, but his teammate Gary Neville said he was “not an exhibition pony, but something real”, and predicted that he would become a world-class player.
During the start of 2005, Ronaldo played two of his best games of the 2004–05 season, producing a goal and an assist against Aston Villa and making a brace against Arsenal, the rivals to the title. He played the full 120 minutes in the 2004–05 FA Cup final against Arsenal, which ended in a goalless draw, and scored his chance in the penalty shootout that ended in defeat. Ronaldo scored Manchester United’s 1000th Premier League goal in a 4–1 defeat to Middlesbrough. For half the season, in November, he signed a new contract that extended his previous deal to two more years until 2010. Ronaldo won his second title in English football, the League Cup, after scoring the third goal of United’s 4-0 win over Wigan Athletic.
In his third season in England, Ronaldo was involved in several incidents. He was sanctioned for a match by UEFA for “lifting his finger” on Benfica fans, and was sent off in the Manchester derby when he fouled City player Andy Cole. During this season he also had several problems with his teammate Ruud van Nistelrooy, who criticized the Portuguese’s way of playing.
At the 2006 World Cup in Germany, in a clash between Portugal and England, following a foul involving his teammate Wayne Rooney, Cristiano demanded that the referee expel the English striker from the match. This led to the defeat of England, and subsequently the booing by United fans towards Ronaldo, who publicly asked to be transferred, lamenting the little support he had from the club after the incident. However, United refused to allow him to leave the club.
Despite the altercation, the 2006–07 season would be Cristiano’s final emergence into the team, breaking the 20-goal barrier and winning the Premier League for the first time. A key part of his growth was his personal training with the team’s coach, René Meulensteen, who taught him to be more unpredictable, to improve his team play and to capitalize on his scoring chances rather than wait for the opportunity to score the aesthetic goals of which he was already known.
He scored three doubles in a row at the end of December, against Aston Villa (an important victory that led United to be leaders of the table), Wigan, and Reading, which led him to be designated in November and December by the Barclays Premier League as the “Player of the Month”, being only the third player to receive two consecutive honors.
The settlement as the best player in the world and conquest of Europe (2007-08)
In the quarter-finals of the 2006–07 UEFA Champions League, Ronaldo scored his first goal in his 30th appearance in the competition, finding the net twice in a 7–1 win over Roma. He would then score in the first leg of the semi-finals against Milan, in just four minutes of the match, which would end in a 3-2 victory although he would later be eliminated in the second leg after a 3-0 defeat at San Siro.
He also helped United reach the FA Cup final, but the decisive match against Chelsea ended in a 1–0 defeat. Cristiano scored the only goal in the Manchester derby on 5 May 2007 (his 50th goal for the club), the day Manchester United claimed their first Premier League title after a four-year drought. As a result of his performances, he was awarded by the PFA with the “Player of the Year”, “Fan Favorite Player”, and “Young Player of the Year” awards, and by the FWA “Player of the Year”, being the first player to win all four awards by the PFA and FWA.
The Portuguese newspaper A Bola also awarded him as ‘Portuguese Sportsman of the Year’, for his important contribution to the expansion of Portuguese football throughout the world. At the same time, his salary at the club was raised to £120,000 per week (£31 million in total) as part of a five-year contract extension with United. Ronaldo was named second in the Golden Ball voting, behind Kaka, and finished third in the FIFA World Player award, behind Lionel Messi and Kaka.
On August 5, he added a new title to his showcases by conquering the Community Shield after beating Chelsea in the penalty shootout, and after a new dubious start to the tournament, he expanded his number of goals to become the winger who has scored the most goals in the same season at United, surpassing the 32-goal mark set by Northern Irishman George Best during the 1967–68 season.
He scored his first hat-trick of two for Manchester on 12 January 2008 against Newcastle United in a 6–0 victory, which took United to the top of the league table. A month later, on 19 March, he captained United for the first time in a home win against Bolton, scoring a brace. His 31 league goals earned him the Premier League Golden Boot for the first time, as well as the European Golden Boot, which made him the first winger to do so. Additionally, he also won the PFA and FWA “Player of the Year” awards for the second consecutive season.
His performances finally led him to a European final on 21 May 2008, when he played in the Champions League final against Chelsea, in the first final between two Premier League teams in the competition. He was the author of his club’s only goal in the final draw, so the match was decided on penalty kicks. Ronaldo erred, but despite this the failures of rival defender John Terry and French attacker Nicolas Anelka gave him his first continental title.
He was named player of the tournament and also top scorer of the tournament. At the end of the campaign, Cristiano Ronaldo scored 42 goals, 31 of them in the league – a result that left him two goals away from surpassing the performance of Dutch striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy in the 2002-03 season – and was proclaimed winner of a new Community Shield despite not being able to participate due to injury.
During the summer of 2008, there was speculation about the possible departure of the player to Real Madrid C. F., a club that always showed greater interest in the footballer. However, negotiations were postponed to the following season by signing a pre-contract in December 2008. United lodged a complaint of manipulation with FIFA’s governing body for the alleged persecution of their player by Madrid, but they refused to take action. FIFA President Sepp Blatter said the player should be able to leave his club, describing the situation as “modern slavery”. Although Ronaldo publicly agreed with Blatter, he remained at United for another year.
Last season in England and continued success (2008–09)
With the 2008–09 season ahead of him, Ronaldo suffered an ankle injury that would keep him off the pitch until October. His recovery came earlier, and he scored his 100th goal for United in all competitions, in a free-kick double for a 5-0 win over Stoke City on 15 November, which meant he had now scored against all 19 Premier League teams. At the end of 2008, he won the Club World Cup to the League of Quito, being named as the second best player of the tournament, behind his teammate Wayne Rooney. He was awarded the FIFA World Player, the Golden Eleven and the Golden Ball, an award that a player from the Manchester team had not won for 40 years.
He scored one of the most beautiful goals in his career in the Champions League match against his former rival, Porto, scoring from over thirty-five meters. The goal was later awarded the Puskás Award for the best goal of the year. His high performance led the club to play in its second consecutive Champions League final. In it they were defeated by F.C. Barcelona by 2-0, although they were able to retain the Premier League title. He finished the season with a record of 54 games and 24 goals with United and with a total record of 118 goals in 292 games.
Real Madrid C. F.
Most expensive transfer in history and first year in Spain (2009-2010)
On 11 June 2009, the English club accepted the £80 million offer from Real Madrid, confirming two weeks later that it had been the most expensive transfer in football history to date – subsequently surpassed by Neymar’s from FC Barcelona to PSG for £222 million. Almost 80,000,000 people attended the presentation ceremony, breaking Diego Maradona’s 25-year-old record when he performed in Napoli in front of 75,000 fans. Because the club’s captain Raul already had the number 7, Cristiano was assigned the number 9, which was presented by Madrid legend Alfredo Di Stéfano.
He made his debut on July 21 against Irish side Shamrock Rovers during pre-season, and scored his first goals in white in the 2009 Peace Cup against Ecuador’s Liga de Quito and Juventus. His official debuts came in a league match against Deportivo de La Coruña, where he scored a goal in his team’s 3-2, victory and in a Champions League match against Zürich, where he scored two goals in the 2-5 victory.
He scored in his first four games for the club, the first player in Madrid’s history to do so. His strong start to the campaign was interrupted by an injury in October while with the Portuguese national team, which kept him out for seven weeks. A week after his return, he was sent off for the first time in Spain, against Almeria. In the middle of the season, he came second in the Golden Ball voting, losing to Lionel Messi, another young star who was emerging from Madrid’s eternal rivals, F.C Barcelona, and who would be his main competitor during his years in Spain.
His records continued to rise and he scored his first hat-trick for Real Madrid on 5 May 2010 against Mallorca. However, despite his great performances in which he scored 33 goals in 35 games played, being the top scorer of the team, the club could not win any title. Ronaldo’s best scoring average, at almost one goal per game, was not enough to overcome the knockout stages of the Champions League, nor the sixteenth final of the Copa del Rey – in which he could not debut due to injury – where the club suffered two painful eliminations in two competitions in which it was plunged into a crisis of results after chaining several seasons of early or crucial eliminations.
Under Mourinho: League champion and scoring records (2010-2013)
With the departure of captain Raúl, Ronaldo inherited his classic number “7”, with which he would have a spectacular start to the season in which he was uncovered as one of the best scorers ever seen. Among his performances, the one against Racing de Santander stood out, where he scored for the first time in his career four goals in a match, or those that occurred in the month of October, where he scored in 6 consecutive games a total of 13 goals, the most in a calendar month for him.
By the beginning of December, his progression seemed not to end and he stood with more than 20 goals in less than 20 games in all competitions, ending 2010 with the best record of his career, 48 goals in total, which was 13 more than he achieved in 2008 with Manchester United. However, despite his incredible numbers, he failed to make the podium of the FIFA Golden Ball in its inaugural edition. On 3 March, in the match against Malaga, the player scored his fifth hat-trick of the season, shattering his records at the English club, where he was only able to score one in six years.
During a historic run of four Clasicos in 2011, in which there was a great media clash between the coaches of these clubs, with José Mourinho of Madrid representing the school of football of counterattack and defensive discipline, and Pep Guardiola of Barcelona leaning more towards offensive and touch football, also the press and fans had high expectations for the rivalry between Cristiano, who showed himself as a more individualistic and selfish player, and Messi, who was more seen as a team player and low profile. Despite failing in his attempt to score in the elimination of Madrid against the Culés for the semifinals of the Champions League, Cristiano could draw in the League match and managed to put a historic header in extra time for the final of the Copa del Rey that gave him his first title with Real Madrid.
His records increased with a spectacular final of League, where he scored away against Sevilla another poker of goals, a new hat-trick against Getafe, and four more in total in two other games that would leave his personal record in 40 goals, surpassing the historical record of Hugo Sánchez and Telmo Zarra of 38 in a League season. Even so, the championship would end up being won by Barcelona. He finished the season with 53 goals in 54 games in all competitions, a record he shared with Argentine Lionel Messi. In addition to winning the Pichichi Trophy, Cristiano again won the Golden Boot for the second time, becoming the only player to win the award playing in two different leagues.
In the following season, 2011-12, Ronaldo surpassed his own previously achieved records by reaching 60 goals in all competitions, his personal best. He regained a place on the podium of the 2011 Golden Ball, as second behind Messi, after scoring hat-tricks against Real Zaragoza, Rayo Vallecano, Malaga, Osasuna, and Sevilla, with the latter depositing Madrid at the top of the La Liga table during the middle of the season. He finished the year 2011 with 20 goals in League, 15 of them distributed in 5 hat-tricks.
His goals did not stop, and he began the year 2012 scoring a goal in the first leg of the quarterfinals of the Copa del Rey against Barcelona, and repeated in the second leg, thus starting a historic scoring streak against the “Culés”, which continued on April 21 in Liga, when his goal at the Camp Nou practically sentenced the League in favor of the Whites after the 1-2 victory. Three days later he scored a brace in the second leg of the Champions League semi-finals against Bayern Munich, however, due to the result of the first leg the passage to the final was decided by penalties, where the German team prevailed, depriving it of its third final in the top European club competition.
However, his goals did help the club lift the League title on May 2 after beating Athletic Club 0-3 at the San Mamés stadium, in the famous “League of Records” of Madrid, surpassing the 100-point mark and setting a record of 121 goals, in what was the club’s first after four years of drought. With his 46 goals in the domestic championship, he became the first footballer in history to score 40 goals or more in two consecutive league seasons, in addition to scoring against all the teams he faced in la Liga that season, being the first player in the history of the competition to do so.
He started the 2012-13 season scoring in the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup against Barcelona at the Camp Nou, becoming the only madridista in history who managed to score in four consecutive visits to the Barcelona field. In the second leg, in which he won the Super Cup title, the Portuguese scored a goal again, thus equaling the record of the Chilean Iván Zamorano, the only footballer so far capable of scoring in five consecutive “Classics”, and who surpassed on October 7 when in La Liga he scored a double to the Catalans to now surpass the record of the South American and score for the sixth classic in a row, something no one had ever done before.
Although Ronaldo publicly commented that he felt unhappy due to a “personal problem” with the club, in what he showed when he decided not to celebrate his 150th goal for Madrid, his scoring records did not suffer. After scoring a hat-trick, including two penalties, against Deportivo La Coruña, Cristiano scored his first hat-trick in the Champions League, in a 4-1 win against Ajax. His performances put him second in the 2012 Golden Ball, an award that Messi ended up taking for the fourth consecutive time.
After the winter break of the season, Ronaldo captained Real Madrid for the first time in an official match, scoring a brace in a hard-fought 4-3 win over Real Sociedad on January 6. A short time later, he became the first non-Spanish player in 60 years to captain the club during El Clasico on 30 January 2013, a match that also marked his 500th appearance at club level. Three days later, he reached 300 goals overall after scoring a perfect hat-trick against Getafe.
Cristiano would help Real Madrid reach the final of the 2013 Copa del Rey after scoring a brace in El Clasico for the semi-finals, which marked his sixth consecutive match at the Camp Nou where he scored a club record. In the final, he scored the opening goal of the match with a header, in what would be a 2-1 defeat against Atlético de Madrid, a match in which he would also be sent off for violent conduct. In the knockout stages of the Champions League, Cristiano faced Manchester United for the first time. After scoring the 1-1 goal at the Santiago Bernabéu, with a header where he jumped almost 3 meters, in the second leg he scored the winning goal by 2 to 1 in his return to Old Trafford.
He did not celebrate any of the goals he scored out of respect for his former club. After scoring three goals against Galatasaray in the quarter-finals, Ronaldo scored Madrid’s only goal in a 4-1 defeat to Borussia Dortmund in the first leg of the semi-finals, which would eventually lead to the eventual elimination of the Madrileños, who would win the second leg 2-0 but would be left out in the semi-finals of the competition for the third consecutive year.
With Ancelotti: The Tenth and two consecutive Golden Balls (2013-2015)
After a disappointing season without titles, Mourinho would end up being removed from his position as coach, being replaced by the historic Italian technical director Carlo Ancelotti. On 15 September 2013, his renewal with the club was announced, extending his contract until the end of the 2017–18 season, with a salary of €17 million net, making him the highest-paid footballer in the world.
For the start of the 2013-14 season, the club signed winger Gareth Bale, who in his transfer surpassed Ronaldo’s record as the most expensive signing in history, by paying for the Welshman more than 100 million euros. Together with French striker Karim Benzema, the three strikers formed a trident popularized as the “BBC”, an acronym for Bale, Benzema and Cristiano. CR7 scored 32 goals in 22 matches played for the club and the country in mid-November 2013, including five hat-tricks. The Portuguese closed 2013 with 69 goals in 59 appearances, his highest record at the end of a year, and won his second Golden Ball after four years, and the first since the merger of the Golden Ball and FIFA World Player trophies.
With his achievements at the individual level, Cristiano would finally achieve success with Real Madrid after winning La Décima, the tenth Champions League trophy for Real Madrid, an achievement that had been denied to the club for 12 years. His goal in a 3-0 win over Borussia Dortmund (his 100th game in the Champions League) marked his 14th goal of the year, breaking the record Messi had set two years earlier. After scoring a brace in the historic 4-0 win over Bayern Munich (led by Guardiola) in Germany, Ronaldo scored the last penalty goal in extra time in the final against Atletico Madrid in Lisbon, becoming the only player to score in two victorious European Cup finals with two different teams.
In that edition, Cristiano would become the all-time top scorer in an edition of the Champions League, with 17 goals. His overall performance was contained by patellar tendonitis and a tendon tear, which bothered him in the final months of the campaign. Ronaldo played in the final despite the doctor advising him not to, with the player commenting that “in life you don’t win without sacrifices, that’s why you have to take risks.”
In the Copa del Rey he helped the team reach the final after scoring two penalties against Atletico Madrid at the Vicente Calderón, which meant that Ronaldo managed to notice in every minute of the 90 of a regular match. His problems with his injuries prevented him from being present in the victory in the final against Barcelona. For the League the Portuguese would score 31 goals in 30 games, getting the Pichichi and his third Golden Boot, this time in conjunction with Luis Suárez. A heel volley goal against Valencia was recognized as the best goal of the Professional Football League, who also named him the best player in La Liga that year.
During his 2014-15 season, Ronaldo set a new personal best by scoring 61 goals in all competitions, as well as achieving his best scoring start in the league, with 15 goals in the first eight matches. His 23rd La Liga hat-trick against Celta Vigo on 6 September 2015 made him the fastest player to reach 200 goals in Spain’s First Division, only achieving the mark in his 178th game. After winning the Club World Cup against San Lorenzo, Cristiano won his second consecutive Golden Ball, entering the list along with Johan Cruyff, Michel Platini and Marco van Basten to be three-time winners of the award. Two days later, the Portuguese Football Federation gave him the “Quina de Ouro” that accredits him as the best Portuguese footballer in history, above Eusébio and Luis Figo.
Historical top scorer and three-time Champions League champion (2015-2018)
Madrid finished second in La Liga, and were eliminated in the semi-finals of the Champions League against Juventus. In La Liga, he scored for the first time five goals in his career, including a hat-trick in eight minutes, in a 9-1 win over Granada. He scored his 300th goal for his club just three days later, in a 2-0 win over Rayo Vallecano. Several hat-tricks in a row, such as Sevilla, Espanyol and Getafe carried his hat-trick mark of 31, surpassing Di Stéfano’s record of 28. Cristiano would finish that season with 48 goals, winning his second consecutive Pichichi and his fourth Gold Boot, a record.
For the 2015-16 season, Ancelotti would end up dismissed from his position when he did not achieve the objectives, and would be replaced by Rafa Benítez. This would be the season that Ronaldo would be consecrated as the historical top scorer of Real Madrid, first in La Liga and then in all competitions. On 12 September he scored five goals for Espanyol, surpassing Raul’s mark with 230 league goals. A month later, on October 17, he again surpassed Raúl when he scored the second goal against Levante to surpass his historical total, with 324 goals. In addition, Ronaldo became the all-time top scorer in the Champions League after scoring a hat-trick against Shaktar Donetsk. He also reached 500 goals in club and country on September 30 after two goals against Malmo.
Despite continuing to set records, Madrid would have a dismal start to the league, with Rafa Benitez being removed from his post in January, and being replaced by legend Zinedine Zidane, who was coaching Castilla. Following these records, Cristiano was placed as the second top scorer in the history of the Spanish league championship on March 5, 2016, after surpassing the 250 goals achieved by Telmo Zarra, being behind Messi.
In the European tie against VfL Wolfsburg, played in April, it was key as he got a hat-trick in the second leg, after having lost the first leg 2-0, thus reaching 15 goals in the quarterfinals of the competition, surpassing the record of Alfredo Di Stéfano, who was at 14. Thanks to his hat-trick, he became the top scorer of the edition for the fourth consecutive time, and his fifth in total. However, Ronaldo would have a much criticized final against Atletico Madrid, despite ending up scoring the final penalty for the victory of Madrid, which got its eleventh Champions League. For the sixth consecutive year, he finished the season scoring more than 50 goals. For his efforts in the season, he won the award for the Best Player in Europe for the second time.
In addition, f the 2016-17 season, Cristiano was returning from winning the first international title in the history of Portugal, but in the final against France, he had suffered an injury, so he missed the European Super Cup against Sevilla. For La Liga, he became the top scorer in the history of the Madrid derby after scoring a hat-trick against Atleti, with 18 goals. On December 15 he reached 500 goals at club level, after converting to América for the Club World Cup. In the final of the tournament, he scored a hat-trick against Kashima Antlers for a 4-2 victory, which led him to finish as the top scorer of the tournament and as the best player. By early 2017, he would win his fifth Golden Ball, and the first FIFA The Best, a resurrection of the former FIFA World Player.
In the 2016-17 Champions League, Cristiano would reach one of the best form of his career. In the first leg of the quarter-finals against Bayern Munich, after Madrid started losing, Cristiano would score a brace to put the series ahead for Madrid. For the second leg, the Germans would take the game to extra time, where Cristiano would finish the match with a perfect hat-trick, and that would also reach him to achieve 100 goals in the competition. In the quarterfinals, another Madrid derby against Atlético de Madrid would be reissued.
Cristiano would have an outstanding game, dispatching the Team of Cholo Simeone with another hat-trick. In the final against Juventus, CR7 would open the scoring, and then score the third goal of the 4 to 1 that Madrid would give to the Italians, to close their participation with twelve goals, being the fifth consecutive time that exceeded the ten goals in the competition and that was proclaimed top scorer, first and only player to achieve both records to date. Under the new format he became the first player to score in three finals, surpassed in the history of the European Cup (counting editions under the old format) only by Alfredo Di Stéfano, who scored in five finals.
On May 14, he reached 400 goals with the merengue club, and surpassed them shortly after by scoring a double against Sevilla in Liga. Previously, the player became the all-time top scorer of the five best leagues in Europe, by surpassing the previous record of the Englishman Jimmy Greaves of 366 goals dating from 1971, mark that later rose to 373 goals. That same month, he became champion again of La Liga, the club’s first since 2012, by beating Malaga, playing 29 games and scoring 25 goals.
In the 2017-18 season, Ronaldo scored a goal from outside the box in the 3-1 victory against Barcelona for the first leg of the Spanish Super Cup, which would end in expulsion by the Portuguese after an alleged aggression to the referee, and with a new trophy for Madrid. On October 23 he won his second award for The Best. On 6 December, he became the first player to score in all six matches of the Champions League group stage. A week later, he converted a free-kick goal in the Club World Cup final that Real Madrid beat Gremio. On March 3, he reached 300 goals in La Liga after 286 games, making him the fastest player to achieve that mark and only the second player to do so after Messi. In addition, on 18 March he reached his 50th hat-trick, scoring four goals against Girona.
On April 3, Cristiano scored the first two goals in a 3–0 win over Juventus in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, the second being “Chilean”. Described as a “Playstation” goal by Juventus defender Andrea Barzagli, and one of the best in the tournament’s history, the entire stadium cheered the Portuguese, including players and coaches.
For the second leg of the series, he scored the decisive penalty over extra time to give Madrid the pass to the semifinals, after losing 3-0, with an overall victory of 4 to 3. It was also his tenth goal against Juventus in the Champions League, a record in the competition. In the final, Real Madrid defeated Liverpool 3-1, meaning the fifth Champions League for Cristiano in his total record, and the thirteenth for the club. He finished as the top scorer of the edition for the sixth consecutive time, ending the campaign with 15 goals. In a press conference after the match, Cristiano gave to avoid that he could have finished his stage at the club, after being crowned three-time champion of the European Cup. He ended his interview leaving his characteristic cry of celebration.
Juventus F.C.
Adaptation and first Serie A title (2018-19)
Despite months of negotiating a new contract with Real Madrid, on July 10, 2018, Cristiano signed a four-year contract with Italy’s Juventus after a €100 million transfer was completed, which included an additional €12 million for bonuses and training rights. The transfer was the highest made by a player over the age of 30, and the most expensive made by an Italian team. Since his signing, Ronaldo confessed that he needed a new challenge as a fundamental reason to leave Madrid, but then attributed the transfer to the little support he felt demonstrated by Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez.
On 18 August, Cristiano made his official debut for Juventus in a 3–2 win against Chievo Verona. In addition, on 16 September, he scored his first two goals for Juventus in a 2–1 win over Sassuolo, in his fourth appearance for Vecchia Signora; his second goal was his 400th overall. On 19 September, in his first Champions League match for Juventus, he was sent off in the 29th minute for “violent conduct”, his first red card in 154 matches in the competition.
Ronaldo left the field in tears. However, the team won 1-0 against Valencia and secured passage to the knockout stages, this being Ronaldo’s 100th victory in the tournament. In December, he scored his tenth Serie A goal of the season from a penalty kick, in a 3–0 win over Fiorentina; with this goal, Ronaldo became the first player since John Charles in 1957 to score 10 goals in his first 14 league appearances for his club. After being voted second in the UEFA Best Player in Europe and The Best awards for the first time in three years, behind Luka Modrić, Cristiano’s performances in 2018 also placed him second in the Golden Ball, finishing again behind his former Real Madrid teammate.
On 16 January 2019, Ronaldo won his first title with the club, the 2018 Italian Super Cup, after he scored the only winning goal of the match against Milan. In addition, on 10 February, Ronaldo scored in a 3–0 away win against Sassuolo; the ninth consecutive game he scored for Juventus in the league, which allowed him to equal Giuseppe Signori’s record for most away games with at least one goal scored in a single Serie A season. On March 12, Ronaldo had one of his most iconic moments in the Champions League, when he scored a hat-trick at home to Atletico Madrid to overcome a 2-0 first leg of the knockout stages of the tournament.
The following month, Ronaldo scored his 125th goal in the competition, opening the scoring in a 1–1 draw in the first leg of Juventus’ quarter-finals against Ajax. In the second game of the series, in Turin, Ronaldo reopened the scoring to give Juventus the lead, but they would end up losing the match 2-1 and would be eliminated from the competition. On April 20, Ronaldo played the decisive match for the scudetto against Fiorentina, which would see Juventus crowned Italian champions for the eighth time in a row, winning the match 2-1. This made Cristiano the first player to win league titles in Spain, Italy and England. On 27 April, he scored his 600th overall club goal, a 1–1 draw in the Italia Derby against classic Inter Milan. Ending his first campaign in Serie A with 21 goals and 8 assists, Ronaldo was voted the Serie A Most Valuable Player.
Second Serie A title (2019-20)
His second season in the Bianconeri team was marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, which meant a break from all competitions between March and June 2020. During the break, Cristiano Ronaldo accepted a 12% reduction in his record (3.8 million euros on his total salary of 31 million), as a measure to deal with the economic consequences of the stoppage of football in the clubs. As for sports, the Portuguese managed to win his second scudetto and compete, with his 31 goals, against the Italian Ciro Immobile (36) and the Polish Robert Lewandowski (34) until the last day for the Golden Boot.
During the campaign, he became the first player to score more than 50 goals in three of the great competitions of world football: the Italian Serie A, Spanish La Liga and the English Premier League. Despite sporting achievements, his team lost the Italian Supercoppa 1-3 against Lazio, lost to Napoli on penalties in the Coppa final and was eliminated in the knockout stages of the Champions League by Olympique Lyonnais, which would be the first time since 2010, in which Ronaldo did not exceed that round of the competition.
100 goals for Juventus, Capocannoniere and Coppa Italia (2020-21)
On 20 September 2020, Ronaldo scored in Juventus’ first match of the season, a 3–0 home win over Sampdoria in Serie A. On November 1, after Ronaldo took nearly three weeks to recover from COVID-19, he returned to action against Spezia, where he came off the bench in the second half and scored in the first three minutes. He later scored a second goal from the penalty spot in an eventual 4–1 away win. On 2 December, he scored a goal against Dynamo Kiev in a Champions League group stage match to reach his 750th career goal. Ronaldo played his 100th match in all competitions with Juventus on 13 December, scoring two penalties in a 3–1 win over Genoa in the league and raising his goal tally to 79.
On 20 January 2021, Juventus won the 2020 Italian Supercoppa after a 2–0 win against Napoli, with Ronaldo scoring the first goal. On 2 March, he scored a goal in a 3–0 win over Spezia in their 600th league match, to become the first player to score at least 20 goals in each of the last 12 consecutive seasons in Europe’s top five leagues. Also, on 9 March, Juventus were eliminated from the Champions League in the knockout stages by Porto, again by the away goal rule (4–4 on aggregate). On 14 March, he scored the 57th hat-trick of his career in a 3–1 away win over Cagliari.
In addition, on 12 May, Ronaldo scored a goal in a 3–1 away win over Sassuolo to reach his 100th goal for Juventus in all competitions in his 131st appearance, becoming the fastest Juventus player to achieve the feat. With Juventus’ 2-1 win over Atalanta in the 2021 Coppa Italia final on May 19, Ronaldo became the first player in history to win all major national trophies in England, Spain and Italy. Ronaldo finished the league campaign with 29 goals, winning the Capocannoniere award for top scorer and becoming the first player to finish as top scorer in the English, Spanish and Italian leagues.
The second stage of Cristiano Ronaldo at Manchester United F.C.
Top scorer in football history (2021-22)
During the transfer market of the 2021-22 season, Ronaldo made public his intentions to leave Juventus, and the club put him up for sale. In August there were strong rumors about a possible signing to Manchester City, in an operation in which his agent, Jorge Mendes, came to agree on a pre-contract. However, a few weeks later, City dropped out of the negotiation, and on August 27 it was confirmed that Manchester United had reached an agreement with Juventus to sign Cristiano, subject to an agreement for personal terms, visa, and medical check-ups.
The transfer was reported at an initial cost of €12 million, signing a two-year contract, plus an optional one, and was confirmed on 31 August. It was also reported that people like Alex Ferguson and Bruno Fernandes were important in convincing the Portuguese to sign with the Red Devils. Cristiano was given the number 7 number, loaned by his teammate Edinson Cavani, who changed to 21. As reported, sales of Ronaldo’s shirt in the first 24 hours broke an all-time record after the transfer, surpassing Lionel Messi’s move to Paris Saint-Germain.
On 11 September, Ronaldo made his second debut at Old Trafford, scoring the first two goals in a 4–1 win over Newcastle. In addition, on September 29, he scored an agonizing goal against Villareal in the Champions League to win 2-1 at home, as well as surpassing Iker Casillas’ record as the player with the most appearances in the history of the competition.
On 2 December, Cristiano scored a brace in a 3–2 home win over Arsenal, beating the 800-goal barrier throughout his career. In 2022, he had a six-game unconverted streak, something that hadn’t happened to him since 2010. He converted again on 15 February, against Brighton. On 12 March, he scored a hat-trick in a 3–2 win over Tottenham, reaching 807 goals and surpassing Josef Bican as the top scorer in the history of professional football. Despite his excellent performance in the group stage of the Champions League, Ronaldo would end up eliminated in the knockout stages against Atlético Madrid by an aggregate of 2 to 1. Ronaldo would finish the 2021-22 season without titles for the first time since the 2009-10 campaign.
National team
Lower categories and first international tournaments (2001-2007)
Ronaldo began his career at the national team level with Portugal’s under-15 team in 2001. During his career with the minor divisions, Ronaldo represented the under-15, under-20, under-21 and under-23 teams, totaling 38 international matches and 18 goals scored. He was champion of the 2003 Torneo Esperanzas de Toulon with the U-21.
At the age of 18, Ronaldo first appeared in Portugal’s top division, in a 1–0 win over Kazakhstan on 20 August 2003, coming out as a substitute for Luís Figo at half-time. Eventually, he was called up for Euro 2004, held in his native country, and scored his first goal in an international national team tournament in a 2-1 loss to Greece, the eventual champions, by group stage. After scoring his chance in the penalty shootout against England in the quarter-finals, Cristiano helped the team reach the final by scoring the first goal in the 2-1 win against the Netherlands. He was included in the Championship Team, having made two assists in addition to his two goals in the tournament.
Cristiano was Portugal’s second top scorer in their qualifying group for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, with seven goals scored. During the championship, he scored his first World Cup goal against Iran from a penalty, in Portugal’s second group stage match. At 21 years and 132 days, Ronaldo became the youngest player in the history of the Portuguese national team to score in a World Cup. In the famous knockout match against the Netherlands, known as the Battle of Nuremberg, Ronaldo was forced off the field injured after an entry by Dutch defender Khalid Boulahrouz.
After Portugal’s 1-0 win, Cristiano accused Boulahrouz of intentionally wanting to injure him, but he still recovered in time for the next match. In the quarter-finals against England, Wayne Rooney, Cristiano’s Manchester United team-mate at the time, was sent off after breaching Portuguese defender Ricardo Caravalho. Although the referee clarified after the red card was solely due to Rooney’s infraction, British tabloids speculated that Ronaldo had influence on his decision by complaining aggressively, after he was seen in the replays winking at Portugal’s bench following Rooney’s ejection.
After this, Ronaldo scored the decisive penalty of the shootout that sent Portugal to the semifinals of the tournament. However, in the semi-final against France, a solitary goal by Zinedine Zidane prevented Ronaldo from reaching his second consecutive final with his national team, in a match where he was also booed by fans. Due to his conduct in the tournament, FIFA ended up giving the award for the Best Young Player of the World Cup to Lucas Podolski of Germany. After the Cup, Ronaldo continued to represent Portugal in Euro 2008 qualifying matches, scoring two goals in the process.
Assuming the captaincy and difficult years (2007-2012)
A day after his 22nd birthday, Ronaldo captained Portugal for the first time in a friendly against Brazil on February 6, 2007, in honor of the request of Portuguese Football Federation president Carlos Silva, who had died two days earlier. With Euro 2008 ahead, Cristiano inherited the number 7 from Luís Figo. Despite having scored 8 goals in the qualifiers, the second-highest mark, he could only score one goal in the tournament, the second of Portugal’s three goals in their second match against the Czech Republic, in which the Portuguese won 3-1. They were finally eliminated in the quarterfinals by Germany, not being able to repeat the success of the previous edition.
After Portugal’s failure at the European Championship, the Federation sacked Luis Felipe Scolari and hired Carlos Queiroz as the new coach, Ferguson’s former assistant at Manchester United. Queiroz made Cristiano the permanent captain of the team in July 2008. Cristiano failed to score a single goal during all the 2010 World Cup Qualifiers in South Africa, as well as Portugal avoided being left out of the tournament by winning a repechage against Bosnia. In the group stage of the World Cup, Cristiano was named man of the match in all three matches, against Ivory Coast, North Korea, to which he scored his only goal of the tournament, and Brazil. Portugal ended up being eliminated by Spain, the eventual champions of the tournament, by only 1 to 0.
Ronaldo scored seven goals in the Euro 2012 Qualifiers, including two doubles in the repechage against Bosnia, which sent Portugal to the tournament, where they were lined up in the “group of death”, next to the Germany of the “Löw Generation”, the Netherlands runner-up of the world in the last World Cup in South Africa, and the dangerous cast of Denmark. In the last match of the group stage, against the Netherlands, Cristiano secured the victory by scoring a double for the 2-1 final, and against the Czech Republic for the quarterfinals, he scored a header to win by 1 to 0. being chosen in both matches, the Most Valuable Player.
After the semi-finals against Spain were tied goalless, with Ronaldo sending three shots over the crossbar, Portugal were eliminated by the penalty shootout. Cristiano was left without throwing any penalty, since he was chosen to kick the fifth unused penalty, a decision that was questioned by the media. Ronaldo’s own teammate Nani said Cristiano “demanded” to execute the last penalty. As a joint top scorer with three goals, along with five other players, he was again included in the tournament squad.
Portugal’s all-time top scorer and European champion (2012-2016)
During the 2014 World Cup Qualifiers, Cristiano scored a total of eight goals. A qualifying match on 17 October 2012, a 1–1 draw against Northern Ireland, marked his 100th appearance for the national team. His first international hat-trick also came against Northern Ireland, when he scored three times in 15 minutes in a 4-2 win on 6 September 2013. After Portugal failed to qualify during the regular qualifiers, Cristiano scored all four of the team’s goals in the repechage against Sweden, which was also a clash between Cristiano and Zlatan Ibrahimović, which secured their passage to the competition. His hat-trick in the second leg took his international goal tally to 47, equaling Pauleta’s record. Eventually, Cristiano would score a brace against Cameroon on March 5, 2014, that would make him his country’s all-time top scorer.
Ronaldo was part of the Portuguese delegation for the World Cup, despite dragging a patellar tendonitis and a thigh injury, potentially risking his career. Ronaldo would later comment: “If we had two or three Cristiano Ronaldo in the team, I would feel more comfortable. But we don’t have.” Despite doubts about his condition, being forced to leave practice twice, Ronaldo played all 90 minutes of the first match against Germany, although he was not able to prevent the 4-0 thrashing. After dishing out an assist in the final minutes in the 2-2 draw against the United States, scored the agonizing goal of a 2-1 win over Ghana. His 50th international goal made him the first Portuguese to play and score in three World Cups. Portugal was soon eliminated in the group stage on goal difference.
After missing the first Euro 2016 qualifier against Albania due to injury, Ronaldo scored a goal in stoppage time in the 95th minute for Portugal to win 1-0 against Denmark. On 14 November 2014, he played against Armenia also for the qualification for the European Championship, where he scored the only goal of the match that gave victory to his national team.
At the start of the tournament, Ronaldo failed to convert in the team’s draws against Iceland and Austria, despite having finished 20 times on goal, and in the latter, he became the player with the most appearances in Portugal, surpassing Figo, with 128. With a brace scored in a 3-3 draw against Hungary, Ronaldo became the first player to convert in four European tournaments, also making a record 17 appearances. Despite finishing third in their group, behind Hungary and Iceland, the team went on to the next round due to the new format of the tournament, still without having won any of their three matches.
In Portugal’s first knockout match, Ronaldo’s only scoring chance was saved by Croatia goalkeeper Danijel Subašić, but the rebound was seized by Ricardo Quaresma, who scored the defining goal in extra time. After the team eliminated Poland on penalties, with Ronaldo scoring the first penalty, he became the first player to take part in three Euro semi-finals; he scored the first goal of the 2-0 against Wales, equalling Michel Platini’s record as the tournament’s all-time top scorer with nine goals.
In the final against France, Ronaldo had to leave the field after a foul by Dimitri Payet, and despite multiple treatments and attempts to continue, he was replaced by Quaresma in the 25th minute of the match. During extra time, Éder scored the winning goal in the 109th minute. As captain of the team, Cristiano lifted the trophy in celebration of the first official title of his country, 50 and, in addition, he was proclaimed Silver Boot of the tournament by scoring three goals and giving three assists.
Post-European and World Championship (2016-2018)
In Portugal’s opening match of the 2017 Confederations Cup against Mexico on June 17, Cristiano scored Quaresma’s opening goal for the final 2-2 draw. Three days later, he scored the only winning goal against home side Russia. On 24 June, he scored the penalty goal in a 4–0 win over New Zealand, which allowed Portugal to advance from the group and advance to the semi-finals of the tournament; with his 75th goal at an international level, Ronaldo also equaled Sándor Kocsis as Europe’s second all-time top scorer, behind only Ferenc Puskás.
He was named as Man of the Match in Portugal’s three group stage matches. Ronaldo left the competition earlier; after the team’s 3-0 loss to Chile, he was allowed to return home earlier and witness the birth of his new child, and was therefore not present at the third-place match Portugal beat Mexico 2-1 in overtime.
On 31 August 2017, Ronaldo scored a hat-trick in a 5–1 win over the Faroe Islands in a qualifying match for the 2018 World Cup in Russia, which saw him overtake Pele and equal Hussein Saeed as the fifth top scorer in international football with 78 goals. These goals raised his tally in the World Cup qualifiers to 14, equaling Predrag Mijatović’s record for most goals in a single UEFA qualifying campaign, and also saw him break the record for most goals scored in a European qualifying group, surpassing the previous record of 13 goals scored by David Healy and Robert Lewandowski.
Ronaldo’s hat-trick raised his World Cup qualifying goal total to 29, making him the top scorer in the UEFA qualifiers, ahead of Andriy Shevchenko, and the top scorer in qualifying matches and World Cup finals combined with 32 goals ahead of Miroslav Klose. Subsequently, Ronaldo added to this account by scoring a goal against Andorra in the 2-0 victory.
On June 15, 2018, Ronaldo became the oldest player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup match, helping Portugal secure a 3-3 draw against Spain (his third goal was a 30-yard free kick) in their opening match. In doing so, he became the first Portuguese player to score a goal in four World Cups and one of four players of any nationality to do so.
On June 20, Ronaldo scored the only goal in a 1-0 win against Morocco, breaking Puskás’ record as Europe’s all-time top scorer, with 85 international goals. In the final group match against Iran on June 25, Ronaldo missed a penalty in an eventual 1-1 draw that saw Portugal advance to the second round as group second behind Spain. On 30 June, Portugal was eliminated after a 2–1 defeat to Uruguay in the knockout stages. For his performances in the tournament, Ronaldo was included in the World Cup All-Star Team.
Nations League and 100 international goals (2018-2020)
After the World Cup, Ronaldo missed six international matches, including the entire league phase of the 2018-19 UEFA Nations League, but played for Portugal in the Nations League Final Four in June 2019, where they were home. In the semifinals on June 5, he scored a hat-trick against Switzerland to reach the final. By scoring the first goal, he became the first player to score in 10 consecutive international competitions, breaking the record he previously shared with Asamoah Gyan of Ghana. In the final of the tournament four days later, Portugal defeated the Netherlands 1-0 and became champions of the second title in its history.
On 10 September 2019, Ronaldo scored four goals in a 5–1 away win over Lithuania in a Euro 2020 qualifier; in the process, he surpassed Robbie Keane (23 goals) as the player with the most goals in the Euro qualifiers, setting a new record with 25 goals. He also set a new record for goals against most national teams, 40,351 while completing his eighth international hat-trick.
On 14 October, he scored his 700th career goal for the club and the country from the penalty spot, in his 974th career appearance, a 2–1 defeat to Ukraine in a Euro 2020 qualifier. Moreover, on 17 November, Ronaldo scored his 99th goal in a 2–0 win over Luxembourg, leading Portugal to qualify for Euro 2020. On 8 September 2020, Ronaldo scored his 100th and 101st international goals in a 2–0 away win over Sweden in a 2020–21 UEFA Nations League match, becoming the second male player to achieve this milestone (after Iran’s Ali Daei) and the first in Europe.
Cristiano Ronaldo, top scorer in the history of Selections and present (2021-act.)
On 15 June 2021, Ronaldo scored two goals in Portugal’s first match of Euro 2020, a 3–0 win against Hungary in Budapest. This led to a total of eleven goals in the European Championship, two above Michel Platini, as the all-time top scorer in the history of the competition. He also became the first player to score in five European Championships and eleven consecutive tournaments. The double made Ronaldo the oldest player to score two goals in a Euro match, and the oldest player to score for Portugal in a major tournament.
On 23 June, he scored two penalties in Portugal’s 2–2 draw with France in their final group stage match, equaling Daei’s record of 109 international goals. On 27 June, Portugal was eliminated after losing 1–0 to Belgium in the knockout stages. Ronaldo finished the tournament with five goals (tied with Czech Patrik Schick) and an assist, earning him the Golden Boot. On 1 September, Ronaldo scored two headed goals, and the second came seconds before the full-time whistle, in the 2–1 home win against the Republic of Ireland at the Algarve Stadium, which saw him pass Daei’s record of 109 to become the sole record holder.
The player profile of Cristiano Ronaldo
Style of play
A versatile striker, Ronaldo can play both on the wings and in midfield and, although, his skillful leg is the right, he is also good with the left. He is among the fastest footballers in the world, with and without the ball. Tactically, Ronaldo underwent several evolutions and changes during his career. While at Sporting and during his early years at United, Cristiano served as a classic right-wing midfielder, where he was usually dedicated to throwing centers into the box.
In this position, he was able to use his acceleration, his change of pace, his agility and his technical skills to take opponents in one-on-one situations, and became known for his elaborate dribbling, often demonstrating a variety of tricks and tricks, such as the bicycle and the so-called “cuts”, which became his trademark; was also known to be a frequent user of the “elastic”.
As Ronaldo matured, he underwent a great physical transformation, developing a muscular body type that allowed him to retain possession of the ball under pressure for longer, and strong legs that allowed him an impressive ability to jump. His strength and jumping ability, combined with his elevation, headshot accuracy, and height of 1.87 m, gave him a great advantage to win aerial duels. These attributes allow him to function as a man-target in the area, and make him a constant threat of aerial goal in the penalty area; consequently, many of his goals have been headed.
In conjunction with his increased endurance and sacrifice, his ability to score goals improved drastically on the left wing, where he was given the positional freedom to move toward the center to finish attacks. He has also increasingly played a creative role for his team, often falling into midfield to collect the ball, participate in the preparation of plays and create opportunities for his teammates, courtesy of his vision and passing ability.
In his final seasons at United, Ronaldo played an even more attacking and central role, functioning both as a Number 9 and as a second striker, even as an attacking midfielder at times. He became a prolific scorer, able to finish well both inside the penalty area and from long distance, with an accurate and powerful shot. A lethal penalty shootout, also became a set-piece specialist, known for his powerful free throws with effect.
When throwing them, Ronaldo is known for using the technique of “folha seca”, which was developed by Juninho Pernambucano, and which consists of giving a dry blow to the ball with the inside of the foot so that it describes a parable from the top to bottom similar to a dry leaf that falls from a tree, a metaphor that comes from a goal that the Brazilian “Didí” scored from a free kick to the Selection of Peru in the 1958 World Cup qualifiers. He also adopts a trademark posture before hitting the ball, which sees him position himself in front of the ball with his legs wide apart.
Regarding Ronaldo’s unique style of free-kicking, former Manchester United assistant manager Mike Phelan commented: “People used to leave the ball, walk away, run and hit it. He brought a more dynamic show. He places the ball down, his concentration level is high, he takes a certain number of steps back so that his foot is in the perfect place to hit the ball at the sweet spot. He’s the best showman. He has that slight arrogance. When he pulls up those shorts and shows his thighs, he’s saying ‘All eyes on me’ and this ball is going to come in. Understand the marketing side. The way the ball is displayed and placed; he knows the world is watching him.”
At Real Madrid, Ronaldo continued to play a more attacking role, but his creative and defensive duties became more limited, though not completely diminished. Initially deployed as a center forward by coaches Manuel Pellegrini and Jose Mourinho, he was then moved back to the left wing, albeit in a free tactical role; this position allowed him to slide into the center at will to reach the end of the centers and score, or take defenders out of his area with his ballless movements and leave room for his teammates to take advantage. Madrid’s counter-attacking style of play also allowed him to become a more efficient and consistent player, as evidenced by his record-scoring marks. While he was mainly praised in the media for being a prolific goal scorer, Ronaldo also demonstrated his skill as an effective creative player in this role.
This unique role has been described by experts as that of a “fake”, “attacker”, or “goal scorer” winger, as Ronaldo practically functioned as a center forward at times with his constant runs into the penalty area, even though he actually played on the left wing. From 2013 forward, already with coach Carlo Ancelotti, Cristiano effectively adapted his style due to the physical effects of aging with an increasingly reduced movement without the ball and an increasingly reduced overall participation, completing fewer dribbles and passes per game and, instead, focusing more on creation and goal at short distances.
Since 2017, Ronaldo has adapted his style of play once again to become a free center forward under coach Zinedine Zidane, a role in which he continued to excel and maintain a prolific goal record; In this position, he earned praise in the media for his clever moves with and without the ball, his positional sense, his linking and finishing game, as well as his ability to lose or anticipate his markers, find space in the box and score with few touches or chances.
In his first season at Juventus, Ronaldo continued to play in a variety of different attacking roles under coach Massimiliano Allegri, depending on who he associated with upfront. While he had occupied an increasingly attacking role in his later years at Real Madrid, he occasionally played a free role at Juventus, either as a lone striker or in his signature role on the left wing, in a 4–2–3–1 or 4–3–3 formation, in which he often switched positions with Mario Mandžukić.
In this role, he was also given permission to fall into the midfield, or even refer to the right sector of the field to receive the ball and participate more in the preparation of plays; thus, in addition to scoring goals himself, he began to face rivals and create chances for other players more often than in his last seasons with Real Madrid. Without the ball, he was also able to create spaces for teammates with his movements and runs into the area, or finish off chances with his head or feet when he reached the end of his teammates’ centers. He also occasionally played in an attacking pair alongside Mandžukić in a 4–3–1–2, 4–4–2 or 3–5–2 formation. He continued to play a similar role in his second season with the club under Maurizio Sarri.
Reception
| “In the six years we had him, we saw his game grow all the time, and he was a fantastic player. Now you see the full player. His decision-making, his maturity, his experience, plus all the great skills he has, all make him the most complete player.” |
Cristiano Ronaldo is widely regarded as one of the best players of his generation, alongside Lionel Messi. After winning his first Golden Ball in 2008 by a record vote at just 23 years old, Ronaldo has been subject to several debates about who is the greatest player of all time. Acclaimed for his prolific and consistent scoring marks, he is regarded as a decisive player who also changes matches,404 especially in important situations and where pressure is high.
Ronaldo is known for his work ethic, impressive fitness, and dedication to improvement in training, as well as being noted as a natural leader. In his longevity and “extraordinary commitment to physical preparation”, Sky Sports’ Adam Bate commented: “Dedication plays a big part in staying on top and Ronaldo’s approach is perhaps unparalleled within the sport.” Although stating that they were aesthetically distinct players but with the same hunger to score goals, legendary Brazilian striker Ronaldo praised Cristiano’s approach to training, arguing that: “There are so few players who take care of their bodies as he does.
I trained because I had to, he does it because he loves it.” His drive and determination to succeed are driven by the desire to be talked about alongside other greats like Pele and Diego Maradona once he retires. He is credited, along with his compatriot, coach Jose Mourinho, for inspiring the evolution of Portuguese football in the 2010s and 2020s. In addition, he has sometimes been criticized for simulating when he needs to. He was also occasionally criticized early in his career by manager Alex Ferguson, his teammates and the media for being a selfish or overly outlandish player.
During his career, Ronaldo has also been described as having an “arrogant image” on the pitch, and Ronaldo claimed he had become a “victim” for the way he was portrayed in the media. He is often seen groaning, gesticulating and frowning as he tries to inspire his team to victory, and Ronaldo insists his competitive nature should not be confused with arrogance. His coaches, teammates and several journalists have said that this reputation has led to an unfair image of him.
Cristiano-Messi rivalry
The Cristiano-Messi Rivalry is a sporting rivalry encouraged by the media and fans that involves footballers Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi, mainly for being contemporaries and for their similar records and sporting successes.
Together they have achieved several historical milestones in the sport, becoming considered as two of the greatest footballers of all time. While they have been entitled to several major individual awards throughout their careers, football critics generally agree that both are the best players of their generation, outperforming their peers numerically by a significant margin. Proof of this, they have achieved numerous feats and have achieved unique recognitions for a footballer, such as the Player of the XXI Century award in the case of the Portuguese or the Laureus Award in the case of the Argentine.
Their performances, and especially their competition, is also linked to that of the respective clubs to which they were part. Cristiano represented Real Madrid C. F., while Messi did the same with F.C. Barcelona, in what is one of the strongest football rivalries that exist. They faced at least twice each season in “El Clasico”, matches of the most followed worldwide with millions of spectators, until the transfer of the Portuguese to the Italian club Juventus F.C. in 2018.
Off the pitch, they are the representative image of two sportswear manufacturers – Cristiano with Nike and Messi with Adidas – opposite sponsors of their respective clubs and also brands with opposition in the market. They are therefore two of the highest-paid athletes in the world, who had a combined income of salaries, bonuses and advertising in 2016 exceeding eighty million euros. In addition, they are the footballers and personalities with the largest number of followers on the social network Instagram; Cristiano with 390 million and Messi with 300 million, who together achieve a combined total of 690 million followers, these data corresponding to January 14, 2022.
Cristiano Ronaldo in popular culture
Cristiano Ronaldo is considered one of the best football players, one of the most influential, and therefore has followers all over the world.
Throughout his career, Ronaldo has been included in various international rankings: for example, he ranked second on the Forbes list of the highest-paid athletes of the decade, with earnings of 720 million euros (£615 million) from 2010 to 2019, only boxer Floyd Mayweather Jr. he earned more than him. Similarly, Forbes ranked him twice at the top of its list of the highest-paid football players in the world. In 2016, he became the first soccer player to top the Forbes list of the world’s highest-earning athletes, with a total income of $88 million between his salary and sponsorships for the 2015-16 season also topped the list for the second year in a row with earnings of $93 million in 2016-17.
He is the first soccer player and only the third athlete to earn a billion dollars in his career. In addition, Ronaldo is one of the most marketable athletes in the world: SportsPro rated him as the fifth most marketable athlete in 2012, and as the eighth most marketable athlete in 2013. On May 2014 the sports market research company Repucom named him the most commercial and most recognized football player in the world. In 2014 the Times Magazine included him in its Time 100 list as one of the 100 most influential people in the world. ESPN named the soccer player as the most famous athlete in the world in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019.
While the fanaticism for the player has its focuses in Portugal, Madrid and Manchester, his football career has been recognized on numerous occasions. Various surveys place him among the best players in history. In addition, of the different awards and prizes given by official bodies and sports publications around the world, Ronaldo received two important recognitions: on June 17, 2015, an astronomical research organization composed of 16 nations named in his honor the newly discovered galaxy Cosmos Redshift 7, similarly, on March 29, 2017, the airport near his hometown was officially renamed in tribute to his career as Cristiano Ronaldo International Airport.
He has also been awarded by the Presidency of Portugal, when in 2004 he was awarded the distinction of Officer of the Order of the Infante Don Enrique and in 2014 he was awarded the Distinction of Grand Officer of the Order of the Infante Don Enrique, both for his career.
His influence on and off the pitch has been such that he has managed to become an example to follow and a source of inspiration for professional footballers and football fans. In the streets of different parts of the world there are murals, paintings, statues and drawings of Portuguese. In addition, poems, songs and letters have been written and dedicated to him.
Individual records and achievements
Among his achievements, some stand out for his high-scoring record as a professional. In 2013, the player scored 69 goals in a calendar year, being the best mark of the aforementioned period worldwide and his own. Achieved with Real Madrid C. F. (59 goals) and with the Portugal national football team (10 goals), they contributed to his winning the FIFA Golden Ball, the second in his career.
The record tallied seven hat-tricks and fifteen doubles. The following season, the one corresponding to the 2014-15 academic year, he scored 61 goals in 54 games, with an average of 1.13 goals per game, to become the Madrid player with the most goals in a season in the club’s history and be the season with the most goals in his entire professional career. Six doubles, six hat-tricks, one poker and one poker stood out among the goals.
Divided by competition, it was in Europe’s top club competition, the Champions League, where he signed some of his most important achievements. In the aforementioned 2013-14 season he reached the absolute record of goals in the same edition in the entire history of the tournament with 17 goals in 11 games, yielding a scoring average of 1.55 per game. It was also the highest figure achieved by any player in a European competition matching Radamel Falcao’s 2011 Europa League record. He managed to score at least one goal in each of the phases of the tournament.
These numbers led him, along with the rest of UEFA seasons and competitions, to a career figure of 108 goals, the highest achieved by a footballer. Of these, 106 of them belonged to the Champions League and 2 to the European Super Cup, while the club and the stadium where he scored the most goals were the aforementioned Real Madrid C. F. (90 goals) and the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium (47 goals). His preferred “victim” was Futball-Club Bayern, to whom he scored 9 goals.
In Spain, he set a new absolute record for goals at the start of the 2014-15 League, scoring fifteen in eight matches, being the highest figure achieved by any player in the Spanish competition and surpassing the previous record, achieved by Esteban Echevarría in the 1943-44 season of fourteen goals in eight days.
The record continued to increase four more days, scoring a total of twenty goals in twelve days, surpassing the record of Isidro Lángara of the 1935-36 season with sixteen goals in ten days. The record was achieved after scoring at least one goal in each of the eleven matches played (he missed a match due to injury), also establishing a new record in the club of consecutive matches scoring in League, for a total of twenty goals and surpassing the previous record of thirteen goals in seven games held by Ferenc Puskás in 1959-60 and 1960-61.
In the 2014–15 season, he set a new personal record by scoring twenty goals over twelve consecutive matches in all competitions at stake. The streak stopped on the fourth day of the Champions League, where he failed to score in the visit of Liverpool Football Club to Madrid.
With three titles, Cristiano Ronaldo is the player who has won the UEFA Best Player Award in Europe the most times.
On 15 June 2018, he became the fourth player in World Cup history to score goals in four different editions of the tournament, alongside Pelé, Uwe Seeler and Miroslav Klose. On 20 April 2019 he became the first player to be champion in Europe’s three biggest leagues, England’s Premier League, Spain’s La Liga and Italy’s Serie A.
Finally, it is important to note that between selection and clubs, Cristiano has scored 169 teams (123 clubs and 46 teams).
The personal life of Cristiano Ronaldo
Cristiano Ronaldo speaks Portuguese, English and Spanish, while he owes his name to his parent’s admiration for actor and later U.S. President Ronald Reagan. His father, José Dinis Aveiro, died of a kidney crisis due to alcohol on September 7, 2005, when Cristiano was twenty years old and concentrated with the national team. Hours later, he met with the coach of the Portuguese team to inform him of his intention to play the match against Russia for the qualification to the 2006 World Cup. After the commitment, the manager of his club at the time, Alex Ferguson, allowed him to return to his hometown for burial so he missed the match against Manchester City, one of the rare occasions in which he has missed a match for extra-sporting reasons.
After two matches for World Cup qualification, he traveled to Indonesia to raise funds for the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. He met with Vice-President Jusuf Kalla and East Timorese President Xanana Gusmão to give a contribution of $120,000.
Throughout his career, gender actions were closely linked to his life, being very active and contributing to the social cause and in favor of health and development. He auctioned the Golden Boot achieved in 2011 to raise funds for the children of Gaza, in Palestine after the Gaza Strip was heavily bombed by Israeli troops, while through numerous partnerships and donations, to cite other examples, the Portuguese helps to the extent allowed by his agenda. Not in vain, in his childhood he overcame a heart operation that was about to be fateful, being also one of the reasons for his actions and his Catholic religiosity, which he also professes.
On July 4, 2010, a few days after the defeat of the Portugal team in the 2010 World Cup, he announced on social networks that he was the father of a child, Cristiano Jr, who was born in the state of California in the United States. It was agreed with the mother that his identity would be kept secret and the child would be placed under her guardianship. Subsequently, he followed a similar process with a surrogate pregnancy in 2017 through which he was again the father, this time of twins, Eva and Mateo.
In between, he maintained a relationship with the Russian model Irina Shayk until the beginning of 2015 and, after spending a time without a known stable relationship, at least to public opinion, he began a relationship with the Spanish-Argentine Georgina Rodríguez in the summer of 2016. Rodriguez and Ronaldo met together in public for the first time in November 2016, when they went to Disneyland Paris. Just five months after the birth of the twins, his girlfriend Georgina gave birth on 12 November 2017 to the footballer’s fourth child, Alana Martina. In October 2021 it was made public that he was going to be the father of twins for the second time. In April 2022, the birth of his second daughter, and the death of her twin brother, were made public.
His successes and media coverage led him to perform alternative jobs as a model for major brands and international firms and as an entrepreneur, complementary to his sports career.
Controversies
Ronaldo and another man were investigated by the British Crown Prosecution Service after a 2005 rape complaint was filed by two women. Within days, the two women withdrew their plea and Scotland Yard issued a statement stating that there was insufficient evidence for prosecution.
In April 2017, it was reported that Ronaldo was being investigated for another allegation of rape by the Las Vegas Police Department that originated in 2009. Documents came to light claiming that Cristiano Ronaldo allegedly paid a woman US$375,000 in a confidentiality agreement. Ronaldo and his lawyers issued a lengthy statement denying all the allegations, describing them as an “intentional smear campaign” with significantly “altered and/or completely fabricated” parts, a claim that Der Spiegel categorically refuted. Finally, on July 22, 2019, the complaint was dismissed — due to the absence of evidence — by the Clark County District Attorney’s Office, Las Vegas, leaving the Portuguese soccer player free from indictment and trial.
Cristiano Ronaldo judicial process
The case of Cristiano Ronaldo actually began in 2004, when the player, already in the elite, was entrusted to the ‘Mendes method’ to manage his advertising revenue. The tax scheme used during that time to allegedly avoid paying taxes has brought the footballer before the Spanish courts. In the summer of 2004, after signing for Manchester United, Ronaldo allegedly created an offshore structure to avoid paying taxes on his advertising revenue. Its worldwide profits (except those of the United Kingdom) were held in Tollin, a company with no employees or real activity in the tax haven of the British Virgin Islands.
A week before the end of his signing with Real Madrid, on December 20, 2008, Cristiano Ronaldo changed that supposed framework. While in the United Kingdom, he kept his income from image rights in a company based in Manchester, in Spain he did not create any company for it: all the money went to the Caribbean. In the context of the end of the Beckham Law and the Treasury’s inspections of other clients of Jorge Mendes, Ronaldo made the 2014 income tax return. Despite having already invoiced 150 million for advertising between 2009 and 2014, he was taxed by 22.7 and paid only 5.6 million for Personal Income Tax.
On December 3, 2015, the Treasury opened a file against Ronaldo for possible irregularities in his taxation of the years 2011, 2012 and 2013. Later, they would extend the investigations to the year corresponding to the year 2014. A year after the Treasury began its inspection, the newspaper El Mundo and its EIC partners revealed Ronaldo’s alleged scheme to divert income to a tax haven. The Treasury ended its investigation in May 2017 with the conclusion that Ronaldo defrauded 14.7 million euros in taxes between 2011 and 2014. Two weeks later, the Prosecutor’s Office denounced him for four tax crimes. The judge admitted the complaint for processing and summoned him to testify on Monday, July 31, as an investigator.
As the Union of Finance Technicians points out, the Portuguese footballer could have incurred a tax crime in 2011, and two other aggravated tax crimes in 2012 and 2013, by exceeding the allegedly defrauded quotas of 600,000 euros. These two offenses carry prison sentences of two to six years for each of them.
However, the judge could apply the highly qualified mitigation of extemporaneous regularization introduced in the Criminal Code in 2013 and reduce the penalty to half or a quarter of each tax offense if the player recognizes the facts and pays the allegedly defrauded fees, interest and fines within a maximum period of two months from the judicial summons as investigated. Likewise, Gestha believes that Ronaldo’s tax advisors should be investigated by necessary cooperators in the alleged tax crimes, especially after learning of the revelations of Football Leaks, which alerted about the emails that were crossed by the player’s lawyers and those of the representative.
In June 2018, Ronaldo received a two-year suspended jail sentence and a fine of €18.8 million, which was later reduced to €16.8 million upon reaching an agreement with Spanish authorities. The sentence can be served on parole, without any jail time, as long as you do not re-offend.
References (sources)
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