5 Things You Might Not Know About Soccer Legend Cristiano Ronaldo

Soccer superstar Cristiano Ronaldo is a name known worldwide thanks to playing for some of the most popular and televised soccer teams. He has played for Manchester United PLC MANU, Real Madrid and Juventus Football Club SpA JVTSF.

Ronaldo was recognized as a soccer star beginning at the age of 10 in 1995. In 2001, Ronaldo signed with Sporting Portugal. In 2003, an 18-year-old Ronaldo was signed by Manchester United for $14 million, a record for a player his age.

Ronaldo currently plays for Juventus and is competing in the Euro 2020 for Portugal.

1. Strong Social Media Following: As of 2020, Ronaldo is the most-followed professional athlete across social media platforms from Facebook, Inc. FB, Instagram and Twitter Inc TWTR. Ronaldo has 298 million followers on Instagram and 92.2 million on Twitter.

2. Endorsements: SportsPro ranked Ronaldo as the No. 2 most marketable professional athlete. Ronaldo has deals in place with Nike Inc NKE, Unilever N.V. UL, DAZN, Herbalife Nutrition Ltd HLF and many more.

An advertisement with Sea Ltd SE owned Shopee brand went viral after featuring Ronaldo dancing to “Super Shopping Day,” a new song set to the tune of “Baby Shark.” Sports Illustrated called the ad “cringeworthy” at the time.

Ronaldo did turn down doing a reported advertisement with the Saudi Arabian tourism authority that would have paid $7.2 million annually according to SportsProMedia.

In 2020, Ronaldo earned $120 million, with $70 million from soccer and $50 million from off-field activities. The annual figure made Ronaldo the third highest paid athlete for the year.

Related Link: 10 Highest Paid Athletes And How They Made Their Money 

3. International Success: Well-known for stints with some of the most notable teams in the world, Ronaldo is also the face of the Portugal Men’s National Team and has been for many years.

Ronaldo holds records for Portugal for most appearances (175), goals (104), World Cup matches, goals scored in the Euro tournament, Euro tournament appearances and many more.

Ronaldo’s record 175 appearances (as of June 15) rank significantly ahead of Joao Moutinho at second with 131.

With 104 goals, Ronaldo is well ahead of the next leading all-time goal scorer for Portugal with Pauleta at 47. Going into the Euro 2020 tournament, Ronaldo trails only Ali Daei of Iran for all-time international goals. Daei scored 109 goals in 149 appearances for Iran from 1993 to 2006.

4. Named After a U.S. President: Ronaldo was born in Funchal, Madeira, a small island off the west coast of Portugal. Ronaldo was named after U.S. President Ronald Reagan, who his father considered his favorite actor.

5. Impact on Stocks/Valuation: In 2012, Manchester United went public on the NYSE. By that time, Ronaldo had already left the team for Real Madrid. Ronaldo was one of the most popular players in the world and helped Manchester United win lots of hardware.

With Ronaldo’s contract set to expire with Juventus in 2022, Manchester United shares could get a boost with any strong rumor he is set to return to the team.

Shares of Juventus doubled on the OTC within days of Ronaldo being announced as a new member of the team. Forbes ranks Juventus as the 11th most valuable soccer team at $1.95 billion. The team was worth $1.5 billion in 2019 and 2018 with valuation rising thanks to the success in recent years and the marketability of Ronaldo.

(Photo: Кирилл Венедиктов, via Wikimedia Commons)