Cristiano Ronaldo

Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro was born on 5 February 1985 in Funchal, the capital of Portugal’s Madeira island, and grew up in the nearby parish of Santo António. His mother, Maria Dolores, worked as a cook and cleaner; his father, José Dinis, was a municipal gardener and part-time kit man for a local club. José, a veteran of Portugal’s colonial war in Angola, struggled with alcoholism for much of his life. Ronaldo has Cape Verdean ancestry through his great-grandmother, Isabel da Piedade.

He has an older brother, Hugo, and two older sisters, Elma and Liliana “Kátia” Cátia. His father admired U.S. president Ronald Reagan and named him accordingly. His mother has said she considered aborting him due to poverty and her husband’s drinking, but her doctor refused. Raised Catholic in a poor household, Ronaldo shared a room with his siblings and remains a practicing Catholic. As a child, he idolised Brazilian footballers Ronaldinho and Ronaldo.

He began playing for Andorinha in 1992, moved to Nacional two years later, and at age 12 joined Sporting CP after a three-day trial, for a fee of £1,500. He relocated from Madeira to Lisbon to train with the club.

Ronaldo made his senior debut for Sporting CP and signed with Manchester United in 2003. At United, he became a key player, winning three straight Premier League titles, the 2007–08 Champions League, and the 2008 FIFA Club World Cup. His performances that season earned him his first Ballon d’Or at age 23. In 2009, he moved to Real Madrid for €94 million (£80 million), then a world-record transfer fee. With Madrid, he won four Champions Leagues between 2014 and 2018—including the long-awaited La Décima in 2014, when he set the record for most goals in a single Champions League season—plus two La Liga titles. He collected Ballon d’Or awards in 2013, 2014, 2016, and 2017, and became the club’s all-time top scorer.

After tensions with Madrid’s hierarchy, he joined Juventus in 2018 for a Serie A–record €100 million. There, he won two consecutive Serie A titles, the Coppa Italia, and the Capocannoniere as top scorer in 2021. He returned to Manchester United in 2021, but his contract was terminated in 2022 after a public dispute with management. In 2023, he signed with Al-Nassr, leading them to the Saudi Pro League title in 2026 and finishing as the league’s top scorer in 2024 and 2025.

Ronaldo debuted for Portugal in 2003 at age 18 and scored his first international goal at Euro 2004, helping his country reach the final. He became captain before Euro 2008 and led Portugal to its first major trophy at Euro 2016. At Euro 2020, he won the Golden Boot as top scorer. He also won the UEFA Nations League in 2019 and 2025, finishing as top scorer in both tournaments. In 2026, he became the first player to score in six World Cups and his country’s top World Cup scorer with 11 goals. He holds records for most international appearances (233), most men’s international goals (146), and most international victories (141).

Nicknamed CR7, he is considered one of the greatest footballers ever. His individual honours include five Ballon d’Or awards, a record three UEFA Men’s Player of the Year Awards, four European Golden Shoes, and five FIFA World Player of the Year titles. He has won 35 trophies, including five Champions Leagues, two UEFA Nations Leagues, and the European Championship. He holds Champions League records for goals (140) and assists (42), and European Championship records for goals (14) and assists (8). He is the only player to score 100 goals with four different clubs and to finish as top scorer in four different domestic leagues. With over 1,300 professional appearances—the most by any outfield player—and more than 970 senior career goals, he is the all-time top scorer.

One of the most marketable athletes in the world, Sportico ranked him the third highest-paid athlete of all time in April 2026. That same year, Forbes listed him among the world’s billionaires, with a net worth of $1.2 billion. Time named him one of the 100 most influential people in 2014. He is the most popular athlete on social media, with over one billion followers across Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram. UEFA included him in its Ultimate Team of the Year in 2015, the All-time Euro XI in 2016, and the Ballon d’Or Dream Team in 2020. FIFA gave him a special Outstanding Career Achievement award in 2021.