How Cristiano Ronaldo built a successful career. Explore key moments that defined the journey.
Cristiano Ronaldo, often nicknamed CR7, is a Portuguese professional footballer renowned as one of the greatest players of all time. Currently playing for Al Nassr and captaining the Portugal national team, he's celebrated for his exceptional goal-scoring ability and overall skill. His accomplishments include five Ballon d'Or awards, multiple UEFA Men's Player of the Year Awards, and numerous league titles, including five UEFA Champions League titles. Ronaldo holds records for most goals and assists in the Champions League and European Championship, as well as most international appearances and goals. He is the all-time leading goalscorer in football, having scored over 900 career goals.
1948: Age Milestone
On July 20, 2020, Ronaldo became the oldest player, at the age of 35 years and 166 days, to score over 30 goals in one of the five top European leagues since Ronnie Rooke with Arsenal in 1948.
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1992: Plays for Andorinha
From 1992, Cristiano Ronaldo played for Andorinha until 1995, where his father was the kit man.
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1995: Plays for Andorinha
Cristiano Ronaldo played for Andorinha until 1995, where his father was the kit man.
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1997: Signed by Sporting CP
In 1997, aged 12, Cristiano Ronaldo went on a three-day trial with Sporting CP, who signed him for £1,500.
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August 2002: First Official Match for Sporting CP
On 14 August 2002, at age 17, Cristiano Ronaldo played his first official match for Sporting CP's first team, in a UEFA Champions League qualifying round against Inter Milan.
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August 2003: Debut for Portugal
In August 2003, at the age of 18, Ronaldo debuted for Portugal as a substitute against Kazakhstan.
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August 2003: Signs with Manchester United
On 12 August 2003, Manchester United signed Cristiano Ronaldo for £12 million.
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August 2003: Debut for Manchester United
On 16 August 2003, Cristiano Ronaldo made his debut as a substitute in a 4–0 home win over Bolton Wanderers in the Premier League.
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August 2003: Sporting defeats United
On 6 August 2003, Sporting defeated Manchester United 3-1, and Alex Ferguson decided to acquire Ronaldo on a permanent move urgently.
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2003: Move to Manchester United
In 2003, Cristiano Ronaldo began playing for Manchester United, winning the FA cup in his first season.
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2003: International Debut for Portugal
In 2003, Cristiano Ronaldo made his international debut for Portugal at 18.
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May 2004: Scored First Red Card
On 15 May 2004, Cristiano Ronaldo scored the opening goal and later received the first red card of his career.
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2004: Matches of 2004-05 Season
At the start of 2005, Cristiano Ronaldo played two of his best matches of the 2004–05 season, producing a goal and an assist against Aston Villa and scoring twice against rivals Arsenal.
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2004: Ronaldo's Aid After the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami
Following the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami, Ronaldo visited Aceh, Indonesia, to raise funds for rehabilitation and reconstruction after seeing an eight-year-old boy survivor wearing a Portuguese football shirt.
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2005: Matches of 2004-05 Season
At the start of 2005, Cristiano Ronaldo played two of his best matches of the 2004–05 season, producing a goal and an assist against Aston Villa and scoring twice against rivals Arsenal.
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January 2008: First Hat-Trick for United
On 12 January 2008, Cristiano Ronaldo scored his first hat-trick for Manchester United in a 6–0 win against Newcastle United.
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July 2008: Assumed Captaincy of National Team
In July 2008, Cristiano Ronaldo became the captain of the Portugal national team.
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2008: Ronaldo Donates Libel Case Damages to Charity
In 2008, Ronaldo donated the damages from a libel case against The Sun newspaper to a charity in Madeira.
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2008: First Ballon d'Or
In 2008, Ronaldo won his first Ballon d'Or by a record-high vote count at age 23.
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2008: UEFA Euro 2008
In 2008, ahead of UEFA Euro 2008, Ronaldo wore the number 7 shirt. Despite scoring eight goals in qualifications, he scored only one goal in the finals, netting the second goal of Portugal's 3–1 win against the Czech Republic. Portugal were eliminated in the quarter-finals after a 3–2 loss to Germany.
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2008: Dropped from Starting Line-Up
In 2022, following a dispute with manager Fernando Santos, after their last group game against South Korea, Ronaldo was dropped from the starting line-up for Portugal's last 16 match, marking the first time since Euro 2008 that he had not started a game for Portugal in a major international tournament.
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2009: Transfer to Real Madrid
In 2009, Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Real Madrid for €94 million, making it the most expensive football transfer at the time.
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2009: Transferred to Real Madrid
In 2009, Cristiano Ronaldo transferred to Real Madrid for a then world record £80 million.
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2009: Ronaldo Donates to Hospital in Madeira
In 2009, Ronaldo donated £100,000 to the hospital in Madeira that saved his mother's life, to build a cancer center.
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2010: Ronaldo Pledges Support for Madeira Flood Victims
In 2010, Ronaldo pledged to play in a charity match in Madeira to support the victims of the Madeira flood.
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2010: Given No. 7 for the 2010–11 season
In 2010, Ronaldo was given the No. 7 jersey following Raúl's departure. He scored 53 goals, helping Real Madrid win the Copa del Rey.
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2010: 2010 World Cup
In the 2010 World Cup, Ronaldo scored only one goal. Despite this, he was named man of the match in all three group stage matches.
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March 2012: Scored 100th league goal for Madrid
On March 24, 2012, Ronaldo scored his 100th league goal for Real Madrid in a 5–1 win over Real Sociedad, breaking the previous club record held by Ferenc Puskás.
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December 2012: Ronaldo Joins FIFA's "11 for Health" Programme
In December 2012, Ronaldo joined FIFA's "11 for Health" programme to raise awareness among kids of how to steer clear of conditions including drug addiction, HIV, malaria, and obesity.
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2012: Captained Madrid for the first time
Following the 2012–13 winter break, Ronaldo captained Real Madrid for the first time in an official match on January 6, scoring twice to secure a 4–3 win over Sociedad.
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2012: Champions League Top Scorer
From 2012, Cristiano Ronaldo was the Champions League's top scorer for six consecutive seasons between 2012 and 2018.
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2012: Ronaldo comments on Messi Rivalry
In 2012, Ronaldo commented on the rivalry with Messi, stating that they push each other in competition and that it's a positive thing. He also mentioned they don't have a relationship outside of football but hopes they can laugh about it in the future. The two players representing rival clubs, face each other at least twice every season in El Clásico.
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2012: Real Madrid first La Liga title
In the 2016-2017 season Real Madrid won their first La Liga title since 2012.
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January 2013: Ronaldo Becomes Save the Children's Global Artist Ambassador
In January 2013, Ronaldo became Save the Children's new Global Artist Ambassador, to help fight child hunger and obesity.
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March 2013: Ronaldo Becomes Ambassador for The Mangrove Care Forum in Indonesia
In March 2013, Ronaldo agreed to be the ambassador for The Mangrove Care Forum in Indonesia, an organisation aiming to raise awareness of mangrove conservation.
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2013: Adaptation as Goalscoring Winger
From 2013 onwards, under manager Carlo Ancelotti, Ronaldo effectively adapted his style to the physical effects of ageing with increasingly reduced off-the-ball movement and general involvement, completing fewer dribbles and passes per game, and instead focusing on short-distance creating and goalscoring.
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2013: Highest Recorded Jump
In 2013, Ronaldo achieved the highest recorded jump in football history, measuring 2.93 metres (9 ft 7 in), during a match against Manchester United.
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2014: Champions League Win
In 2014, Cristiano Ronaldo contributed to Real Madrid winning one of their four Champions League titles between 2014 and 2018.
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September 2015: Became Real Madrid's all-time top scorer
On September 12, 2015, Cristiano Ronaldo became Real Madrid's all-time top scorer with 230 goals in 203 matches, surpassing Raúl's record.
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2015: Ronaldo Named World's Most Charitable Sportsperson
In 2015, Ronaldo was named the world's most charitable sportsperson after donating £5 million to the relief effort after the earthquake in Nepal.
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June 2016: Ronaldo Donates Champions League Bonus
In June 2016, Ronaldo donated his entire €600,000 Champions League bonus after Real Madrid won the competition.
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2016: Top Scorer in 2016
In 2023, Ronaldo scored 54 goals in all competitions for Al-Nassr and Portugal, making him the outright top scorer in 2023, reaching the same goalscoring record as in 2016.
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2016: Reached 100 goals in UEFA club competition
In April 2016, Ronaldo became the first player to reach 100 goals in UEFA club competition, scoring both goals in a 2–1 away win against Bayern in the Champions League quarter-finals.
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2017: Free-Roaming Centre Forward
Since 2017, Ronaldo adapted his style of play yet again to become more of a free-roaming centre forward under manager Zinedine Zidane, a role in which he continued to excel and maintain a prolific goalscoring record.
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2018: Transfer to Juventus
In 2018, Cristiano Ronaldo transferred to Juventus for an initial €100 million.
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2018: Joined Juventus
In 2018, Ronaldo joined Juventus for €100 million, which was the highest transfer fee ever for a player over 30 years old. He cited the need for a new challenge as the reason for leaving Real Madrid.
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2018: Joined Juventus
In 2018, Ronaldo joined Juventus for €100 million. The transfer was the highest ever for a player over 30 years old and the highest paid by an Italian club
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2018: 2018 World Cup Hat-Trick
In the 2018 World Cup, Ronaldo became the oldest player to score a hat-trick in a World Cup match, in a 3–3 draw against Spain. He also broke Puskás' record as the highest European goalscorer of all time, with 85 international goals.
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January 2019: Won the 2018 Supercoppa Italiana with Juventus
On January 16, 2019, Ronaldo won his first trophy with Juventus, the 2018 Supercoppa Italiana, after scoring the only goal against AC Milan.
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August 2019: Ronaldo Discusses Rivalry with Messi
In August 2019, Ronaldo stated that he and Messi pushed each other and that it's good to be part of the history of football.
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January 2020: Scored First Serie A Hat-Trick
On January 6, 2020, Ronaldo scored his first Serie A hat-trick in a 4-0 win against Cagliari.
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2020: Euro 2020 Golden Boot
In 2020, Ronaldo received the Golden Boot as top scorer of Euro 2020 and became the first player to score at five European Championships.
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March 2021: Scored in his 600th league match
On March 2, 2021, Ronaldo scored in a 3–0 win over Spezia in his 600th league match, becoming the first player to score at least 20 goals in 12 consecutive seasons in Europe's top five leagues.
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August 2021: Re-signed with Manchester United
On August 27, 2021, Manchester United announced they had reached an agreement with Juventus to re-sign Ronaldo, subject to agreement of personal terms, visa, and medical.
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2021: Return to Manchester United
In 2021, Cristiano Ronaldo returned to Manchester United.
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February 2022: Scored first goal of the year
On February 15, 2022, Ronaldo scored in Manchester United's 2–0 win at home versus Brighton & Hove Albion, his first goal in the new year.
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December 2022: Joined Al-Nassr
On December 30, 2022, Ronaldo joined Saudi club Al-Nassr, signing a contract until 2025 with the highest football salary ever.
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2022: Messi Wins 2022 FIFA World Cup
After Messi led Argentina to victory in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, critics and players opined that Messi settled the debate between the two players.
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2022: Contract Termination
In 2022, Cristiano Ronaldo's contract with Manchester United was terminated.
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2022: Scoring at Five World Cups
In the 2022 World Cup, on November 24, Ronaldo became the first player to score at five World Cups, netting a penalty against Ghana.
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January 2023: Ronaldo's Move to Saudi Arabia and Cohabitation Exception
In January 2023, after Ronaldo's transfer to Al Nassr in Saudi Arabia, Saudi authorities made an exception to the law prohibiting unmarried couples from living together, allowing Ronaldo and his partner to cohabitate.
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January 2023: Made debut for Al-Nassr
On January 22, 2023, Ronaldo made his debut for Al Nassr, as club captain. His transfer led to a "revolution" in Asian football.
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March 2023: Most Capped Male Footballer
On March 23, 2023, Ronaldo scored a brace against Liechtenstein to earn his 197th overall cap to become the most capped male footballer of all time.
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September 2023: Ronaldo Declares Rivalry with Messi is Over
In September 2023, Ronaldo declared that his rivalry with Messi was over and "gone" after 36 official fixtures and 15 years of sharing the stage.
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2023: Most International Caps
In 2023, Cristiano Ronaldo became the player with the most international caps in men's football.
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2023: Signs for Al Nassr
In 2023, Cristiano Ronaldo signed for Al Nassr, revolutionising football in Saudi Arabia.
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2023: Top Scorer in 2023
In 2023, Ronaldo scored 54 goals in all competitions for Al-Nassr and Portugal, making him the outright top scorer in 2023, reaching the same goalscoring record as in 2016.
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April 2024: Scored a bicycle kick against Juventus
On April 3, 2024, Ronaldo scored two goals against Juventus in the Champions League, with his second goal being an acrobatic bicycle kick that garnered a standing ovation.
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May 2024: Surpassed record for most goals in a single Saudi Pro League season
On May 27, 2024, Ronaldo surpassed the record for the most goals scored in a single Saudi Pro League season, with 34 and 35 goals.
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2025: Contract End Date
On December 30, 2022, Ronaldo joined Saudi club Al-Nassr, signing a contract until 2025
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