The 37-year-old footballer will receive more than $200 million per year, according to a Saudi state-owned media company
Cristiano Ronaldo was officially introduced by Al Nassr as the Saudi Arabian club’s superstar new signing on Tuesday. Ronaldo said that he had declined numerous offers from North American and European clubs.
According to Al Ekhbariya, a Saudi state-owned media company, the 37-year-old has signed a contract with Al-Nassr until 2025 and would get an estimated £172 million (over $200 million) annually, which will make him the highest-paid player in history.
#CRISTIANO RONALDO WILL JOIN #SAUDI ARABIAN CLUB AL-NASSR IN 2023 AFTER AGREEMENT ON A CONTRACT WORTH £172 MILLION@AlNassrFC#EKHNews_EN pic.twitter.com/a53WAxmmRX
— AlEkhbariya News (@EKHNews_EN) December 30, 2022
CBS Sports reports that his salary to play in the Saudi Pro League will be $75 million annually. The rest of his pay will come from commercial deals.
A royal welcome
At Al Nassr’s Mrsool Park stadium in Riyadh, Ronaldo walked out onto the field dressed in the club’s yellow and blue away jersey. When he greeted the audience, the 25,000-person stadium went wild, a report in Aljazeera stated. Fireworks and bright spotlights illuminated the field.
Earlier in the day, on his official Twitter account, Ronaldo who is popularly referred to as CR7, thanked the people of Riyadh for their hospitality and expressed his eagerness to see them in the stadium
Thank you Riyadh for the warm welcome! Look forward to seeing you at the stadium tonight?? pic.twitter.com/0AsT4wLdYq
— Cristiano Ronaldo (@Cristiano) January 3, 2023
After signing a contract with Ronaldo through the summer of 2025, the Saudi Arabian club made the announcement on December 30. The 37-year-old Portugal national captain was a free agent after leaving Manchester United in the wake of an explosive interview that triggered a major rift with the club.
“I am excited to experience a new football league in a different country,” Ronaldo stated in a statement issued by Al-Nassr announcing the agreement.
“History in the making,” the club wrote in a Tweet. “This is a signing that will not only inspire our club to achieve even greater success but inspire our league, our nation and future generations, boys and girls to be the best version of themselves. Welcome Cristiano to your new home.”
History in the making. This is a signing that will not only inspire our club to achieve even greater success but inspire our league, our nation and future generations, boys and girls to be the best version of themselves. Welcome @Cristiano to your new home @AlNassrFC pic.twitter.com/oan7nu8NWC
— AlNassr FC (@AlNassrFC_EN) December 30, 2022
Al Nassr is based in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, and competes in the Saudi Professional League (SPL), which consists of 16 teams. They finished third during the previous season. They have won nine SPL championships.
Ronaldo’s 10 amazing achievements
- Ronaldo has the most goals in professional soccer history, with 819 as of the end of 2022.
- He scored 450 goals for Real Madrid, 145 goals in 346 games for Manchester United, 118 goals for Portugal, and 101 for Juventus.
- In Qatar, he became the first player to score at five World Cups when he scored a penalty in the 2022 World Cup group-stage victory over Ghana
- Ronaldo has won five Ballon d’Or awards – It is a football award that recognises the world’s greatest male and female players
- He has won five Champions League titles
- Ronaldo is the only player in history to have 50+ goal seasons in six consecutive years.
- He is also the top scorer in the Champions League
- Ronaldo is the only player to have won two Golden Boots at the Club World Cup..
- In 2021, he became the first athlete to achieve 500 million combined followers on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
- He has 525 million followers on Instagram alone
