When it comes to the man known around the world as “CR7”, the numbers speak for themselves. He has played more than 1,000 professional football matches and scored more than 800 goals. He guided Portugal to their first major international trophy, lifted the UEFA Champions League trophy five times and is a five-time winner of the Ballon d’Or.
He has scored 115 international goals, more than any other male player.
Which begs the question: is Cristiano Ronaldo the greatest footballer of all time?
– Cristiano Ronaldo
Following his departure from Madrid in 2018, Ronaldo spent three years in Italy playing for Turin giants Juventus, where he reached a century of goals and claimed the Serie A league title two seasons in a row.
In 2021, Ronaldo made an emotional return to Old Trafford, where he finished the season as top scorer and extended his Champions League records for most goals (140) and most appearances (183).
Type of Goal | Number |
Left foot | 26 |
Right foot | 61 |
Head | 28 |
Open play | 89 |
Direct free kicks | 10 |
Penalties | 16 |
Ronaldo made his debut for Portugal in a friendly against Kazakhstan on 20 August 2003, and the following year he scored his first international goal, against Greece during a group-stage match at UEFA EURO 2004.
Despite making an impact on the competition, Ronaldo’s tournament ended in tears as Portugal lost out in the final – once more to Greece, the hosts and surprise winners.
Few could have predicted at that moment that Ronaldo would go on to become to the first player to play in five EURO finals, and grab the tournament records for both appearances (25) and goals (14).
At EURO 2016, Ronaldo led his team on a battling run through the tournament to the final.
In the showpiece match against France, Ronaldo was left in tears once again, as an early injury forced him from the field – but Portugal held on to win 1–0, allowing their talisman to lift the trophy.
It was his country’s first major international title.
– Zinedine Zidane
Favorite opponents | Number of goals |
Luxemburg | 9 |
Lithuania, Sweden | 7 |
Andorra, Hungary | 6 |
Armenia, Latvia | 5 |
Estonia, Faroe Islands, Netherlands | 4 |
In 2003, Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson said of Ronaldo: "He is one of the most exciting young players I’d ever seen".
Today, he’s the top-scorer player in the world, a pluri-record holder and one of the most famous names ever in the football industry.
The crowds chant his name and his kick strikes true to score goal after goal, but that may not be enough for Cristiano Ronaldo, who has an ambitious heart and the skills and tenacity to reach unimaginable heights.
"Let’s keep trying to set the numbers even higher!" the football champion writes on his social media, and we certainly can't wait to see.