CELEBRITY
Cristiano Ronaldo breaks another international record to help Portugal seal Qatar win
Another international break means another international record for Cristiano Ronaldo, with the 36-year-old star setting another unfathomable feat against Qatar.
Portugal faced the holders of the 2022 World Cup in a friendly on Saturday, and Ronaldo was in the right place at the right time to open the scoring, as Qatar became the 46th different country that the Manchester United star has scored against.
The latest record comes a month after Ronaldo became the top all-time mens international goalscorer thanks to a brace against the Republic of Ireland, as the Portuguese star continues to reach new heights.
Ronaldo now sits on 112 international goals, with no sign of slowing down just yet. Ronaldo continues to storm the international scene despite playing at the age of 36, an age where most professionals usually surrender their international duties many years prior, let alone performing at the top level domestically.
The five-time Ballon d’Or winner’s latest accomplishment adds to his record breaking goal tally, and record breaking number of appearances by a European, making 180 for Portugal throughout his career
Ronaldo’s opener helped Portugal on to a 3-0 victory over Qatar, as Jose Fonte and Andre Silva also found the net to wrap up a comfortable night in the Algarve, but the United star took the headlines as expected.
Diogo Dalot was the assist maker for Ronaldo, a stat that will excite United fans even more as the pair look to strike up a partnership while away on international duty, with the Portuguese defender providing excellent back-up for Aaron Wan-Bissaka at Old Trafford.
Ronaldo made his long awaited return to United this summer after making the £25million move from Juventus on Deadline Day, and the Portuguese star has picked up where he left off in 2009.
The 36-year-old scored on his second Premier League and Champions League debut, and already had five goals in six games since returning to Old Trafford.
Ronaldo was also awarded the September player of the month by the Premier League, an award he won 13 years ago during his first spell at United, before going on to achieve greatness as one of Real Madrid’s greatest ever stars.
Mirror
Cristiano Ronaldo has become the first footballer to reach billionaire status, according to the latest Bloomberg Billionaires Index, which has valued the Portugal great’s net worth at an estimated $1.4 billion.
The 40-year-old striker’s financial ascent comes after he signed a new contract with Saudi side Al-Nassr in June reportedly worth more than $400 million.
Bloomberg said that Ronaldo earned more than $550 million in salary between 2002 and 2023, supplemented by a decade-long Nike deal worth nearly $18 million annually, and lucrative endorsements with Armani, Castrol and others that added more than $175 million to his fortune.
Ronaldo’s move to Al-Nassr from Manchester United in 2023 had already made him the highest-paid player in football history, with an annual salary of 177 million pounds ($237.52 million), plus bonuses and a reported 15% share in his Saudi Arabia club.
Argentina and Inter Miami forward Lionel Messi has earned more than $600 million in pre-tax salary during his career.
Ronaldo’s billionaire status places him among a rare group of athletes that includes basketball greats Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and LeBron James, golfer Tiger Woods and tennis player Roger Federer.
Ronaldo suggested he is not considering retirement any time soon.
“I still have a passion for this,” he said at the Portugal Football Globes gala on Tuesday. “My family says it’s time to quit and they ask me why I want to score 1000 goals if I’ve already scored 900-something. But I don’t think that way inside.
“I’m still producing good things, I’m helping my club and the national team. Why not continue? I am sure that when I finish I will leave full because I gave everything of myself. I know I don’t have many years left to play, but the few I have left, I have to enjoy them to the fullest.”
-Reuters
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Former England soccer captain David Beckham and actor Gary Oldman were knighted in King Charles’ annual birthday honours list on Saturday, while sculptor Antony Gormley was made a Companion of Honour.
Beckham, 50, joined Manchester United as a trainee in 1993, going on to make almost 400 appearances for the club where he won a string of titles and cups.
He subsequently played for Real Madrid, LA Galaxy, and Inter Milan, as well as captaining his country 58 times and making 115 appearances.
His marriage to fashion designer and former Spice Girl Victoria Beckham in 1999 cemented a celebrity status which went far beyond his sporting exploits.
Oldman, 67, started his career on the stage, where he was a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company, before rising to prominence in film. He won the best actor Oscar for playing Winston Churchill in the 2017 drama “Darkest Hour”.
He also had roles in the “Dark Knight Trilogy” and the “Harry Potter” movie series and more recently starred in the TV spy drama “Slow Horses”.
Other famous names receiving honours included damehoods for musical theatre star Elaine Paige, novelist Pat Barker and ceramics maker Emma Bridgewater.
Roger Daltrey, lead singer of rock band the Who and a patron of the Teenage Cancer Trust, received a knighthood for services to charity.
More than 1,200 people received honours for their achievements, with a particular focus on those who had given their time to public service, the government said.
King Charles’ official birthday will be celebrated with the annual “Trooping the Colour” military parade in London on Saturday. His actual birthday is on November 14
-Reuters
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One of three judges in Diego Maradona’s closely scrutinized homicide trial in Argentina resigned on Tuesday amid a scandal triggered by the alleged filming of an unauthorised documentary, bringing uncertainty to the future of legal proceedings.
The high-profile trial over the death of soccer star Maradona began on March 11 in the South American country where the World Cup winner is still revered.
-Reuters
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