Portuguese star footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, who retired from Manchester United last month, is going to the Saudi club Al-Nassr. Ronaldo has signed his contract for two and a half years, until June 2025, the Saudi club announced on Twitter on Friday evening. The announcement comes after a month of rumours.
The club has not revealed how much Ronaldo will earn, but previous reports were about an annual income of 200 million euros. This includes advertising contracts. The AFP news agency reported on Friday evening, based on insiders at Al-Nassr, that he will indeed earn 200 million euros a year. The 37-year-old attacker would be the highest-paid athlete in the world with that income. According to AFP, Ronaldo will arrive at his new club next week.
Al-Nassr is second in the Saudi Premier League, the top division in the country. Mainly football players from Saudi Arabia play there. “I can’t wait to discover a new football championship in another country,” Ronaldo said in the announcement, posing with his new kit in yellow and blue and wearing his usual number 7.
Last season, Ronaldo hardly played at Manchester United under former Ajax coach Erik ten Hag. The break with the British Premier League club came after he was in a interview lashed out at the trainer. Ronaldo said he had no respect for Ten Hag because the coach would not have that for him either. Ronaldo played in his impressive football career for the clubs Manchester United, Real Madrid and Juventus, among others, with whom he won the Champions League several times and became national champion. He won the Ballon d’Or for best footballer of the year five times.