Cristiano Ronaldo is the most popular athlete in the world. This is a fact. He has over 75 million followers (#8 overall). To put this in perspective, that's almost twice as many as the second highest athlete on the list, LeBron James, at 45 million. If you ask the Portuguese soccer superstar, he's also the greatest athlete, period. Modesty has never been one of his strong suits. The argument between Ronaldo or Lionel Messi (each five-time Ballon d'Or) as the greatest players of their generation, if not ever, is as common around the globe as the more American discussion of LeBron vs. Jordan. Either way, there is no wrong answer.
Presented here is a true gem unlike anything we've ever seen at a U.S.-based auction house: a photo-matched Ronaldo gamer. And not just any game, last year's Madrid Derby. An intercity rivalry match between two professional European football clubs is known as a Derby. For Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid, the battle for bragging rights in Spain's largest city has been going on since the early 1900's. Real has a big lead in the all-time series. In recent years, though, Atletico has gotten the better of their cross-town rivals, going 4-1-5 over the past nine La Liga meetings.
On Nov. 18, 2017, in Ronaldo's final season with "Los Blancos," the two teams played to a 0-0 draw at Wanda Metropolitano. Cristiano wore this white long-sleeve adidas jersey in the match, as the numerous grass and dirt stains on the sleeves and back do attest. The experts at Resolution Photomatching have conclusively photo-matched it to the game, one of two shirts he sported during the contest. (It has long been tradition for pro soccer players to trade jerseys with their opponents at the end of the game.) The 100% polyester jersey is properly tagged on the interior. "RONALDO" and his iconic No. "7" are ironed on the back with team sponsor "Fly Emirates" on the front, all done in teal. It has the Real Madrid team crest on the left chest, a 2016 FIFA World Champions patch on the right chest, and the LaLiga loco patch on the right sleeve. An absolute treasure for one's collection.
LOA from Resolution Photomatching.