Getty Image / Fayez NURELDINE / AFP
Audio By Carbonatix
Cristiano Ronaldo Jr., the son of the greatest Portuguese soccer player of all-time, has been called up to play for Portugal’s Youth National Team for the first time. His father, Cristiano Ronaldo, is evidently beaming with pride.
He goes by many names… CR7, Cristiano, Ronaldo, the G.O.A.T…. and he was himself first called up to play for Portugal’s Youth National Team at the age of 15 back in 2001 and had 7 goals for the U15 team. Cristiano followed that up with 5 goals for the U17s, 1 for the U20s, 3 for the U21s, and he went on to set the record with 136 goals for Portugal’s National Team in 219 appearances… Now his son will follow in his footsteps.
On Instagram, CR7 posted a congratulations to his 653 million followers:
@cristiano / Instagram
His caption over top, “Orgulho em ti, filho!” translates to “proud of you, son!” in Portuguese. Cristiano Ronald Jr. will make the the team at just 14 years old while his father made it at 15, something he can be sure to always bring up at family dinners.
While Cristiano Ronaldo is among the most famous celebrities on earth. He is the #1 most followed person on Instagram with 653 million followers and his account is only second to the official @instagram account… Relatively little is known about his son but industry experts all agree he wouldn’t get the call up just because of his father.
Little Is Known About Cristiano Ronaldo Jr., But That Will Change
Cristiano Ronaldo has, to a large degree, shielded his family from the public eye throughout his career. Anyone in his shoes would likely do the same as he deals with a level of fanaticism few if any on earth can relate to.
After Junior was born, Cristiano wrote this on Instagram while announcing the birth of his son: “It is with great joy and emotion that I inform I have recently become father to a baby boy. As agreed with the baby’s mother, who prefers to have her identity kept confidential, my son will be under my exclusive guardianship. I request everyone to fully respect my right to privacy (and that of the child) at least on issues as personal as these are.”
CR7 did speak about Cristiano Ronaldo Jr. during a 2015 interview with Jonathan Ross, Cristiano Ronald spoke about how he had never told his son, or the public, the true identity of Cristiano Ronaldo Jr’s mother and I absolutely respect Cristiano’s approach here.
He told Jonathan Ross “when Cristiano is going to grow up, I am always going to say the truth to him because he deserves it, because he is my son. But I am not going to say (it just) because people want me to say.”… Aka, this is family business.
As one of the greatest athletes and soccer players to ever play the game, it has to fill him with an immense sense of pride to see his son get called up for the national team. Which, of course, immediately kicked off questions about nepotism over on Reddit and among soccer/football communities.
On Reddit, the consensus is Cristiano Ronaldo Jr. won’t live up to the level of his father but that he will be a great player in his own right. At only 14 years old, a LOT can change in the next few years.