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A goodbye the world was not ready for
Ronaldo announced his retirement from Portugal with a moving message on social media. The reaction was immediate. Fans wrote from India, Nepal, Africa, Portugal, France, Latin America and the United States, many speaking to him directly, as if he could read every line.
Five Ballons d’Or, one career that changed the game
2008, 2013, 2014, 2016, 2017. Five times, Cristiano Ronaldo was crowned the world’s best by the Ballon d’Or. Five seasons of goals, discipline and relentless work that fans still describe, years later, as the reason they fell in love with football.
Then the fans made their own choice
On Ballondor.com, the public was asked to elect the BOAT, the Ballon d’Or All Time. The fans chose Cristiano Ronaldo. It is a fan vote, separate from the official Ballon d’Or record, and it says something: how deeply he is loved.
« Forever my GOAT and the true BOAT »
A fan from the Democratic Republic of the Congo wrote it before the result was known: « Para sempre o meu GOAT e o verdadeiro BOAT, com todo o meu coração. » (Forever my GOAT and the true BOAT, with all my heart.)
A community that never stopped believing
What we are seeing today is not a crowd. It is a community, ultra-engaged, multilingual, writing in Portuguese, Spanish, Arabic and English. Ballondor.com is bringing these tributes together and publishing them progressively. Football belongs to the fans.
What he taught a generation
A 13-year-old from Hungary: « Obrigado por me ensinares que, com muito trabalho e esforço, podemos alcançar qualquer sonho. » (Thank you for teaching me that with hard work and effort, we can achieve any dream.)
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A fan from Libya: « You gave football so much more than goals and trophies. You gave an entire generation something to believe in. »
From Mexico: « sin ti no jugaría, no amaría este deporte, no tendría esa resiliencia tanto en la cancha como en la vida. » (Without you I wouldn’t play, I wouldn’t love this sport, I wouldn’t have this resilience on the pitch and in life.)
The nights nobody forgot: Fans kept returning to specific moments
One remembered the bicycle kick against Juventus on 3 April 2018: « You gave me that aura that night, like everything was possible. » Another thanked him for « the last-minute winners, the gravity-defying headers, the roars of “SIUUU” that shook stadiums worldwide. » And a Nigerian fan admitted: « The funny thing is, I could have been your biggest hater. »
From Madeira to Johannesburg
On his home island: « Tenho orgulho por ter nascido na mesma ilha do que tu. » (I am proud to have been born on the same island as you.) In South Africa: « tell the next generation to tell their people that football once had a GOAT. » In Arabic, a single line: « أنت أعظم من لمس كرة القدم بل أنت كرة القدم » (You are the greatest to have touched football, you are football.)
He said goodbye with a smile
Many fans noticed his tone. One from India: « announcing ur message with such a genuine smile and satisfaction made me feel happy that my GOAT is happy. » Another summed up the mood: « You’ve done more than enough. »
Your turn: write to Cristiano
The messages keep coming, and we will keep publishing them on Ballondor.com. Send yours and share the link with friends. Football belongs to the fans.
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