Five-time Awarded the Ballon d’Or According to the Spanish sports weekly Marca, Cristiano Ronaldo has decided to join the Saudi Arabian club Al-Nassr on January 1.
By mutual consent, Ronaldo, 37, departed Manchester United the day before the Qatar 2022 World Cup after an inflammatory interview with Piers Morgan in which he criticised the Red Devils’ hierarchy and manager.
As a result, he was free to engage in negotiations with any team he chose. According to Marca, the Portuguese superstar will sign a two-and-a-half year deal with Al-Nassr, which, if fulfilled, would save him from turning 40.
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A huge signing-on fee of just under €100 million ($106 million) plus financial incentives tied to advertising, according to Marca, will make Ronaldo the highest-paid athlete in the world. This is in addition to the €200 million ($212 million) a season in rumoured wages.
A recent Forbes list of the highest-paid football players included Kylian Mbappe, who is expected to earn $128 million this season.
The 23-year-old turned down a three-year contract extension at Real Madrid, the former team of Cristiano Ronaldo, in the summer.
Mbappe reportedly made $1 million ($1.3 million) every week in France, with the signing bonus alone for the new contract being worth £100 million ($123 million).
Ronaldo came in third place on the list with $100 million in earnings, although $60 million of that came from endorsement deals.
On Twitter, though, Ronaldo’s TV interviewer Morgan claimed that Marca’s news was untrue.
Ronaldo would quit elite European football and forgo the opportunity to compete in the Champions League, which he won five times in his career with Manchester United and Real Madrid, if the report turns out to be accurate.
