The boy who pulled a handcart with 'Ferrari' scribbled on it... becomes a legend and hangs up the number 7

[Tijo Chat] The boy who pulled a handcart with 'Ferrari' scribbled on it... becomes a legend and hangs up the number 7 Naver News "The time has come to return the number 7 jersey of the Portuguese national team." Cristiano Ronaldo (41), a living legend of world football, announced his retirement from the Portuguese national team on the 5th (local time). In 2003, at the age of 18, he first joined the national team
Cristiano Ronaldo (41), a living legend of world football, announced his retirement from the Portuguese national team on the 5th (local time).
Born on a small island in the Atlantic, the boy who endured poverty and homesickness has thus become the greatest football hero of his homeland, etched into the history of Portuguese football.
Ronaldo was born in Funchal, Madeira Island, about 800km from mainland Portugal, in 1985. He grew up sharing a single room with three siblings under a father who worked as a gardener and a mother who made a living as a cook. For the young Ronaldo, football was almost the only hope to escape his impoverished daily life and move out into the world.
He left for Lisbon alone to join a youth team, but life on the mainland was not easy. He was frequently teased by school friends. It is said that he shed tears every night due to the loneliness of being away from his family. Officials who coached him during his childhood testified that Ronaldo never gave up on football, even in an unfamiliar environment.
There is an anecdote from his impoverished days that when Ronaldo pulled a handcart around, his friends would write 'Ferrari,' a luxury sports car brand, on it and tease him by making "vroom vroom" car sounds whenever he passed by. Ronaldo later recalled, "Keep teasing me. One day, I will drive a real Ferrari."
The records set by Ronaldo are expected to be difficult to break for the time being. He recorded appearances and goals in six consecutive World Cups, from the 2006 tournament in Germany to the 2026 tournament in North/Central America, and his career totals of 234 appearances and 146 goals in A-matches are the all-time world records for men's football. He scored 41 goals in World Cup qualifiers alone and holds the record for the most goals in the European Championship finals with 14. In 2021, he surpassed the all-time A-match goal-scoring record previously held by Iran's Ali Daei.
Following the news of Ronaldo's retirement, tributes have poured in from teammates who shared an era with him and from the global football community.
Former Real Madrid teammates also sent their farewells. Sergio Ramos cheered him on for his new chapter, saying, "You are a legend, brother," while Lucas Vázquez called him a "legend among legends." Brazil's Neymar referred to Ronaldo as a "legend," and Vinícius Júnior left a message calling him the "eternal number one."