CR7Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro5 February 1985 (age 28)Born in Funchal, Madeira, PortugalHeight 1.86 m (6 ft 1)Playing position : Forward

Ronaldo was born in Santo António, a neigh-bourhood of Funchal, Madeira, the youngest child of Maria Dolores dos Santos Aveiro, a cook, and José Dinis Aveiro, a municipal gardener. His sec-ond given name “Ronaldo” was chosen after then-U.S. president Ronald Reagan, who was his father’s favourite actor. He has one older brother, Hugo, and two older sisters, Elma and Liliana Cátia. His great-grand-mother Isabel da Piedade was from Cape Verde. At the age of eight, Ronaldo played for amateur team Andorinha, where his father was the kit man. In 1995, Ronaldo signed with local club Nacional, and, after a title-winning campaign, he went on a three-day trial with Sporting CP, who subsequently signed him for an undisclosed sum. Ronaldo joined Sporting’s other youth players who trained at the Academia Sporting, the club’s football academy, in Alcochete. He became the only player ever to play for Sporting’s under-16, under-17, under-18, B-team, and the first team, all within one season. He scored two goals in his league debut on 7 October 2002, which Sporting CP won 3–0 against Moreirense, while featuring for Portugal in the 2002 European Under-17 Championship.