Cristiano Ronaldo can be ‘hired’ by companies – but at a staggering price according to Football Leaks.
Ronaldo, 40, is currently at Al-Nassr having made his name playing for the likes of Sporting CP, Manchester United, Juventus, Real Madrid and the Portugal national team.
Aside from his generational ability on the field, off the pitch he is one of the most recognisable figures on the planet – sporting over 650m Instagram followers, which makes him the most followed person on the platform.
His popularity has allowed him to rake in fortunes from brand deals to add to his reported annual wage of £167.9m, which he receives from his club Al-Nassr.
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And if this wasn’t enough, he also pockets a staggering amount from another venture.
The eye-opening Football Leaks book by Der Spiegel journalists Rafael Buschmann and Michael Wulzinger uncovered details of how much it costs to hire the five-time Ballon d'Or winner.
The book reveals that Mobily, a Saudi telecoms business, struck a deal with Ronaldo's Irish image rights company, Multisports & Image Management.
They would get four-and-a-half hours of his time and this comprised of a photo shoot, five signed shirts and two plugs across his social media channels, where he is said to earn around £1.6 million per sponsored post.
Although Mobily was allowed to use images that were taken on the day, the advertising was only regional, as the publication was restricted to the Middle East and North Africa region.
Ronaldo and his representatives supposedly charged the company an enormous £920,000 for the aforementioned services.
The sum works out as £204,000 per hour, £3,407 a minute and £56.78 for every second he spent providing the services. It must be considered that the book was released in 2018, and seven years on the amount Ronaldo could potentially earn from such a venture is likely to much higher.
Despite earning huge amounts of cash, Ronaldo insisted that he made the move to Saudi Arabia in 2022 to "leave a legacy".
"I came here to win, to make the league better," Ronaldo told Saudi Pro League: Kick Off in 2024.
"I want to leave a legacy. That’s what I want. They say I’m finished, that I’m only here for the money… I still feel the passion. They don’t believe it, but I’m here to win.”
Topics: Cristiano Ronaldo, Al Nassr, Saudi Arabia, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Ballon d'Or
Luke Davies