Page 7 - Cristiano Ronaldo

Lionel Messi pays his debt to Argentina with Copa America title

Argentina finally made Lionel Messi cry with joy. After losing four times in finals, early exits in major tournaments and even a decision to retire from the national team, the superstar celebrated a much-awaited title with Argentina at Saturday's 1-0 win against Brazil in the Maracana Stadium. The title ended Argentina's 28-year drought of major trophies, with Messi as the best player with four goals and five assists. The captain also broke the team's record for international appearances with 151 matches. When Uruguayan referee Esteban Ostojich blew the final whistle, Messi knelt down on the pitch and covered his face with his hands. The next challenge is to win the World Cup in Qatar next year, which would be the first since Maradona took the team to glory in 1986. Until Saturday, Messi's titles with Argentina were only the U-20 World Cup title in 2005 and a gold medal at the Beijing Olympics in 2008. His first frustration at the senior-team level started at age 19 in the World

Iran's Daei pays tribute to Ronaldo after he equals his 109-goal record

Asian football legend Ali Daei of Iran congratulated Cristiano Ronaldo after the Portugal star scored his 109th goal in Wednesday's Euro 2020 game vs France to equal his all-time international record

Portugal coach sees weaknesses in Belgium team at Euro 2020

Portugal coach Fernando Santos has spotted the weaknesses in Belgium's team. He's just not going to tell anyone what they are. The Belgians won all three of their group matches at the European Championship to set up a match against defending champion Portugal on Sunday in the round of 16. Santos praised Belgium but said the team also struggled, especially in the come-from-behind win over Denmark when the top-ranked FIFA team was held to only six attempts. "I'm not going to talk about their weaknesses now because I don't want them to know what I'm thinking, Portugal coach Fernando Santos said. "But there are things we can explore. The game against Denmark showed some of their weaknesses." Belgium opened with a comfortable 3-0 victory against Russia and then needed late goals to defeat Finland 2-0 in its final group game. The Belgians beat Denmark 2-1 in between. Only Belgium, Italy and the Netherlands won all their group matches at Euro 2020. Portugal struggled to advance with a w

Ronaldo inspires every celebrity to be an 'undorser'

The Ronaldo episode is not likely to be the last, as many more celebrities may now want to make visible statements in support of causes close to their hearts

Euro Cup 2021: Ronaldo's record, Uefa Euro winners list, other key stats

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo is just one goal away from breaking Ali Daei's record of 109 goals. Check Euro 2020 key stats, Euro Cup winners and runner-ups lists, and other key stats here

Strikers search for goals, wing backs shine at Euro 2020

Kylian Mbapp scored the most goals in France last season, and Harry Kane did likewise in the Premier League. It's not just the fact that neither Paris Saint-Germain nor Tottenham won their leagues that links them. Nor the fact that both strikers are being talked about for transfers to new clubs after the European Championship. Although prolific for their clubs Mbapp with 27 league goals and Kane with 23 neither has managed to replicate their domestic scoring output at the European Championship. Kane managed only one shot on target in the three games for England. Mbapp had three for France. But neither striker found the back of the net. I think it's the world of a big player, England coach Gareth Southgate said, discussing Kane. Inevitably he's come through those periods and scored important goals for us and played exceptionally well. So it's a bit of a repetitive cycle. Perhaps it's a reflection of the toll of more gruelling pandemic-congested seasons on players' bodies. France

Cristiano Ronaldo becomes joint top-scorer in men's international football

Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo has become the joint top-scorer in men's international football

Cristiano Ronaldo's Coke snub kicks off meme fest; brands seize the moment

Fevicol, Zomato, ITC, Parle, Paytm and Amul all reacted quickly to Ronaldo's press conference stunt in what has come to be called 'moment marketing'

France's showdown against Portugal at Euro 2020 lacks punch

France advanced without kicking a ball, and Portugal can move on as well even with a loss on Wednesday. Hardly the heavyweight showdown many had hoped for in a match pitting defending champion Portugal against World Cup champion France, and Cristiano Ronaldo against Kylian Mbappe. Results on Tuesday guaranteed France a spot in the round of 16. A one-goal loss for Portugal should be enough as long as Hungary doesn't win in Germany in Group F's other game. Still, that's unlikely to alter France coach Didier Deschamps' way of thinking, and he is thinking only of first place. "We still hold the cards, Deschamps said. If we win then we'll finish first." The winner of Group F will play one of the third-place finishers. Portugal can still win the group by beating France, but it depends on what happens in Munich in the match between Germany and Hungary. Germany and Portugal have three points and the same goal difference, while Hungary is last with one point and must win to advance. Por

UEFA reminds teams of sponsorship obligations after Cristiano Ronaldo case

Ronaldo moved Coca-Cola bottles aside as he sat down to speak to the media on the eve of Tuesday's Group F opener against Hungary in Budapest, which Portugal won 3-0

Ronaldo, Pogba's actions highlight two key trends in top-flight football

Extreme focus on fitness in football and the presence of many Muslims playing in European teams got highlighted recently

'Brand dissidence': Ronaldo eschewing Coca-Cola has a lesson for companies

In taking on Coke, Ronaldo may have unintentionally set a precedent for other players

UEFA asks Euro 2020 teams to stop removing sponsor bottles

Reacting to a bottle-snatching trend at the Euros started by Ronaldo, players on the 24 teams have been asked to stop removing strategically placed sponsor drinks from the news conference platforms

Portuguese superstar Cristiano Ronaldo's snub costs Coca-Cola $4 billion

The star urged people to choose water over aerated drinks

Euros championship 'Bottlegate' spreads from Coca-Cola to Heineken

Manchester United's Paul Pogba on Tuesday moved a bottle of non-alcoholic Heineken NV beer out of sight when giving a press conference at the UEFA Euro 2020 tournament, where he's representing France

Footballer Cristiano Ronaldo knocks off $4 billion from Coca-Cola's value

Coke is a sponsor of the ongoing Euro 2020 in which the former Real Madrid star is leading Portugal.

Ronaldo scripts footballing history at Euros, becomes all time top-scorer

Portugal captain Cristiano Ronaldo made European Championships history as he became the all-time top scorer in the summer tournament after his record-shattering 10th and 11th finals goals in the opening Euro 2020 match against Hungary.Cristiano Ronaldo, who was playing his record fifth European Championship on Tuesday, overtook the previous mark of nine goals set by France's Michel Platini in Euro's all-time leading scorer list.On the list of active players, only France's forward Antoine Griezmann comes close to the five-time Ballon d'Or winner as he has scored six goals in the seven matches played at Euros.Ronaldo's late brace also saw him moving onto 106 international goals, three shy of footballing immortality - Iranian striker Ali Daei's all-time record international goals tally of 109.Juventus marksman also became the oldest player to score for Portugal at a major tournament (World Cup & Euros), aged 36 years and 130 days.Before Ronaldo stole the stage with a clinical ...

Ronaldo becomes first player to feature in five Euro Cup finals tournaments

Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo on Tuesday became the first player to feature in games at five Euro 2020 finals tournaments.

Euro Cup 2021 highlights: Portugal beats Hungary 3-0; Ronaldo scores twice

Raphael Guerreiro scores the first goal for Portugal while Ronaldo converts the penalty stroke. Check Euro Cup's match schedule on June 15 (Indian time), live streaming, telecast

Ronaldo becomes first player to feature in five Euro Cup finals tournaments

Portugal striker Cristiano Ronaldo on Tuesday became the first player to feature in games at five Euro 2020 finals tournaments