In the 2004 Euro Cup final, a 19-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo shed tears as the Portuguese team suffered a heartbreaking 0-1 loss to Greece. Hosted in Portugal, the tournament saw their dreams shattered by Angelos Charisteas’ decisive goal at Estadio da Luz. Ronaldo missed out on his first opportunity to clinch a major title with the national team, a moment etched in his career history.
In the 2008 Champions League final in Moscow (Russia), Cristiano Ronaldo cried, but they were happy tears. He and Man Utd defeated Chelsea in the final in dramatic fashion. Ronaldo opened the scoring with a header in the 28th minute, but Lampard tied the score for Chelsea late in the first half. The final match was decided in a penalty shootout. Although Ronaldo missed the penalty kick, the “Red Devils” won 6-5 in the tense shootout thanks to the excellence of goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar.
The Euro 2016 final was an emotional match for Cristiano Ronaldo personally. The Portuguese star cried after a clash with French national team player Dimitri Payet. That was the situation that caused Ronaldo to get injured and unable to continue playing.
Although the doctors treated him, Ronaldo was only able to play a few more minutes. CR7 left the field in the 25th minute and people once again saw how tears were rolling down the player’s face.
It was thought that without Ronaldo the Portuguese team would collapse, but coach Fernando Santos’ students won 1-0 in the 120th minute thanks to Eder’s golden goal. On the bench, Ronaldo burst into tears of joy. After many years, he finally won his first major title with the Portuguese national team.
On September 19, 2018, Ronaldo cried after receiving a red card in the Champions League match between Juventus and Valencia. In the 29th minute, Ronaldo lightly touched the head of opposing player Jeison Murillo. The referee Félix Brych then disqualified the Portuguese star. This is the first time that Ronaldo has received a direct red card in the Champions League.
At the 2022 World Cup, Ronaldo cried in humiliation as he entered the tunnel after the Portuguese team’s loss to Morocco in the quarterfinals. Ronaldo was sent off on the field in the 51st minute when the Moroccan team was winning 1-0. During his stay on the field, CR7 was unable to help Portugal turn the situation around. This is considered Ronaldo’s last World Cup, so it’s understandable that he burst into tears after the match.
In August 2023, Ronaldo burst into tears after leaving the field due to injury in the 2023 Arab Club Champions Cup final. Ronaldo scored a double in this match but was substituted in the 115th minute due to injury. However, after 120 minutes of play, he celebrated the championship with his teammates.
On June 1, 2024, Ronaldo shed tears again when the team he played for, Al-Nassr, lost to rivals Al-Hilal in the King’s Cup final in Saudi Arabia. In the penalty shootout, Ronaldo succeeded, but Al-Nassr lost 4-5 after three missed shots by Alex Telles, Ali Al Hassan and Meshari Al Nemer. The bitter defeat caused Ronaldo to collapse on the field and burst into tears. He scored 50 goals in 51 games this season but has yet to win a title.
