Cristiano Ronaldo: Sixteen amazing stories that will change your opinion of the Juventus and Portugal superstar forever

CRISTIANO RONALDO has shocked the world and joined Juventus.

While at Real Madrid he was the world’s richest athlete, commanding a £450,000 weekly salary.

His blockbuster move to Juventus will see his paypacket go up to £500,000-a-week in Italy.

He also earns millions more in endorsements – from his lifetime Nike contract to deals with Sure, Egyptian Steel and numerous others.

But while he is raking in millions annually, the Portuguese superstar is also doing more than his fair share of charity work.

Here are 16 reasons why Ronaldo has one of the biggest hearts in all of sports.

1) His European Golden Boot

In 2011, Cristiano Ronaldo was awarded the European golden boot after scoring 40 goals under Jose Mourinho, although Los Blancos could only finish second in La Liga and crashed out at the semi-finals of the Champions League.

Rather than keep the award in his already packed trophy room – Ronaldo opted to sell it for charity.

The boot went on sale at auction and raised a stunning £1.2million.

The funds went towards building a number of schools in war-torn Gaza.

2) The Ballon d’Or

Ronaldo repeated the trick of selling off one of his trophies in October, selling off his 2013 Ballon d’Or trophy at a charity auction in London.

The gala dinner, to raise funds for the Make-A-Wish Foundation – which grants wishes to children with life-threatening and terminally-ill childen – was a roaring success.

Ronaldo’s Ballon d’Or made a massive £530,000 for the organisation.

3) An ambassador

Ronaldo continues to use his global platform as a force for good.

He is an ambassador for three major charities, Save the Children, Unicef and World Vision, and has spoken up for countless more.

At his 2014 Ballon d’Or speech, Ronaldo made a point of mentioning a group of children he had met with leukemia.

He has continued to speak out in those roles.

Last year, he recorded a message to the children affected by the Syrian conflict, calling them “true heroes” and stating “I am with you”.

He also made a secret donation which he asked Save the Children not to reveal.

Ronaldo’s Ice Bucket Challenge video – the viral sensation that raised hundreds of millions of pounds in 2014 – was seen by more than a hundred million people across his social media platforms.

4) Win bonuses

Ronaldo has also been very generous with giving up money earned from his exceptional performances on the pitch.

In 2013 he was named in the Uefa Team of the Year – earning a €100,000 (£89,000) bonus from the European governing body.

But rather than cash the cheque, he donated it to the Red Cross.

A year later the Portuguese star led Real Madrid to La Decima, their tenth Champions League victory, and picked up a £450,000 bonus from Los Blancos.

But Ronaldo again decided against cashing the money, instead sharing it among the three charities he is an ambassador for, Unicef, World Vision and Save the Children.

5) Blood and bones

The 32-year-old, compared to a growing number of his peers, is remarkably tattoo-free.

It’s all for a reason – Ronaldo regularly donates blood and has been involved in numerous campaigns to encourage others to do the same.

People with tattoos can donate blood, but are not able to do so immediately after getting new ink to reduce the risk of infection.

He said in 2015: “We can all make a difference by donating blood.

“Each donation can benefit up to three people in emergency situations and for long-term medical treatments… That’s why I am enthusiastic… to the importance of blood donation and to encourage people around the world to become lifelong blood donors and help save lives.”

Ronaldo also donates bone marrow after a former team-mate revealed his struggles.

Carlos Martins had a son who needed bone marrow and Ronaldo has been a donor since.

He said donating bone marrow is “something a lot of people think is a difficult thing to do but it’s nothing more than drawing blood and doesn’t hurt.”

6) Multi-million pound relief

Ronaldo again donated a huge amount of money in 2015, to the relief efforts for the Nepalese earthquake in April 2015.

The deadly natural disaster killed 9,000 people, injured 22,000 more and caused untold amounts of damage to the country.

Ronaldo is reported to have given £5MILLION to Save the Children’s disaster relief fund – although those reports have remained unverified and were denied by the charity.

He likely did make a donation, although the amount remains a mystery.

7) Helping a cancer centre

Ronaldo’s mother, Dolores Aveiro, survived breast cancer in 2007.

The former Manchester United man decided to thank the care centre in Portugal that treated his mum – adding £120,000 to their coffers.

8) Invitation to an orphan

In Lebanese capital Beirut, Real Madrid fan Haidar was orphaned when both of his parents were killed by a suicide bomber.

A local reporter got in touch with the Spanish giants and eventually the boy was invited to the club.

It lead to a heart-rending video of Ronaldo cuddling the youngster as he burst into tears of sheer delight to meet his hero.

9) Helping a young fan

Ronaldo was alerted to the story of  Nuhuzet Guillen, a nine-year-old with terminal cancer in 2009.

After hearing about the fan, Ronaldo decided to send a driver to bring the family to the hotel where the Real Madrid team were staying.

After emerging from the lift, he is reported to have joked to the youngster: “Don’t you want to say anything?”

He dedicated a goal to Nuhuzet, inviting him to watch the match in his private box at the Bernabeu, and after the match gave him his match shirt.

After speaking with his father, Ronaldo learned there was not much that could be done, although there was experimental treatment available in the US, which the star paid for.

When Nuhuzet’s condition worsened, Ronaldo offered to pay for all of his medication, costing hundreds of thousands, and treatment at a private medical centre.

Ronaldo paid that for more than a year, until the boy sadly passed away in March 2013.

10) Generous with his time

Ronaldo is often targeted by pitch invaders for selfies and pictures.

But rather than avoid the fans, CR7 knows he is an icon to these people and instead often stops for pictures.

On numerous occasions he has stopped fans from being dealt with by heavy-handed security.

Ronaldo also loves to interact with supporters inside stadiums, often staying to throw his shirt into the crowd, sign autographs and take pictures.

11) Helping another young fan

In 2014, the mother of another young fan, ten-month-old Erik Ortiz Cruz, asked Ronaldo to donate a shirt to the boy, who has cortical dysplasia.

The brain abnormality causes up to 30 seizures a day.

After hearing the full story Ronaldo paid £55,000 for initial brain surgery and pledged to cover the cost of any follow-up treatment – although none has so far been needed.

He also helped raise extra money for Erik by donating a signed kit to sell at auction.

12) Broken arm

During a pre-season friendly at Bournemouth, Ronaldo blasted one of his trademark free-kicks into the crowd at the Vitality Stadium.

Unfortunately for 11-year-old Charlie Silverwood, the shot broke the boy’s arm.

Club president Florentino Perez called Charlie, while Ronaldo gave him a signed Real Madrid shirt.

During a Champions League clash he also hit a shot into the crowd that made a young boy cry.

He leapt into the stand to give the youngster his training top.

13) Best friend ever

Super-agent Jorge Mendes named Ronaldo as his best man when he married Sandra in 2015.

And Ronaldo decided to reward his Portuguese friend handsomely, buying him a whole Greek Island as a wedding present.

The island is said to have cost almost £40MILLION.

14) Invitation for Fernando

Rangers legend Fernando Ricksen was suddenly diagnosed with motor neurone disease in 2013.

The former Netherlands international is now wheelchair-bound and relies on his wife and carers to look after him.

After his condition became well-known, Ronaldo contacted the Scottish title winner on social media to invite Ricksen and his family to a match at the Bernabeu.

Ronaldo also presented a shirt to the right-back after a Champions League win over Legia Warsaw in October 2016.

15) Super team-mate

After La Decima Real Madrid’s players not only got that win bonus from the club, but also a special gift from Ronaldo.

The player of the tournament decided to reward his team-mates with personalised watches from luxury watch brand Bulgari.

Each watch was personalised and said to have cost him £5,000 each.

16) Looking after big brother

Ronaldo’s father, Denis, was an alcoholic who battled for years with his addiction before his death in 2005.

Older brother Hugo Aveiro was heading down that same path, addicted to alcohol and drugs.

But as Ronaldo’s fame grew he decided to intervene – promising to dedicate La Decima to his older brother if he kicked his destructive habits.

He did and then came on to the pitch to share an emotional embrace with Ronaldo after full-time.

Hugo, who is ten years older than Cristiano, has since been pictured alongside Ronaldo at numerous events, including the 2016 Ballon d’Or ceremony.

Ronaldo is also godfather to Hugo’s son, while the Juventus and Portugal star decided to put his older brother in charge of the Ronaldo Museum in Madeira.

So next time someone mentions how much they hate Ronaldo’s preening on the field, just remember how much he helps out off it.