Influential Lives

Even though he was born with an otherworldly athletic gift, Cristiano Ronaldo’s early life was anything but easy. A poor kid from Portugal, he was expelled from school at age fourteen and then diagnosed with an abnormal heart condition. But through hard work and an intense desire to succeed, he soon blossomed into one of the greatest soccer players in the world. When he transferred to Real Madrid for a record-breaking salary, Ronaldo transformed himself into a worldwide celebrity, reinventing the ideal of an international sports icon. Sports fans will be inspired by this soccer superstar’s rags-to-riches story.