DUESSELDORF: Cristiano Ronaldo narrowly avoided being hit by a fan who jumped from the crowd to get close to the soccer star when Portugal played Georgia at the European Championship on Wednesday.
A video widely circulated on social media shows someone leaping over the top of the players’ tunnel at the Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen as Ronaldo headed to the locker room.
A safety steward rushed to shield the former Real Madrid and Manchester United star and other security staff raced toward the fan, who fell away out of sight.
A bemused-looking Ronaldo stops, but appears to be unharmed. Portugal lost the game 2-0.
Portugal’s Football Federation confirmed the incident, but did not comment. European soccer’s governing body UEFA said it was aware of the incident.
Ronaldo is one of the most famous sporting icons in the world with a massive fan base, which includes 632 million followers on Instagram and nearly 112 million on X.
During Portugal’s previous match against Turkiye in Dortmund on Saturday he was confronted on the field by four supporters who wanted selfies.
Ronaldo posed for one with a young fan who evaded stewards to get on the field in the 69th minute, but looked frustrated when approached by more fans later in the game and after the final whistle.
Portugal coach Roberto Martinez coach said after that game that the Al Nassr forward was fortunate not to have been harmed and raised concerns over his security.
“We all love a fan that recognizes the big stars and the big icons in their minds,” he said. “But you can understand it was a very, very difficult moment — if those intentions are wrong, the players are exposed and we need to be careful with that.”
UEFA have said safety and security in the stadium is the “ultimate priority” and that additional safety measures would be deployed to prevent selfie-seeking fans from entering the field.
The 39-year-old Ronaldo is widely-regarded as one of the greatest soccer players of all time alongside Lionel Messi, Pele and Diego Maradona.
He has won the Ballon d’Or for the best player in the world on five occasions and is a six-time Champions League winner.
He now plays for Saudi Arabian team Al Nassr and reportedly earns up to $200 million a year.
Ronaldo is the first player to appear at six European Championships and while he is yet to score at this year’s tournament, he holds the record for the most goals at the Euros with 14.
He could also become the oldest player to score at a Euros — surpassing Luka Modric, who set a record with his goal for Croatia against Italy on Tuesday at the age of 38 years and 289 days.
Despite the shock loss to Georgia, Portugal advanced to the knockout phase of Euro 2024 and will play Slovenia in the round of 16 in Frankfurt on Monday.
Cristiano Ronaldo just avoided being hit by a fan who jumped from the crowd to get to him at Euros
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Cristiano Ronaldo just avoided being hit by a fan who jumped from the crowd to get to him at Euros
- A safety steward rushed to shield the former Real Madrid and Manchester United star and other security staff race toward the fan
Barcelona pounces on Real Madrid stumble and regains lead of La Liga with a 3-0 win over Levante
- Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna
MADRID: Barcelona took advantage of Real Madrid’s stumble and regained the Spanish league lead with a comfortable 3-0 win over relegation-threatened Levante on Sunday.
Marc Bernal, Frenkie de Jong and Fermín López scored a goal each as Barcelona ended a two-game losing streak to get back in front of rival Madrid, which lost 2-1 at Osasuna on Saturday.
Barcelona moved one point ahead of Madrid, which had won eight in a row in the league before losing to Osasuna.
Barcelona was coming off a 2-1 loss to Girona in the league and a 4-0 loss to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinals.
“It was important to win and earn three points again,” Barcelona defender João Cancelo said. “Soccer gives you these opportunities to rebound and that’s what we did today, playing well again after two bad games.”
Barcelona had earned a clean sheet only once in its previous six games in all competitions.
Good start for Barcelona
Bernal scored from close range four minutes into the match at the Camp Nou Stadium. The 18-year-old Bernal had scored his first goal with the first team two rounds ago in a win over Mallorca.
“They had an early chance but my goal helped us settle and gain some confidence,” Bernal said.
De Jong added to the lead from inside the area in the 32nd and López sealed the victory with a beautiful long-range shot in the 81st, with the ball ricocheting off the post before going into the net.
Levante’s Australian goalkeeper Mathew Ryan kept Barcelona from adding the fourth with a pair of outstanding saves in a row in the final minutes, first off a header by Raphinha and then off a point-blank strike from López on the rebound.
It was the fourth straight defeat for Levante, which sits in 19th place. It is one point ahead of last-place Oviedo, which has a game in hand.
Levante has only one victory in its last eight matches.
Pedri entered the match in the 66th to make his return to action after an injury layoff.
Other results
Sevilla won 1-0 at 10-man Getafe for its second win in its last 10 matches in all competitions.
Djibril Sow scored a 64th-minute winner for the visitors. Getafe played a man down from the 26th after a straight red card for Djene Dakonam.
The result left Sevilla in 11th place, immediately above Getafe.
Third-place Villarreal, Barcelona’s next league opponent, can restore a three-point gap to fourth-place Atletico Madrid if it beats Valencia at home later Sunday. Atletico beat Espanyol 4-2 at home on Saturday.
