Sporting Lisbon paid tribute to Cristiano Ronaldo with the release of their new third kit and chose his son to model the No 7 inspired shirt.
The jersey is black, with a gold streak overlaying the front in the shape of a No 7, and more gold detail on the collar and sleeves.
Ronaldo made 31 appearances with Sporting, scoring five goals, before his £12million move to Man United in 2003, where he went on to win three Premier League titles, a UEFA Champions League trophy and the Ballon d’Or award in 2008.
Fans reacted to the news on social media, with many marvelling over the tribute to football’s all-time top goal scorer, while others could not help to set lofty expectations on his son, Cristiano Jr.
‘That’s awesome to honour the goat’, wrote one user on X. Another said: ‘This is beautiful.’
A third commented: ‘Big legacy’, noting the pressure Cristiano Jr. faces to follow in his father’s footsteps.
‘There are numbers that leave a legacy because, behind them, there are people who build it day after day,’ the club explained.
Cristiano Jr. has, so far, followed his father throughout his playing career, having played for the respective academy sides of Ronaldo’s clubs since 2016.
The 14-year-old currently plays for Al-Nassr, joining the Saudi Arabian outfit in 2023 upon his father’s controversial exit from United.
Before then, he enjoyed stints at Real Madrid between 2016 and 2018, Juventus from 2018 to 2021, and one year with United between 2021 and 2022.
In 2019, it was reported that Cristiano Jr. had scored 58 goals in 28 games in Juventus’ Under nine youth team.
Speaking recently on his YouTube channel ‘UR Cristiano’ with Mr Beast, Ronaldo entertained the idea of playing with his son one day, after basketball star LeBron James shared the court with his eldest son Bronny for the LA Lakers in October.
Mr Beast said: ‘It’s crazy how LeBron is not playing with his son, are you looking to make that happen in the football world?’
‘Maybe, I’ll see. He is fourteen now,’ Ronaldo responded.
Mr Beast suggested: ‘Maybe get him to play when he’s 17, so you’d have to play for three more years.’
‘Let’s see, let’s see how my legs are doing, we’ll see,’ Ronaldo added.
However, the Portuguese striker admitted earlier this month that he may only play up to two more years, with many speculating that he may call it a day after the 2026 World Cup in the USA.
