The Cristiano Ronaldo museum in Funchal, Portugal is an ode to best Portuguese footballer in a generation and quite likely one of the best footballers of all time.
It takes a very special player for a museum to be constructed in his honour, but Cristiano Ronaldo is in that illustrious bracket as one of the world’s best footballers.
If a plaque at the Museu CR7 in the Portuguese attacker’s hometown of Funchal is to be believed, the Real Madrid star is not just one of the best, but undoubtedly the best.
A plaque stating “Melhor Jogador Do Mundo” – “Best Player In The World” adorns a bronzed statue of the former Manchester United man and the facility is an ode to the three-time Ballon d’Or winner and his career.
Such are Ronaldo’s considerable achievements over the years that the museum had to be re-located from Rua Princesa D Amelia to a bigger building at Praca do Mar.
The outside of the building may well be slightly underwhelming and understated, but there is nothing bashful about what lies inside – a wall-to-wall testament to the Portuguese star’s ability and standing in the global game.
Ronaldo’s trophy collection was initially strewn around his Madrid home and it was the idea of his brother Hugo to house them in one place and make the museum.
Over 140 trophies take pride of place in the complex, ranging from his three Balon d’Or accolades and Champions League wins to silverware he picked up playing youth football.
The latest and one of the most notable additions came this summer following Portugal’s landmark triumph at Euro 2016.
Two mannequins of Ronaldo in his customary almost trademark pose are centre-stage, with the forward standing with a wide stance in his Portugal strip.
There are plenty of posters and images of the Real Madrid star, with fan mail showing the level to which he is adored the world over.
A commemorative football with “Ronaldo 324 Historico” etched into it pays homage to Ronaldo overtaking Raul’s record to become Madrid’s all-time top goalscorer.
The elaborate museum has several key sentiments.
The first clearly is a testament to just how good a player he is and has been – one of the best of a generation and worthy of being spoken about as a member of the all-time elite.
Where arch-personal rival Lionel Messi is more of an introvert, Ronaldo is clearly a big fan of himself and the museum is the perfect embodiment of his much-publicised vanity.
But, despite the Madrid man’s self-adoration, there is little doubting that he is loved in his hometown for the money he reinvests and donates to needy causes and the fact he is the most famous person ever to originate from Funchal.
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