Now active as a YouTuber
Cristiano Ronaldo is chasing the next record
September 24, 2024, 10:13 a.m
Is his controversial commitment in Saudi Arabia not fulfilling him or is he already working on old-age insurance? Soccer star Cristiano Ronaldo is starting a new career at the age of 39 – as a YouTuber. He has already set himself a big goal.
Cristiano Ronaldo has broken another record – but this time far away from the pitch. The 39-year-old Portuguese’s new YouTube channel “UR Cristiano” reached around 57 million subscribers in the initial phase, and now there are around 63 million. Such a rapid increase in followers has “unprecedented” on YouTube, said social media expert Robin Blase.
With almost 20 million subscribers within 24 hours, Ronaldo secured a “Guinness World Record”, and the 2016 European champion proudly presented the certificate for this. However, the multiple world footballer does not yet have the account with the most followers: around 315 million subscribers follow the influencer “MrBeast”, who produces videos in which he challenges guests and offers a large amount of money, sometimes in the millions, as prize money.
Blase is an influencer with his own podcast, in which he talks as “Rob Bubble” about everything that concerns the internet. He explains Ronaldo’s success as follows: “The biggest factor is definitely his worldwide fame.” But his following on other platforms, especially on Instagram, also plays an important role. Another factor, according to Blase, is the very well-produced content of the published videos.
Ronaldo publishes these in different formats. Sometimes there are short videos in portrait format, sometimes there is a YouTube premiere. This is the announced release of a new video that viewers can watch together as soon as it is released. The amount of videos – over 30 in two weeks – is also rather unusual. The content is about both football and his relationship with his wife.
What makes Ronaldo fans tick?
Above all, it is of course the 39-year-old’s many fans who have made the account grow so quickly. Professor Judith von der Heyde researches fan culture in football. She says, just like football, the professional footballer’s YouTube account is about emotions. Even the name of the channel has a meaning. After all, “UR Cristiano” means “You are Cristiano”. And he says: “We are all one, we are together. And of course this creates a form of closeness,” says von der Heyde.
The content of the videos is also well suited to generating emotions in those watching, says the scientist. As an example, she cites a video in which the footballer explains why he burst into tears at the last summer European Championships. “He even brings us into his emotions,” explains von der Heyde. According to her, fans are interested in the authenticity and relatability of an icon.
It’s not just the classic football fans who go to the stadium. But also interested people who know Ronaldo’s name and asked themselves, what is his girlfriend like, why is he crying? “It’s just super exciting to take a look into people’s world.” Ronaldo himself also has an idea of why his fans think he’s great: “For many reasons: football, trophies, family, lifestyle,” he lists in a video.
An ambitious goal
With 132 goals in 214 international matches, the five-time world footballer is his country’s record player and record goalscorer. At the European Championships, however, he came under massive criticism because, even at the age of 39, he still played as a captain and regular player without making any visible contribution to the team in terms of sport.
So could starting a YouTube account be old age insurance? Blase doesn’t think that’s out of the question: “I think it’s very wise to consolidate himself now, while he’s still active – as an idol in this world and build a new career.”
But long-term success requires something more than just the star player’s popularity. “YouTube doesn’t just give you views and exploit you just because you’re famous,” Blase said. A viewer must first click on a video and watch it to the end for it to perform well. Ronaldo must also be guided by this.
According to his own statements, he recently broke the barrier of one billion followers in social networks. “We made history,” the Portuguese posted on Instagram, X, Facebook and Kuaishou, a Chinese Tiktok competitor, among others. But that’s not enough. Ronaldo wants to overtake YouTube star “MrBeast”. According to broadcaster “Giga”, that’s what he wants to achieve in the next two years. There are already live counters that compare the subscribers of the two YouTube channels in real time.
In his post to one billion followers, the professional from Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia promised his fans worldwide: “The best is yet to come and we will fight, win and make history together.”
